EPICURE
Old is gold
Up to seven years of ageing has made the Tengumai Ginkouburi a rare and complex sake
Tengumai Ginkouburi sake: A 35% Junmai Daiginjo aged for between five and seven years
Young and fresh may trump old and mellow, not only when it comes to the job market these days but also for something a little more mundane like sake. That’s because sake drinkers quaff only freshly brewed nihon-shu.
This generally accepted libatory convention is guided by long tradition. For centuries, sake – like beer – has been brewed to be drunk fresh, usually within the year.
But that doesn’t mean sake can’t be aged like fine wine, because when the years are piled on, it not only becomes extra special but especially delicious.
Tengumai is one of those rare sake labels that makes aged sake or koshu.
Tengumai has been produced by the Shata Shuzo brewery in western Japan’s Ishikawa prefecture since 1823. For 200 years, pure spring water from Mount Hakusan, one of Japan’s three holy mountains, has infused locally grown Gohyakumangoku rice to make sake so good that mythical creatures apparently danced in delight.
You see, the first-generation owner of the brewery imagined that Tengu, a long-nosed goblin in Japanese folklore, drank his sake and enjoyed it so much that he danced (in kanji, the Japanese script, “Tengumai” literally means “heavenly dog dancing”).
The Tengumai brewery in Bomaru, Ishikawa
But having “mythical status” is not the only thing that distinguishes Tengumai.
The brewery produces sake using the Yamahai method, which involves fermentation using natural lactic bacteria, as opposed to commercial lactic acid.
This yamahai way is more laborious and requires extra time and care. It lengthens the fermentation process by two weeks and is one reason why only about a tenth of breweries in Japan practise it.
But yamahai also makes sake that is richer and more complex, with a longer, more satisfying finish.
As a rule, Tengumai’s yamahai sake is aged for one-and-a-half years before going on sale.
The flagship sake, the Tengumai Ginkouburi, is held back even longer before release – this 35% Junmai Daiginjo is aged for between five and seven years.
The “gin” in Ginkouburi refers to ginjo, while the “kouburi” means crown.
Ginkouburi’s umami is the crown jewel of this aged yamahai sake. Pour it into a wine glass to savour its unique fragrance of rice with a light floral note.
On the palate, it bursts with flavour. Silky and semi-dry with a hint of overripe melon, it is full-bodied with a long finish notable for its attendant alcohol.
Elegantly structured, it goes best with cooked seafood or white meat. It also matches slightly spicy vegetables surprisingly well.
The refinement from a minimum five years of ageing is obvious. When it comes to this sake, old is definitely more appealing than young.
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