Pairing wine and sake with my food
Conventional pairing versus “reverse” pairing
I do pairings two ways. The first is the conventional way which is to make recommendations based on the menu. The second is what I call “reverse” pairing - if you have a bottle of wine that you have been saving for a special occasion, let me know what it is and I will do some research and design a dish to match it.
Grazing feasts versus paired courses
Most ‘Western’ dining formats typically comprise 3 courses, and typically the pairing will therefore be, a white wine a red wine and perhaps a dessert wine. If there are more than 3 courses, you can be a little more experimental with the pairings - in a restaurant, you might be offered a ‘wine flight’ to try a glass of wine with each course.
However, many of my Japanese menus are grazing feasts - with phases of food rather than individually plated courses. As such, there are many different ingredients and cooking techniques on the table at any one time and this means that pairing drinks is less possible or relevant.
Wine
If you have chosen a menu with lots of dishes, the main thing is to choose styles of wine that go well with Japanese food, which has delicate flavours and light sauces. In general, I don’t recommend big, heavy, oaky and buttery white wines with sushi or sashimi - although they can pair well with more robust flavours like grilled black cod.
In terms of grape varieties, try Riesling (dry), Gewurztraminer or Viognier - all typically work well with Japanese food. For cooked fish dishes, if you like white Burgundy, you might try a lightly oaked white Rioja, or I often enjoy Albarino with Japanese dishes.
There is even one wine made in Japan, in the foothill of Mount Fuji, made from grapes. A little more expensive but very good quality and worth a try:
Recommended Sake
Sake is sometimes described as rice wine, but it is in fact brewed, more like beer.
The main brand of sake that I stocked in my restaurant was Akashi Tai, a brewery in the fishing town of Akashi, near Kobe. I got to know the President of the company and always recommend their sake because it is very good quality and consistent. These are listed in ascending order of expense (higher quality ingredients and additional labour that goes into the production… but that’s for another blog post!)
Honjozo Genshu - my personal favourite as an all rounder, can be served warm or chilled
Daiginjo Genshu - best served chilled
Junmai Daiginjo Genshu - best served chilled
Aside from traditional sakes that accompany savoury food, there are a couple of variants to consider.
Sparkling sake - a very unique drink and delicious as an alternative to Champagne, but lower in ABV.
Shiraume Ginjo Umeshu - I often recommend Umeshu, instead of a dessert wine. It is sake infused with plums. It’s a liqueur, a bit like damson gin, I suppose, but not as strong (typically 14% ABV)
Japanese Beer
Asahi
Asahi 0.0%
Kirin
Sapporo
Hitachino Nest
Japanese spirits
Nikka Gin
Nikka Coffey Malt (nothing to do with coffee!)
Takara Yokaichi Imo (Sweet Potato Shochu) 25% ABV