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Post by クレイグ (Kureigu) on Mar 19, 2015 10:40:27 GMT -4
泉 (Izumi) means "spring" in Japanese. The water source, not the season. Izumi is the brand name for the sake produced by the Ontario Spring Water Sake Company. They are based in the Distillery Historic District in Toronto, where the movie "Chicago" was filmed. All Izumi sake is junmai (no brewer's alcohol added) and most are namazake (unpasturized). The last time my friend from Toronto came to visit, I asked her to bring a couple of bottles for me to try. She brought five bottles: Nama-nama, Nama-cho, Genshu-nama-nama, Teion sakura and Nigori Junmai. Most sakes are pasturized twice, once in the tank, once in the bottle. "Namachozo" (nama-cho) sake means it was only pasturized once, in the bottle. The opposite is "namazune" - pasturized in the tank. "Nama-nama" their term for namazake - completely unpasturized. "Genshu" is undiluted - no spring water is added. So far, I have tried the nama-cho and the Genshu. Both are excellent. The Genshu is surprisingly sweet. Both are very smooth. The flavours are quite bold, complex, almost savory, but not overpowering. Sorry, that is a vague description. The nama-cho is gone, but I will taste the Genshu again in front of a keyboard and follow up the thread. Next time I am near an LCBO, or the Distillery, I would buy either of these again.
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Post by BostonGo on Mar 19, 2015 13:56:08 GMT -4
This Canadian brewer knows the Western preferences.
The addition of brewer's alcohol (a neutral spirit often made from black-strap molasses) is used, despite the marketing verbiage, to tone down the flavors and make the sake more nuanced and elegant.
Junmai are by their nature more often going to have a fuller mouthfeel and more pronounced flavors, which would include the sweetness which would be diluted by the introduction of brewers alcohol or water.
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