Old times' sake

Sakes made with age-old Japanese methods are proving popular with Australian sommeliers and drinkers, writes MAX ALLEN.

- MAX ALLEN

Yukino Ochiai is talking about umami, the fifth basic taste after sweet, sour, salty and bitter. She describes umami as the “double-bass” of the flavour orchestra: a deep sense of savoury deliciousness on the tongue. But she’s not talking about the food of Japan. She’s talking about the experience of drinking sake made using age-old brewing methods.

Ochiai is a Sydney-based sake importer and international sake judge. In 2017, she was named Australia’s first female Sake Samurai, the highest honour bestowed by the Japan Sake Brewers Association, for her work in sake education and promotion. The perfect person, then, to share insights into the small number of sakes still made in Japan using the traditional kimoto and yamahai processes of creating a starter culture.

“Chefs love kimoto and yamahai,” says Ochiai. “They love how well these sakes go with food, because of the higher acidity and earthier flavours. And higher umami.”

Sake is brewed using rice, water, yeast and koji, an aspergillus mould culture that converts the starch in the rice into fermentable sugar. After the rice is steamed and the koji is added, sake brewers also introduce lactic acid to the mash, creating a slightly sour environment for the yeast to ferment properly.