Takenoko
Having Dassai 23 in a hotel bar at Christmas time. It is a lovely sake, smooth with a subdued and soft sweetness and perfect fruity balance. Yet it reminds me of all the stumbling blocks to avoid. It feels machined, manufactured. Sake needs to be imperfect, alive, breathing and not trying to be popular for its own good. Sake needs a firm belief no matter the popularity, trust in the kura’s own voice, and the variations that come with different years and yeast fluctuations. Go Go 2025