How to Get the Full Sake Experience in Tokyo Japan

In Japan, not only is sake the national drink (with its own holiday on October 1), it is an essential symbol of Japanese culture and a meaningful part of Japanese tradition. Here’s how it is made: washed rice is steamed and spread on a table. Koji, often called the national fungi of Japan, is added to the wet rice, and the whole mixture is added to a barrel of water to ferment for around 21 days.

Sake resembles white wine in appearance. The color ranges from transparent to slightly yellow. Sake is bottled with an alcohol content of 13%–17%, slightly higher than wine. Sake has a mild, sweet taste with slight acidity and a trace of bitterness or astringency to balance the flavor profile.

Explore the history of sake and get tips from Context expert Rafael. Soon, you'll be ready to dive into this world of fermented flavor.

Sake's Cultural Significance

"The soul of Japan gravitates around the culture of rice."

Sake, or nihonshu as Japanese people refer to it, is a drink made of three components: rice, water and koji, a type of mold spore needed for the fermentation process. Rice cultivation was initially introduced in Japan through China, somewhere around the Yayoi Period (from 300 BC until 300 AD). This single grain significantly transformed all the culture in the island; from becoming the staple food and a key ingredient in derived beverages, to creating rituals for harvesting (festivals) and being used for materials of construction and craftsmanship.

"From the late Nara Period in 700 AD, there was a proper establishment of a brewing office named Miki-no-Tsukasa to control the production for the Imperial Court. As sake is produced by fermentation, the control of the bacteria in combination with diverse degrees of rice polishing and the addition of alcohol became more refined. Today, you'll find a kaleidoscopic realm of contemporary Japanese sake culture."

Types of Sake

There are five main types of sake: Junmai-shu, Ginjo-shu, Daiginjo-shu, Namazake, and Honjozo-shu. The main difference between the types of sake is the percentage of milled rice versus the percentage of rice at its original size.  Each style of sake carries a unique taste. With all these flavors, it is crucial to approach sake tasting with an open mind.

One of the best ways to taste sake in Japan is on a guided sake tour. A guide can not only help you read the labels and understand the technicalities of the different kinds of sake, they will also help you calibrate your palate to the nuances of sake tasting so that you can gain a greater appreciation for this Japanese staple. More importantly, they will enhance the drink with meaning by connecting it to stories about Japanese culture and sake tradition.

Choosing a Sake Brewery

If you want to experience both the craft and culture of sake, you can visit one of Tokyo’s sake breweries. Established in 1702, Ozawa Brewery is the oldest sake brewery in Tokyo. The brewery is famous for its brand “Sawanoi.”

"If visiting Tokyo, you can find some interesting breweries such as the Ozawa Brewery in Ome City, western part of Tokyo. Their traditional brewing method uses large buckets made of Japanese cedar, which evidently has an impact on the notes of their sakes."

Another brewery to visit on your trip to Tokyo is Ishikawa Brewery, a 120-year-old sake and beer brewery that produces “Tamajiman” sake and craft beers. The brewery is located on the west side of Tokyo, around fifty minutes away from JR Shinjuku station by train. The brewery complex consists of a historical beer museum, a sake shop, an Italian restaurant, and an onigiri (rice ball) restaurant. The area retains a sophisticated and traditional atmosphere, as the old Japanese warehouses and classic sake cellar are still in use.

"I have recently tasted sakes from the region of Chiba, just next to Tokyo. More specifically those produced by a brewery named Kidoizumi Sake Brewery in Isumi City, Chiba Prefecture. Their junmai (using non-polished white rice) named “Tsurukame” is extraordinary, with sweet-acid notes closer to those found in a vintage dessert wine. Their genmai (also non-polished brown rice) “Ibuki” from 2002 might be one of the most unique experiences I have ever tasted. It certainly made me re-state my appreciation for Japanese sake."

Selecting Sake for Beginners

Like two bottles of wine, two bottles of sake can be dramatically different in price. You can get a drinkable bottle for less than $10 USD, and you can spend up to $300 USD on a premium bottle. The variety in style and the dramatic difference in price range emphasize the importance of trying several types of sake. To find the sake you like the most, you need to be intentional about trying different styles and various price points.

