When you want to try sake, the first thing you'll encounter is choosing a product. And I think the difficulty of choosing a product is one of the main reasons why sake is not being consumed .
This is because beginners often fall into a negative spiral of not knowing which one to buy → buying one anyway → not tasting very good → not drinking it . And when it comes to sake, one of the reasons for this high hurdle is probably the fact that many of the technical terms written in kanji are incomprehensible. (Am I the only one who finds it easier to intuitively pick up a product written in French, which I don't understand, than one written in kanji?)
In this article, we would like to introduce a way that will surely help you find delicious sake, even if you don't know how to choose sake or have never come across delicious sake before!
How can you choose without making a mistake?
I think the way to " make a mistake-proof" choice is to drink a product that suits your tastes and conditions . The important thing here is that no matter how expensive a product is or how highly rated it is, if it does not suit your tastes and conditions, it is meaningless to you and cannot be considered a success. Since tastes and conditions are different for each individual, the key is whether it suits "you ." Depending on the mood and budget (conditions) of the day, a local restaurant with set meals is a success for "me" before payday, rather than a restaurant that costs tens of thousands of yen, no matter how highly rated it is on Tabelog.
On that basis, let's consider the reasons why beginners fail:
I don't know what I like
I don't know my condition
I can't choose a product that matches my preferences or requirements
It can be broken down into these points:
If you don't understand ① and ②, you won't know the correct answer and won't be able to judge whether it was a success or failure, so you need to understand these points first and then think about method ③. Let's take a look at each of these points right away.
Understand your preferences
Preferences are difficult and not absolute. You may hate green peppers when you are young, but when you become an adult, you may like them, or a hotpot that tastes good in winter may not taste so good in summer. What I want to say is that when you say understanding your preferences, you should not aim for perfection, but rather be flexible and not get too worked up, and think about getting a general idea of what you like. Naturally, understanding your preferences requires a wide range of experience, but at first, don't push yourself, and gradually get used to things that you think you will like and that are easy to drink.
That being said, there are probably many people who don't even know what they like, so in that case, think about the types of food and alcohol you like (wine, beer, whiskey, coffee, cheese, chocolate, ramen, etc.) . There should be some commonalities. Like heavy things, like light/refreshing things, like strong things, don't like things with strong flavors, etc. It's important to think about it and organize your thoughts, so give it a try.
Understand your conditions
Naturally, your "conditions" are internal to you, and by organizing and verbalizing them, you can advance your understanding . This is something you do unconsciously all the time when shopping, so it's not difficult at all. In the case of sake, for example, it would be a good idea to organize the following conditions:
Purpose : To go with tonight's meal, to treat yourself, to give as a gift, etc.
Mood : I want to drink something I'm used to, I want to drink something new, I want to refresh myself, etc.
Budget : For reference, you can buy many products for around 1,000 to 2,000 yen for the 720ml size.
Quantity : Will you be drinking alone or in one day?
There are probably other things to consider, but it's not a particularly difficult task, so please think about it when choosing your sake.
Choose the product that best suits your tastes and requirements
Now that you understand your preferences and requirements, the next step is to actually choose a product. There are two ways to do this: choosing it yourself or having a professional choose it for you. However, for beginners, we recommend having a professional choose it for you .
You may think, "Isn't that a way to choose for yourself?", but I think this change in thinking may seem simple, but it is very important. Many people try to choose sake by themselves, which makes it more difficult for them to drink sake, or they don't find delicious sake because they can't choose good ones. You may know your preferences better than anyone, but you may not be used to choosing products that suit your tastes, so leave it to the professionals . The main goal is to enjoy sake. And to do that, you don't have to do it all by yourself, you can ask for help from those around you, so be sure to take the opinions and advice of various professionals into consideration.
But if you still want to choose for yourself, you may be thinking, "I don't know where to start specifically," or "It's going to be a pain to keep trying so many different things until I find out what I like." So, I recommend that you start by prioritizing your requirements over your personal preferences . It's important to find out what you like, but the most important thing is to enjoy your alcohol , so in order to find your preferences, try trying a variety of the things you "want to drink," for whatever reason.
Specifically, the recommended method is:
・Things with a design I like (buying it for the cover)
・Items stored in the refrigerator (unpasteurized sake)
・Alcohol from your hometown or the area where you live now
・Recommended by a friend who likes Japanese sake
・Popular and trending topics in magazines and on the internet
How about trying something like this?
However, as we mentioned in another article , if you want to enjoy delicious ramen, you can't just eat instant ramen, so be sure to choose sake from a liquor store that carries real sake .
So instead of choosing the canned beer you're used to drinking tonight, why not go to a liquor store, consider your preferences and conditions, and try some delicious sake!
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