Tasting Flashcards
What is the optimal room temperature and sake temperature for tasting
Room temperature: 20°C
Sake temperature: 15 - 18°C
What is this called
Janome Kikichoko
蛇の目 利き猪口
Evaluating “soundness” of color
Sound: highly clear, highly transparent, shining… etc
Unsound: lack of transparency, low clearness… etc
Evaluating “color”
Clear / colorless
Light yellow
Yellow
Dark yellow
Dark brown
Brown
Amber
Others (pink, red)
Evaluating “viscosity”
Low
Slightly low
Medium / Moderate
Slightly high
High
Four reasons that cause a color of sake yellow
Filtration
Aging
Ultraviolet rays or heat
Barrel usage
Evaluating “soundness” on the nose and palate
Sound or unsound
Evaluating “strength” on the nose
Weak
Slightly weak
Medium / Moderate
Slightly strong
Strong
Evaluating “specific example” on the nose
Give description of fruit, flower, herb, spice, non-fruit … etc
i.e: Orange, pineapple, banana, fennel, honey, ginger… etc
Evaluating “main aroma” on the nose
Use adjectives to describe the aroma in sentence
Examples:
Fruity or floral scent
Light and simple scent
A rich scent with reminiscent of rice
A highly concentrated, complicated scent
Evaluating “complexity” on the nose
Simple
Slightly simple
Medium / Moderate
Slightly complex
Complex
Four main aroma components of sake
Fruity and floral aroma
Ingredients aroma (grain)
Matured aroma
Lactic acid bacteria aroma (Kimoto and Yamahai styles)
Evaluating “first impression” on the palate
Weak
Slightly weak
Medium / Moderate
Slightly strong
Strong
Main sugar component of sake
What are the three kinds of acidity found in sake
Glucose
(From saccharification of starch)
Lactic acid
Malic acid
Citric acid
Evaluating “texture” on the palate
Soft
Tender
Crisp and sharp
Fine
Thick
Hard
Evaluating “specific taste” on the palate
Describe specific taste in bullet points
Examples:
- Main feature is its light umami. Less sweetness, acidity, and bitterness
- More umami and rich taste
- Main feature is its sweetness and acidity. The bitterness brings sharpness as you drink. Not much umami
- Heavy taste, extremely rich, robust taste. A long umami finish
Evaluating “dryness / sweetness” on the palate
Dry
A little dry
Medium
A little sweet
Sweet
Evaluating “aftertaste” on the palate
Low
A little low
Medium
A little high
High
Describe in scent with specific examples
Examples:
- Same as aroma. Ripe apple, yellow peach, apricot, acacia flower
- Same as aroma. Raw rice, flour
- Same as aroma. Cooked rice, fresh cream
- Same as aroma. Caramel, raisins, cashew nut, dry shiitake mushrooms
Evaluating “Aftereffect / finish” on the palate
Low
A little low
Medium
A little high
High
Describe taste with specific examples
Examples:
- Umami is very short, light bitterness is left
- Umami is very short, light bitterness, and stimulation of the alcohol is left
- Clear umami and acidity with the thickness are left
- Clear umami and acidity are left
Evaluating “complexity” on the palate
Simple
A little simple
Medium
A little complex
Complex
How to evaluate “individuality” in conclusion
Think of selling points
Two or three elements extracted from “appearance” “aroma” “texture” “taste”
Also, serving occations, temperature, vessels, food pairings
What is hine-ka
老香 (ひねか)
An unpleasant aged smell that comes from sake that is beyond its prime or improperly aged
