Kanzake Chronicles #1: Tamagawa Time Machine

For this series, I’ll be posting my notes and experiences playing around with warming sake using a wide variety of vessels and temperatures.

This was a fun one! The sake changed dramatically depending on the method - everything from pure umami miso soup to caramel sticky toffee pudding. It really highlights the diversity of hot sake within a single bottle.

90C Water Bath

Tin:

Pure miso soup. The sweetness drops off a lot and the umami takes hold. Brown chicken stock, miso, dashi. The sweetness creeps in on the finish, but this is one of the more “brothy” sakes I’ve had warm.

Would pair with a starter, maybe alongside miso soup or chawanmushi.

Copper:

Similar to the above but much brighter and less rich. More like typical chicken stock and white miso soup versus brown chicken stock and aka miso soup. Still good, but don’t see a reason why I would serve it this way versus using the tin chirori instead.

60C Water Bath:

Tin:

Up front, the sake displayed the full range of sweet, caramel, toffee notes. Rich brown sugar, molasses, dark caramel, burnt toast, sticky toffee pudding. The aftertaste was pure umami - miso, mirin, and brown chicken stock. Altogether extremely complex and delicious.

Would pair well with a dessert course - creme brulee, flan, toffee pudding, pineapple upside down cake, etc.

Copper:

This didn’t work for me. It was very one-note and lacking the richness and complexity of the other options. Like it wanted to be the 60C tin offering, but didn’t live up to it. The same flavors, but much thinner, acidic, and bright, which did not work with the flavor profile.