Great, I’m going to try and get a couple of the featured sakes to sip along with this time.
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Paul is one of the best direct to consumer sake providers in the U.S.! Highly recommend. He has an amazing rotating lineup and properly stores and ships his sake.
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I love all of the Hakurakusei, but they got a couple things mixed up here. The bottle pictured in the Daiginjo, but it is polished to 40% and made with Yamadanishiki, not Kuranohana. The 55% polished Kuranohana rice is used in their junmai ginjo that comes in a lighter, green glass bottle.
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Can’t stress enough that I’m not selling anything. If there’s a moderator or anyone who doesn’t like this post, I’m happy to delete it.
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Nah, you’re good. It’s not like that here, industry professionals are welcome
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Yep, I’d love sake food pairing suggestions.
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This Tarada Honke Musubi was remarkable stuff. Tart, creamy, fruity. Like nothing I’ve had before. I think in the US it’s currently available only in New York.
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Dang, they’ve got an awful lot of places that sell it in NY!
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Wonder if its any good?
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When and why does a sake price go up?
One of my favorite sakes, Fukucho “Moon on the Water” Junmai Ginjo, once about $36 has jumped to $49-$54 and is no longer widely available (no longer at K&L Wines).
Is this type of thing common or COVID?
Answer: In case anyone’s interested other than me, lol. I had a chat with a fella’ at True Sake. The higher prices & shortages are due to a shortage of shipping containers in Japan. There’s not enough workers to unload the containers here in places like Long Beach so they’re sitting. It’s causing a big headache for the Sake industry.
I hope my fresh Masumi Arabashiri Junmai Daiginjo Namazake “First Run” arrives unscathed. 
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Yes! Nova is making excellent, traditionally-brewed Saké using local (California) ingredients. I’m not just saying that because the brewer James is a friend I have worked with before. He’s studied at Inaba Shuzo in Ibaraki, loves the craft, knows what he’s doing, cares about tradition, and is constantly improving his own technique.
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Whoa! Thanks for sharing! I will definitely try to get my hands on some. Please let me know if you find it anywhere in SoCal!
You could ask the importer if they know of anyone.
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Yes, it is good. Buy it.
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OMFG, that’s a big boi! I’ve only seen bags like that of cheap, bulk sake (brewed domestically) for cooking and cheap hot Saké, but as @Starchtrade said, this is none of those things. Still, they sell it in a 6oz. Can at lots of places. Probably better to try that first before you buy 50oz.? Where did you find this??
Tokyo Central Yorba Linda. Good idea on testing out the smaller cans before jumping head first into 50oz. I like the idea of the resealable pouch.
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Sake Anyone?
Full Disclosure: This is MY new pop-up Sake Shop/Bar, located inside a craft brewery where I am also a brewer, but as my fellow Sake Lovers, I wanted to share this with you as transparently as possible, because I want it to be a place where we can get together and explore Sake.
My pop-up is called Sake Secret and it is both a bottle shop and by-the-glass bar. The menu is one I personally curate, and when I open this Thursday evening will have more than 30 kinds Sake, all brewed in and imported from Japan. The glass prices are typical bar prices but start at $6, and the bottle prices are on par with Japanese supermarket prices. The real savings will be on the extra high-end bottles, which I am slowly procuring, and yes, you can special-order pretty much any Sake available in the state as long as soon as I open accounts with all the distributors (about 90% done already).
I will also be giving guided tastings, hosting Meet-The-Brewer events once travel restrictions ease and launch parties for Sake that have never been sold in the U.S. before.
Here is my current product list for Thursday ( I add more weekly):
HeavenSake JUNMAI 12 720 ML
HeavenSake SAKE BABY! 300 ML
Tengumai YAMAHAI Junmai 720 ML
Kikumasamune DRY CUP 180 ML
Kikumasamune KIMOTO DG 720 ML
Inaba Shuzo STELLA JDG Muroka Genshu 720 ML
Inaba Shuzo MINANOGAWA JG Muroka 720 ML
Uchigasaki MICHINOKU ONIKOROSHI HJ 720 ML
Hakkaisan TOKUBETSU HONJOZO 720 ML
Amabuki YAMAHAI OMACHI Junmai “Once Cup” 180 ML
Tatenokawa PHOENIX JDG 300 ML
Tatenokawa 18 JDG 720 ML
Kikusui JG 300 ML/1.8 L
Kikusui PERFECT SNOW 720 ML
Kikusui FUNAGUCHI Nama Genshu Can 180 ML
Kamotsuru NAMA KAKOI Junmai 300 ML
Kondo Shuzo AKAGISAN Dry JG 300 ML
Suigei DRUNKEN WHALE TJ 720 ML
Nanbu Bijin TOKUBETSU JUNMAI 300 ML
Asahi Shuzo KUBOTA MANJU JDG 720 ML
Noguchi Naohiko HONJOZO Muroka Nama Genshu 720 ML
Sho Chiku Bai MIO Sparkling 5% 300 ML
Nagai Shuzo MIZUBASHO GJ 720 ML
Kenbishi KUROMATSU Honjozo 900 ML
Hakutsuru SAYURI Nigori 300 ML
Hakutsuru TOJI-KAN “BREWER’S PRIDE” 1.8 L
Hakutsuru CHIKA SAKE “One-Cup” 200 ML
Kobe Shushinkan FUKUJU Blue JG 720 ML
Shiragiku OHKAGURA 1.8 L
DASSAI 45 JDG 720 ML
Chiyomusubi GORIKI JG 720 ML
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