How to Taste Sake: A Beginner’s Guide to Japanese Sake

Pour a glass of sake and take a sip. Then try to say what you noticed. Most people stall right there, because nobody taught them what to look for. This guide on how to taste sake fixes that gap with six simple steps. To taste sake, first look at its color and clarity. Next, smell it while the glass is still. Then take a small sip and notice sweetness, acidity, umami, alcohol and texture. Finally, wait for the aftertaste, and taste again to compare. TOCYou Don’t Need to Be a Sake Expert Tasting sake is observation, not an exam. Japan’s National Research Institute of Brewing (NRIB) maintains a standardized vocabulary for professional evaluation. However, the same institute has also studied how non-expert consumers describe sake. In other words, the professional system exists, but beginners do not need to master it first. Quick Facts The six stepsLook, smell, taste, feel, finish, compare What to noticeAppearance, aroma, sweetness and acidity, umami and bitterness, body and texture, aftertaste Traditional tasting cupKiki-choko: a white porcelain cup with blue concentric rings Reference sipAbout 5 ml in the brewers’ association tasting guide Two kinds of aromaOrthonasal (above the glass...