Sake scene: How, where and when to taste Japan's soul drink

You’ve seen it with your foreign friends on their first visit to an izakaya — wondering why the sake is flowing out of the glass into a strange-looking square box; trying to figure out the many labels; and then confidently ordering “sake,” to which the waiters respectfully reply “which one?” Yes, the sake in this country is just as deep as its oceans.

The first and foremost thing you need to know about Japanese sake — or nihonshu — is that it’s primarily broken down into two very large groups – seishu (清酒: clear sake), the one you can drink, and ryorishu (料理酒: cooking sake), the one I recommend you don’t. The word “sake” in itself is often misunderstood among non-Japanese people as the name for seishu, or more commonly known as, nihonshu (日本酒). The kanji for sake (酒) means just “alcohol” — including your beer.

In this guide, readers will get to know different variations of the drink, manners associated with it, five recommended spots in Tokyo to sip it — and my personal favorite three nihonshu to try! 

Know your sake: Variations

Below are the different grades of nihonshu from highest to lowest. The grades are determined by the polished ratio of each grain of rice, known in Japan as seimai-buai (精米歩合). Generally, the lower the number, the purer the brew (and the more it’ll cost you). Also, a lower percentage often results in a fruitier nihonshu (not necessarily sweeter), whereas a higher percentage will taste more like rice.

• Junmai Daiginjo-shu (純米大吟醸酒: Pure rice, Extra Special brew) – Rice Polishing Ratio, or senmai-buai (SB), below 50%
• Daiginjo-shu (大吟醸酒: Extra Special brew) – SB, below 50%
• Junmai Ginjo-shu (純米吟醸酒: Pure rice, Special brew) – SB, below 60%
• Ginjyo-shu (吟醸酒: Special brew) – SB, below 60%
• Tokubetsu Junmai-shu (特別純米酒: Rice, Koji rice) – SB, below 60% or produced by special brewing method
• Tokubetsu Honjozo-shu (特別本醸造酒: Rice, Koji rice, Distilled alcohol) – SB, below 60% or produced by special brewing method
• Junmai-shu (純米酒: Pure rice) – SB, below 70%
• Honjyozo-shu (本醸造酒: Genuine brew) – SB, below 70%

Most of the nihonshu above have two or three ingredients – rice, koji rice and distilled alcohol. Only the junmai-shu’s do not include the distilled alcohol.

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