Update 4:
With Spring wrapping up, we wanted to catch some of the livelier Spring Sake releases before they were gone.
Sommelier Courtney Kaplan is as knowledgeable and hospitable as always, introducing us to Takachiyo, a brewery out of Niigata, Japan who has been releasing a series of Sake “Chapters” in Japan. They are all brewed the exact same way, all polished to 59%, all unpasteurized, but made with different varieties of Rice. Fascinating!
We were going to start with Chapter One, Ipponjime, made with a local Niigata Ipponjime Rice, however, given that we wanted to try a variety of Sake this evening, she recommended we start with Chapter Two, where it gets more interesting.
Takachiyo 59 - Chapter Two - Aiyama - Muroka Nama Junmai Ginjo Sake (Niigata, Japan):
Made with a rare Aiyama Rice varietal, this Takachiyo 59 was wonderful! There’s a lively, almost fizzy quality to each sip, almost fruity. A fantastic Spring Sake to start this evening. 
One thing is pretty clear over our repeated visits, and it is that their strength is in the amazing Sake program and Sake Menu. But we wanted to see if the kitchen improved, so we took a chance:
Nankotsu (Chicken Cartilage) Skewer:
It doesn’t matter if you use quality ingredients (like their advertised Jidori Chicken), if you can’t execute: Here the Chicken Cartilage Skewer is dense, chewy with a generic Tare Sauce slathered on top. Terrible. 
Hatsu (Chicken Hearts) Skewer:
It got worse: This had a bad funk, as in starting to go bad / rotting type of funk. 
Sunagimo (Chicken Gizzard) Skewer:
Their Chicken Gizzard Skewer was the same: Clearly tasting like it was not fresh at all, this wasn’t some special flavoring, this was bad. 
The fact that they charge $5 - $8 per skewer is ridiculous, making it the most expensive Yakitori skewers in town, but they are easily the worst Yakitori we’ve had in L.A. / O.C. Period. Just baffling that some writers from the L.A. Times and Eater actually list Tsubaki for the food (and not the Sake).
A humble, straightforward place like Shin Sen Gumi Yakitori does much better skewers at $2 - $3 for similar cuts of meat (and they’re considered passable normally). 
With that horrific disturbance out of the way, we continued with the Sake…
Takachiyo 59 - Chapter Three - Aimachi - Muroka Nama Junmai Ginjo Sake (Niigata, Japan):
This 3rd release from Takachiyo, “Chapter Three,” uses a blend of the rare Aiyama Rice and Omachi Rice, but keeps everything else the same.
Just with the slight change of blending in another Rice, the Aimachi is far different from the Chapter Two, Aiyama: This still has an almost fizzy quality, but it’s earthier, funkier, heavier (in a good way), but still quite Spring-light. Really delicious! 
Shichida - Spring - Muroka Nama Genshu Junmai Ginjo Sake (Saga, Japan):
But the reason we were here: Trying the 2019 Spring limited release for Shichida Muroka Nama Genshu Junmai Ginjo Sake! Ever since @beefnoguy introduced this to us a couple years ago, we’ve been smitten and have looked forward to the Spring release of this each year.
The Shichida 2019 Spring release is awesome: There’s a natural effervescence, like you’re drinking some carbonated drink (but it’s naturally so), it tingles the taste buds, with big flavor, super bright and fun. Seriously one of the funnest Sake you might have ever tried! (Shibumi in DTLA also has this; not sure if Shunji or Mori carry it for Spring (@attran99 @TheCookie @J_L and others).)
Ama No To - Heaven’s Door - Nama Tokubetsu Junmai Sakae (Akita, Japan):
We finished with Ama No To “Heaven’s Door”, which was still lively, but nothing like the party that is Shichida Spring Muroka Nama Genshu. This was clean, easy to drink, there’s an almost fruit quality to each sip and a nice way to finish things off.
Tsubaki
1356 Allison Avenue
Los Angeles CA 90026
Tel: (213) 900-4900
I’ll try a few more Takachiyo Chapters if I see them on the menu, but with such a limited reason to go (not the food), we really don’t drive out there that often.
