From the best sake for beginners to the best hot sake, check out these picks.
Plus, learn what to look for when buying sake.
When shopping for sake, a good place to start is with price point.
Photo: True Sake, Umami Mart
Broadly speaking, highly polished ginjo and daiginjo sake tends to be more expensive.
These super-premium products are usually aromatic with prominent fruity and floral flavors.
More gently milled rice yields earthier, fuller-bodied sake.
Next, think about how you want to serve the sake.
Pick a hefty junmai with higher levels of acidity and umami.
Pop open a bottle of sparkling sake.
Here are our picks for the best sake brands to drink and cook with.
These days, Kamoshibito Kuheiji sake can be found on menus at Michelin-starred restaurants around the world.
The combination of a restrained nose, firm acidity and a bone-dry finish gives this junmai sake great range.
Subtle flavors of fruit and rice unfold across the palate, with herbal hints of anise in the center.
While lively and juicy, the sake is clean and dry, fantastic both chilled and slightly warmed.
The name translates as “drunken whale"an apt moniker, given the sake’s easy-drinking character.
Flavors of toasted rice and marshmallow rise to the fore, with hints of fruity nuance on the nose.
It’s lush and vibrant, with flavors of apple, melon and a hint of juicy berry.
Thesparkling sake in the same seriesis equally delightful.
A portion of the proceeds from the sake is donated to the Japanese Red Cross.
Dry and rich, the brew exhibits nutty flavors, with notes of chocolate and toasted sesame.
The yeast starter is made with the traditional kimoto method, a time-consuming and laborious technique.
The process results in greater depth and complexity, along with higher acidity.
There’s strawberry, vanilla and a hint of rose on the nose.
But you also don’t want to cook with a wildly expensive or overly characterful brew.
Ozeki Yamadanishiki Tokubetsu Junmai hits the mark on all counts.
Produced by one of Japan’s largest sake companies, the brew is widely available and budget-friendly.
Try matching the temperature of the sake to the dish.
Texture is another key consideration.
For a luxurious combination, pair fatty fish like yellowtail with an umami-rich and velvety-smooth sake.
An off-dry daiginjo offsets the briny flavor of caviar while highlighting the exquisite texture of the roe.
Most sake is meant to be drunk young, within about a year of its release.
It should be stored in a cool place away from direct light.
Melinda Joeis a food, sake and wine writer based in Tokyo, Japan.
She is a columnist withThe Japan Timeswhere she writes about drinks.
She is a sake panel chair for the International Wine Challenge.
