Top 10 – The Top Ten Sakes That Make You Think About Water

The final product of sake in a bottle is 80% water! So not only do you enjoy a nice buzz, but you hydrate at the same time! Or not! Nevertheless water is extremely important in the sake making process as well as the final drinking process. The better the water the better the sake so it has been said. Takeshi Morimoto is the owner of the Morimoto Sake Brewery, and he is also the head sake maker called a “toji.” And he is emphatic about water in sake, and he wants you to be emphatic too. His advice to you when sipping your favorite brew is “when you keep the sake in your mouth hold it and you can feel the water, which can be soft and silky or hard and crisp.” So herewith are ten sakes that will make you think about water in a new light:

10) Genbei Onikoroshi “4 Eyed Devil”
My word to describe this sake is “soft” and for good reason as it drinks smooth and soft! This is brewed in Kyoto where the water is softer and this translates to soft sakes. This is one soft devil

9) Kenbishi Kuromatsu “Black Pine”
Say hello to a sake that has a splendid “hardness” which can be attributed to being brewed in Kobe – a place that has a historically been known for hard water in Japan. The sake drinks smooth but hold the sake in the palate and feel for the edge of the water.

8) Taisetsu “Garden of the Divine”
For years this sake had a special minerality that always said Hokkaido snowmelt to me. If you fish around the flavors of this sake you can easily pull the water out from all of the components. Take a bite of this snowball and enjoy the wateriness come forth

7) Takenotsuyu Hakuro Suishu “Winter Water”
This brewery is so proud of their brewing water they actually sell it! And yes we sell it at the store. If you love your water that much you must have some special water and they do! Great water makes great sake and this Winter Water proves that point.

6) Yaegaki Mu “Nothingness”
When a sake is called “Nothingness” it means that it drinks like water! Well this brew lives up to that name, because it is as light as water. If you want a “watery” sake then try Mu. And let the nothingness take over.

5) Kirinzan “Flying Horse”
In my review for this amazing Junmai sake from Niigata I used the descriptive “dry water” because it drinks so clean and balanced but still has a wetness that tastes like great water. When you can taste the water and the sake still drinks dry it’s a good thing

4) Koshi no Kanbai “Vanishing Point”
This legendary brewery made Ginjo quality sake for the people for the first time for good reason the water and their brewing technique of making light and dry sake that some called clean. In my review for this sake I said it drank like flavored water. Yes the water vanishes too!

3) Hoyo Kuro no Hana “Fair Maiden”
This Fair Maden has a very low acidity, which makes the water component very detectable. Keep this sake in the mouth and let the feelings of velvety water flow. If water has a flavor this sake proves it!

2) Koshi no Tousetsouka “Snow Flower”
“Like-water” sakes are very desireable in the sake world, and this snow flower is as much like water as any in the biz. This sake is proof that the final product is 80% water as it drinks clean, prestine and of course “like water.”

1) Otokoyama Namacho
This can is a great way to taste the water in sake. From Hokkaido there is a little minerality that can be detected in the super light and clean fluid, and of course there is water galore! Take a sip of water and enjoy the sake