Not a huge sake fan. but the Japanese know how to stay warm.
Not a huge sake fan. but the Japanese know how to stay warm.
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IMO, sake was best appreciated on those days when the personal finances didn’t allow for a proper drinking binge while out on libo.
A tradtional Kamikazi.
A drinking glass with 3 or 4 oz of rotgut whiskey mixed with 3 or 4 oz of cheap sake, heated to body temp and slammed down in a gulp.
And that gives a body just enough time to make it back to base before face plant.
I think what works for each of us is determined on an individual basis.
I had been cold and miserable, having had to be outside all day on a rotten, windy Tokyo day. The wind cut through the clothes like a katana!
Shivering and hungry, I met some friends at a local hot spot. Not a Starbucks, mind you. One of those down home, scrappy dives where the whole community gathers. You part the curtains and walk in. It is warm and full of people laughing. Steam rises from the various pots in the center of the room. The owner’s ‘Irasshai’ welcomes you, none of that arms crossed, no foreigner allowed nonsense here.
The saama fish is seasonal and cooked to perfection and the hot sake washes it down. A good feeling and a great memory, remembered long after I girded up my coat and, revived, trodded back out into the bad weather to head home.