We’ve got beer, wine and cocktail festivals; now there is sake.
But this is not your typical sake festival. Described as an “invite-only sake odyssey” for otakus (someone with an obsessive interest in a particular topic), Sake Social has been specially curated to showcase a vast selection of unconventional and lesser known sake.
The event takes place on Jul 1 and 2 at a warehouse space on Henderson Road. Organised by the same team behind Sake Matsuri, Singapore’s largest independent craft sake festival, expect a gathering of industry experts and sake enthusiasts for an intimate, immersive and multi-sensory experience.
Instead of people jostling to taste a wide variety of sake, Sake Social targets aficionados who crave a deeper appreciation of the alcoholic drink. Its founder Kevin Ngan points out that Singapore ranks among the top five export markets of sake in Asia, and although drinkers are mostly acquainted with a limited range of premium sake, Sake Social will add to that by shining a spotlight on the diversity of sake and introducing more esoteric styles for Singapore’s sophisticated consumers.
The two-day event kicks off with aged and new sake. While new sake typically refers to sake brewed with rice harvested in the same year, aged sake or koshu can refer to sake that is aged for three years or more.
Day two will introduce raw and unfiltered sake, defined as sake that have skipped pasteurisation or filtration respectively. The rustic doburoku – which is completely unfiltered and requires specialised licences to brew in Japan – can yield varied flavours and textures.
Here are some of the sake highlights:
Sohomare Kimoto Junmai Daiginjo
Made using the ancient Kimoto method where probiotic bacteria is introduced naturally, this sake has a herbal nose of clove and orange, with a hint of candy and honey on the palate intertwined with roasted nuts, and held together with good acidity.
Kamoizumi Junmai Ginjo Rockhopper
Appearing only seasonally, this sake is a shiboritate (freshly squeezed), brewed only during the coldest season of winter in Saijo. It is then pressed and bottled right away without the further addition of water, making it a Genshu (undiluted sake). The sake is further matured in Singapore for about six months to mellow out its natural wildness.
Nito Junmai Ginjo Jikagumi Nama Zodiac
This is a limited-edition sake produced to celebrate the brewery’s 333rd anniversary. It is bottled directly from the pressing apparatus, skipping pasteurisation altogether.
Konohanano “LAB05 All Koji” Doburoku
This is a fizzy and raw doburoku made with pure rice koji. It has a slightly rustic nuance, and is said to look more like a bowl of morning oats with milk rather than the usual sake.
Miyoshino Jozo – Hanatomoe “Usunigori”
Master brewer Teruaki Hashimoto allows the ambient temperature to guide the style of sake he makes, using only natural lactobacilli. He also creates an unusually powerful koji that helps give this sake a generous mouthfeel. Brewed in 2020, it is rested for 18 months before release.
Attendees can expect to journey with sake sommeliers such as Adrian Goh, director of Inter Rice Asia; Olivia Chey, sake and shochu sommelier at Kurara; Elliot Faber, founding beverage director of Yardbird Hong Kong; and Julian Goh, founder of Saketen.
Tickets are priced at $128 per person, inclusive of three hours of sake tasting and a limited-edition merchandise pack. Only 100 tickets are available per session, which can be purchased from www.sakesocial.sg.
