Joy of Sake
My friend Seb sold me his Joy of Sake ticket since he is having his wine tasting dinner with the NYC Wine Club. As the representive of the greater NYC Sake Enthusiasts Group, I check out this spectacular event at the Puck Building with a mission to sample some fine sakes. The minute I walked in to the main floor I knew immediately that I am in Sake Heaven!!!! I was politelty greeted by someone in a brewer robe handing me the calibration sake to start off my engine. The calibration sake is probably a cheap domestic sake....Ozeki. Then the waiter swung by with a hor d'euver that looks like Jello shot. It's actually foie gras shot made with sake!!! Nasty!!!! I went on a tour tasting other nibbles. Some are okay and while others totally waste of time to eat. The most savoring one is the cheese tray. Parmigiano-Reggiano wedge (hey, this ain't that cheap Kraft's parmesan cheese that comes in a green container) accompanied with a tidbit of quince paste. And the taste??? A match made in Joy of Sake!!! It washed down well with my cup of Okunomatsu Adatara Ginjo. After half hour of wolfing down the foods, some serious sake tasting! My first round is mainly the Junmais. The Yaegaki "Ki no Mu" is the best in this catagory. Moving on to Ginjo, I am now a fan of Okunomatsu Adatara Ginjo (Didn't I mentioned this before in the post?). The Kanto "Yuki no Bijin" or "Snow Beauty took home the medal for it's clean tasting and freshness.
Honestly, I was pretty buzzed by the 10th glass. After that everything else tasted the same. I blamed that the unavailability of spit bucket and water to rinse my glass. By the way, John Gauntner is really cool and easy going. I caught with him and drank together toward the end of the night.