Thrillist california breweries4/28/2023 But now, the only sake brewery in the Pacific Northwest produces dozens of different styles.Īlthough SakeOne’s sakes are produced in the same way that they are at the Momokawa brewery in Japan, they are made with California rice (grown from a Japanese varietal) and Oregon water, creating a flavor and product that is unique to the brewery here in the States. Initially the brewery just imported its own sakes from Japan, and their first domestically produced sake wasn’t bottled until 1998. Originally established in 1992, as the American outpost of Japan’s centuries old Momokawa Brewery, SakeOne was the first legal sake brewery in the United States. Not only are these bottlings available exclusively at the brewery, but the Nama sake in the line is a style you don’t see often outside of Japan. We highly recommend trying all three sakes in the brewery’s Sequoia line-especially the Nama. “You will need to change your shoes before entering our brewery.” “Make sure you have matching socks,” says Myrick. Now the brewery makes three different lines of sake: unpasteurized sake (the Sequoia line, which are fresher and bolder), pasteurized sake (the Coastal line, which can be enjoyed warm or cold) and barrel-aged sake, which is aged in ex-bourbon barrels, ex-white wine barrels and ex-red wine barrels.įor the overall vibe of the taproom, the owners tried their best to replicate the experience of visiting a Japanese sake brewery. They brewed their first official batch in 2015 and opened to the public a year later. Myrick partnered with brewmaster Noriko Kamei and Warren Pfahl to open Sequoia sake at its current Bayview location in 2014. Over a 10 year period, I traveled to 200-plus sake breweries, joined a local sake club and even met John Gauntner. When I returned in 2001 I really dove deep into the world of sake. It was during this time that I was first introduced sake. “I first went to Japan on a college scholarship. “I couldn't find the style of sake I loved in the US-Nama Genshu-so I started making it in my garage,” says co-founder and head brewer Jake Myrick. Sequoia is another sake that began as a homebrew project. ![]() They also have a sparkling sake on draft that is a great introduction for those new to sake. ![]() But something more unique to the brewery is their oak cask aged Junmai sake (simply called the Oak Junmai) that will appeal to bourbon drinkers. The Nigori is the brewery’s best selling product and a defacto flagship. “When you encounter a sake with more acidity and bigger fruit, you can pair it with hearty, spicier foods.” “Breaking the paradigm that sake only goes with Japanese food has been one of the greatest hurdles for us,” says Trevor Wight, the company’s marketing and sales manager. Seven years later, after drastic changes in their production methods (including a change to Calrose Japonica rice from California), the brewery took home two bronze medals in last years international sake competition. Originally, the brewery tried to produce sake using local long grain Texas rice, which produced a sake that was starchy and hard for customers to understand let alone drink. This Austin, Texas, based sake brewery makes a Nigori with enough backbone to stand up to Texas barbeque. ![]() Ford’s custom brewery, complete with a cedar ageing room for koji (a fungus used in sake production) is also worth checking out. In 2016, Blue Current’s Junmai Ginjo was awarded a gold medal at the London Sake Challenge, which is judged by the Sake Sommelier Association (Ford was the first American to win the gold). In that time he also became one of the only American sake brewers to be certified as an Advanced Sake Professional (think master sommelier of sake) from the Sake Education Council in Tokyo.Ĭurrently, Ford only makes a Junmai Ginjo sake, but one glass is definitely worth the visit to the brewery. “Brewing sake fulfills a lot of my needs as a person: being creative and perpetually learning.” Eventually, Ford outgrew his home-based brewery, and expanded to his current location (it was funded with help from a Kickstarter campaign and most of his equipment was built with the help of the University of Maine’s engineering department). “I just love everything about sake,” says Ford. After finding a sake homebrew kit when he came home, Ford started experimenting with making his own sake in his garage. A dedicated homebrewer, Ford discovered sake after living and working in Japan, where he fell in love with the taste, the craft and the process of making sake. Based in Kittery, Maine, Blue Current Brewing started as the passion project of owner and master brewer Dan Ford.
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