|
 Sake has
several different import uses in Japanese culture and
tradition. Though this delicious and savory beverage has
been around for more than 2,000 years and has over 10,000
varieties, up until the last twenty years or so sake has
been mostly produced and consumed in Japan. But a recent
surge in popularity has brought sake to new markets around
the world. This has meant that along with traditional ways
of drinking sake there are a wide variety of new sake drinks
to sample and enjoy.
Sake is used
for many purposes in Japan's most prominent religion,
Shinto. A Shinto bride and groom consume 9 drinks of sake
during their wedding ceremony to seal their vows. The image
of the moon reflected in a sake bowl is also significant in
Shinto, and sake is also consumed on special occasions to
promote good health. But sake is more than a religious
drink: sake is consumed in everyday life, as well. Sake is
generally served before a meal. Because it is made with
rice, most Japanese people will not drink sake with a rice
dish, but sake can accompany other dishes.
When serving
sake as an aperitif, it is customary to use a serving set
consisting of a small pitcher and several small cups that
may look like little bowls. Serving sets come in a variety
of shapes, and are generally ceramic or wood. One of the
most important rules of traditional sake etiquette is that
you must not serve yourself sake; instead, each person at
the table serves one or more other people. The server holds
the pitcher with both hands, while the person receiving the
sake holds their cup with one hand and support the bottom of
the cup with the other hand. In many social settings, this
ritual is only observed for the first round, but it does add
a kind of intimacy to your gatherings with family or
friends. Sake has been traditionally served warm in ceramic
serving sets; if chilled or room temperature sake is being
served a wooden set is often used.
Sake has
recently been imported to the United States and other
western nations, and this has spawned a new generation of
sake drinks. Some of these include:
Sake
Bomb
Ingredients:
·
1 shot glass sake
·
1 mug of beer
The
objective of this drink is to drop the shot glass of sake
into the beer, and then drink both very quickly!
Saketini
Ingredients:
·
2 ½ oz. gin
·
¼ oz. sake
·
1 cocktail olive
Combine
gin and sake with a small amount of crushed ice and shake or
stir in a mixing glass as preferred. Strain into a cocktail
glass and add the olive as a garnish. Pickled ginger can
also be used as a garnish.
Tokyo
Rose
Ingredients:
·
1 oz. sake
·
1 oz. vodka
·
1 oz. melon liqeur
·
1 cherry
Combine
ingredient in a shaker or mixing glass with ice cubes and
mix well. Strain into a cocktail glass and garnish with the
cherry
Bloody
Sake Mary
Ingredients
·
2 oz. sake
·
3 oz. tomato juice
·
dash Tabasco sauce
·
dash Worcestershire sauce
·
1 tbsp. lime juice
·
salt and pepper to taste
·
celery stalk
Place
first six ingredients in a tall glass with ice, stir with
celery stalk. For variation, use Clamato juice to make a
Sake Bloody Caesar.
Sake
Punch
Ingredients
·
6 oz. orange juice
·
46 oz. fruit punch
·
24 oz. sake
·
ice cubes
·
sliced fruit
Mix
in a large bowl and then add ice and fruit.
Sake
is a very flexible drink, and can be enjoyed in many
different ways. While some people prefer the traditional
method of serving sake, either warm or cold, other will
enjoy the challenge of creating and serving sake-based
variations of their favorite cocktails. However you decide
to serve your sake, you are sure to enjoy the many tastes
offered by this rice drink that has been a part of Japanese
life for millennia.
|
