Place: Sushi Central
3500 Overland Ave. #100
Los Angeles, CA 90034
Fee: $75.00
Time:6:30pm~9:00pm
Style: Sit-down 6 course Kaiseki Style dinner with 6 different premium sake and unique sake cocktails
Lecture: by Yuji Matsumoto
To reserve call or email me. 20 people max.
email:ymatsumoto001@gmail.com
Phone: (310) 202-6866
Fax: (310) 836-1580
I know economy is down and we all feel stressed out these days.
So, I plan to have a great sake tasting event with affordable price $38.00.
I will provide food and 8 different kinds of premium sake for you.
Please come and join me especially people have not had good days recently.
There are only 4 spots left so hurry up!!
To sign up click here for more information.
Pick of the month
“Mizubasho Ginjo” from Gunma prefecture
The acidity, delicious flavors, and aromas are all well balanced in this sake. Simply superb! Mizubasho Ginjo goes really well with most poultry dishes as well as richly flavored fish dishes. 
The first thing to decide is what kind of food you are trying to match the sake with. Sake, just like wine, is definitely something that goes with food.
A good Match with Beef: Try pairing beef with the Junmai types of sake, which is a pure sake, or the Junmai Kimoto-zukuri type, which is a pure sake brewed in the traditional way using no artificial additives. Either variety of sake from the regions of Kyushu, Tohoku, Kanto, Hokuriku and Nada is particularly recommended.
A good Match with Poultry: Try pairing chicken with the Ginjo type of sake, which is a premium grade sake. Brands of this grade of sake from the regions of Hiroshima, Niigata, Nada, Hokuriku, and Kanto are particularly recommended.
A good Match with Seafood: Try pairing fish with a Ginjo or a Daiginjo (super premium) types of sake. These varieties of sake from the regions of Niigata, Hiroshima, Shikoku and Kyoto are particularly recommended.
Certainly, the kind of sake you choose should also depend on the flavors and method of cooking employed for each dish. But as a start, try picking something from the above recommendations.
Just like the labels on wine bottles, sake labels contain various information from the makers. At a first glance, the labels may seem to be difficult to understand or even beyond comprehension. But once you know the basics, they will help you find out the overall characteristics of the sake.
Tokutei Meisho or Special Designation: This gives you a rough idea as to how finely the rice has been polished (e.g. a polishing rate of 60 % means 40 % of the surface has been polished away, leaving 60 % of the grain intact), and whether or not distilled alcohol has been added.
Date of Manufacture: Strictly speaking, this is not the date when the sake was manufactured but when the sake was bottled. How long sake lasts depends on storage conditions. But it is recommended to choose sake manufactured within the last year. If the sake is in a clear bottle, the contents may slightly deteriorate, with the color turning yellowish, due to exposure to ultraviolet rays. However, if the sake is a Muroka type (explained below), it is normal for this kind of sake to have a yellowish tint.
Brewing Methods and Techniques: When a sake is made through a specific brewing process, the method is noted accordingly on the label. Below are examples of typical methods that are widely employed
Nama-zake: Sake usually goes through two heatings for pasteurization. The first time before it is cellared, and a second before it is bottled. “Namazake” does not go through this pasteurization process, which means that the yeast is still alive and active. This type of sake is very aromatic and has a refreshing taste, but does not last as long as other varieties. It needs to be stored in a refrigerator.
Nama-zume: Regarding the aforementioned pasteurization processes, this type of sake goes through the first heating step before it is cellared, but does not receive another before it is bottled.
Nama-chozo: This one is opposite of Nama-zume type. Namely, it is cellared without being pasteurized, but it does receive a heating treatment before being bottled.
Genshu: Most sake has some water added to drop the alcohol level to between 15 and 16 %. But Genshu has no water added and consequently contains from 18 to 20 % alcohol. Since this type of sake is slightly carbonated, it has a mildly tangy taste.
Muroka: Most breweries filter their sake through carbon to eliminate various impurities and contaminants that find their way in during the brewing process. Since the Muroka type is unstrained, it retains natural aromas, rich flavors, and a full body.
Kimoto-zukuri: This type of sake is brewed using traditional methods which were established during the Edo Period (1603 - 1867 A.D.). Most modern types of sake use commercially produced organic compounds during the fermentation process. This regular method is called “Sokujo-moto.” Kimoto-zukuri, on the other hand, does not have anything artificial added. Instead the breweries grind rice with a paddle and utilize naturally occurring lactic acid bacteria to create the yeast mash. It takes more time and work than Sokujo-moto, but Kimoto-zukuri contains more amino acids and tastes more robust.
Yamahai-zukuri: This is a simplified Kimoto method.
Meigara: The brand name.
Ingredients: If only rice and rice malt are listed, it is Junmai-shu or pure sake. Otherwise, distilled alcohol is listed here under the ingredients.
Rice Polishing Rate: This number tells you how much of the rice grain remains intact (starting with brown rice grain at 100%). According to the regulations, the rice polishing rate for Daiginjo is 50 % or less, Ginjo is 60 % or less, and Hon-jozo is 70 % or less.
Alcohol Percentage: Japanese sake contains 16 to 17 % alcohol on average. Genshu, which does not have water added, contains about 18 to 20 % alcohol. In recent years, breweries have started producing various kinds of lower alcohol sakes. These varieties contain about 14 % alcohol, which is about the same level as most wines, and taste light and refreshing.
Additional Information on the English Label: Each brewery has recently started to give more comprehensive information so that consumers are better informed. Flavor charts, proper temperatures for serving, suggested pairings of a certain type of sake with a particular food dish, are just some examples. English labels, therefore, are very informative.