"My advice is to try as many sake variations as possible, aiming to understand which notes and flavors appeal the most to you. Paring is also an interesting game in drinking culture. Japanese sake pairs perfectly with sushi and pickled vegetables such as iburigakko (pickled radish with a smokey taste), but it can certainly be enjoyed with certain types of cheese or meat."

Tasting sake is a full sensory experience. The first step (aside from selecting a sake and pouring it into a glass) of tasting sake is looking at the sake’s color and consistency. Next, smell the sake – floral, tropical, and earthy aromas are all a good sign, but if you smell burnt and musty notes, that could mean the sake is oxidized and unsuitable for drinking.  Earthiness, smokiness, and rice-centric aromas indicate more rustic styles, while fruity and floral aromas characterize the more refined sakes.

"Social rituals of people in general spin around food and drinking culture, hence enjoying sake in Japan will certainly lead to friendly conversations with local people and their stories."

Japanese Sake Vocabulary

The aroma of sake is often broken down into three experiences: the uwadachi-ka, the fukumi-ka, and the modori-ka. The uwadachi-ka, or initial smell, is the fragrance of the sake before tasting. The second part, fukumi-ka, describes the new fragrances that are introduced by breathing through the nose while sake is being tasted. Finally, the modori-ka is reserved for those aromas present in the finish of the sake after you've sipped it. These are often the most subtle aromas.

After appreciating the color and smelling the sake, it is time to take a sip. To best taste sake, you should take a small sip and swirl the sake in your mouth. Make sure you breathe through your nose to experience the fukumi-ka aromas of the sake. You are tasting to see if the aromas are balanced to the taste. A balanced sake will feel cohesive through both the smell and taste. For example, a floral aroma is matched by a floral flavor. When the flavor is unexpected given the aroma, the sake is not balanced.

Japanese tasters often assess the flavor notes of a particular sake across five flavor categories. These are karami (dryness), nigami, (bitterness), shibumi (astringency or tartness), amami (sweetness), and sanmi (acidity). Although there are countless other flavors to be explored in the world of sakes, this approach provides a manageable number of components to identify across many different sakes. Although taste is ultimately subjective, using these categories helps sake tasters compare and communicate advice about sake.

Sake Tasting in Tokyo

If you want to immerse yourself in the world of sake, book Context’s Evening Sake Tasting Tour.

The tour is your chance to explore the world of Japanese sake with a local expert on a two-hour Tokyo sake tasting experience. You’ll visit an off-the-beaten-path neighborhood of Tokyo, frequented mainly by locals, and learn about the most important aspects of the sake production process, including brewing techniques, current trends, and tasting techniques, while gaining a greater appreciation for this celebrated beverage. Regardless of your level of sake knowledge, you will find this walk both informative and fun.

Your sake tasting experience occurs in a local bar in Shitamachi (Tokyo's old downtown). Away from the bustling city lights and crowds of tourists, you’ll sample some of Japan’s distinctive sake, learning about its history, food pairing, and the high-quality standards maintained by local breweries. The expert will select five types of quality sake for you to sip (the guide will already know, but we highly recommend the delicious cherry blossom sake). Each sake will be paired with small Japanese appetizers called Otsumami.

You will end your experience with a greater knowledge of Japanese sake that you can take home and put to good use when buying or drinking sake anywhere in the world.

About Rafael: 

Rafael has lived in Tokyo for over 18 years and is currently a correspondent for Italian architecture magazine Domus. He received his Masters degree and Ph.D. from the University of Tokyo under the guidance of Prof. Kengo Kuma. He is currently a Senior Guest Researcher at The University of Tokyo (Kuma Kengo Laboratory) and guest researcher at Keio University, besides being a visiting lecturer in other architecture institutions in Japan and abroad. He is a member of the JIA (Japan Institute of Architects), and he co-founded his architecture and urban design practice STUDIO WASABI in 2013. In 2017, he became Director of Casa Nano, an art residency in Tokyo, part of Casa Wabi Foundation.