Im gonna come clean here.
I dont know much about Sake. Ive sat through seminars, Ive read up on it and, of course, Ive had my fair share of the stuff at more than a few Izakayas around town. The trouble is, I dont have it often enough or keep my studies going continually enough to retain specifics that I can conjure up at will. The good thing about living in Vancouver though, is that when Im looking to brush up on my Sake skills, I can always just pop down to Granville Island and visit Masa Shiroki, our very own Artisan Sake Maker.
Sake has complexities that go way beyond it being simply rice wine we are indeed talking the classic Japanese beverage made by the fermentation of sugars from the starch in rice. Its an intricate process the rice goes through, involving polishing, resting, soaking, steaming, fermenting, extracting and more. Much better than me trying to lay it out for you, do yourself a favour and visit Masa or his cheery staff down at Granville Island.
Since 2007 hes been toiling away making small, handcrafted batches of his own Sake in various classic styles, from his Osake Junmai Nama (light, crisp and fish-friendly with melon and lychee notes, $15.90/375ml) to the Osake Junmai Nama Genshu (complex, tropical fruit, perfect with bold cheeses, $21.90/375ml) and his Osake Junmai Nama Nigori (unfiltered with stonefruit and lime, $28.90/750ml). You can saddle up to his tasting bar to give any of these a whirl. He also shakes things up a bit, such as making a traditional method (Champagne-esque) Sake and even non-alcoholic treats such as his Cherry or Apple Kasu Drink, made from the Kasu (spent rice mash) with natural fruit juice. In fact, that spent rice mash has so many uses that hes collaborated with many local culinary talents who employ the ingredient with their own traditional techniques.
My favourite has the good folks at Granville Islands Oyama Sausage Company (OyamaSausage.ca) curing their Coppa ham with the mash, resulting in delicious charcuterie straddling the line between sweet and savoury. Its not just the mash that works well around town. Steve Da Cruz of The Parker on Union (TheParkerVancouver.com) has been employing the Apple Kasu Drink into his cocktail program and is looking to use more of Masas fare for a unique New Years Eve event, to be announced any day now.
Alongside his Sake production, Masa has also been importing higher-end Sake from Japan, but its an ambitious pet-project of his that has me most excited. Fans of the built-in-BC 100-mile diet will be delighted to hear that hes merely months away from producing his first 100 per cent BC Sake. Yup, after much trial and error, hes successfully farmed his own rice in Abbotsford fields to be used in Sake batches coming out early in the New Year. When you drop by his Granville Island shop (at 1339 Railspur Alley, by the way), check out the demonstration rice he even has growing around his tiny patio! Who knew?
Were so privileged to have Masa doing what he does in Vancouver; its so unique for a major North American city. Do make a point of dropping by to see what hes up to.
