Sake Tasting, SushiSan, Holiday Inn Abu Dhabi
How much do you know about Sake? I’ve drank this before on several occasions, even in Tokyo, Japan. However, going to this Sake Tasting at SushiSan with a sake expert from African Eastern, I learned about this type of rice wine more than ever. In this class you will not only taste several different sakes but also get to know the distinct flavors and characteristics of each product.
Sake Tasting at SushiSan is priced at 179 AED pp, it includes the tasting, food and a bottle of sake! However this tasting is only offered once per month and is only limited to 18 guests at a time so be sure to call ahead (#02 6574890) to reserve your spot for the next tasting!
Sake Tasting
Tom, from African Eastern was our sake connoisseur who walked us through 6 different Sake brands – each with different flavors, alcohol percentage and a specific serving temperature. The specific brands we tasted was (1) Sparkling Sake, Gekkeikan (2) Crescent Daiginjo, Gekkeikan (3) HorinJunmaiDai jingo Sake, Gekkeikan (4) Nigori Sake, Gekkeikan (5) NigoriYuzu Sake, Gekkeikan (6) Iichiko Barkley Shochu
Sake Favorites
My favorite of the night of of the 6 different tastings we had was the Nigori Yuzu Sake, Gekkeikan. It had a 70% rice polishing ratio at a very light 7% alcohol percentage. Suggested to serve cold at 5°c, this was my drink of choice as I love sweet and smooth flavors. It was made with yuzu – which is a sour and tart Japanese fruit. I have not had this before and definitely will come back again for it.
Another favorite of mine which I ended up pairing with my dinner of the night was the Sparkling Sake, Gekkeikan. I think 80% of the sake tasting chose this as their drink of choice. I love it as its also very light to and smooth to drink with only 8% alcohol percentage. It had hints of floral, melon and banana characteristics. At SushiSan they serve this bottle in a sparkling wine glass – I don’t mind celebrating any occasion with this!
My least favorite of the night was the HorinJunmaiDai jingo Sake, Gekkeikan. The rice polishing is only at 50% whereas most are around 70% and the alcohol percentage of this one is at 16%. I felt it was too strong and harsh to drink. However, did you know this specific sake actually won the 2012 London Sake Challenge Competition?! Even sake has a whole range of products to satisfy different preferences and tastebuds.
After Tom guided us through the 6 glasses of sake tasting, we got a treat from SushiSan and was able to taste-test the apple-pie cinnamon and peach moonshine. They were quite sweet and perfect pairings for a sweet dessert. I saw this the other day on the shelves at African Eastern and was so tempted to buy it.
Sushi San Sake Menu
Along with the Sake Tasting was a SushiSan 3 course Sushi menu. All the guests were able to choose a bottle of sake to accompany their dinner and I of course went for the Sparkling Sake.
The appetizers include Edamami, and a creamy Remoulade with Wasabi Mayo Salad. The main entrée included a mix of all the SushiSan favorites an was presented so beautifully – California roll, rainbow maki, salmon fantasy, spicy tuna maki, shrimp gunkan with a mix nigiri selection. I enjoyed the sashimi assortment the most with my Sparking Sake.
For dessert we had a taste of 3 mini mochi. I love how they offer mochi here and their chef makes it so soft and delectable.
I had such a great experience with the sake tasting. It’s a great interactive activity for a date night, with friends or for a special occasion. And did I mention how much I learned from it?!
DOT on her way was invited as a guest to SushiSan.
All photos and opinions are of her own.
