Thread: japanese sake

Hey everyone

Iam a huge fan of japanese culture, I bin watchin anime and reading manga since I was 8 so it kinda shot off from there, I was just wondering if anyone knew if sake is like whiskey, gets better with age, not being an avid drinker I wouldn't know however ive always wanted to try sake and ive come across a 25 year old sealed special bottle, just wanted to know if its drinkable?

No I don't think so. Sake is only made during winter time so that should rule out any possibility of aging. Alcohols to the best of my knowledge do not age once bottled. However to be certain, I can find out however.

Only certain sakes, called koshu, can be aged. Most sake however must be consumed within a few months of manufacture.

I bought the sake today, its called hakutusuru sake, its a gift box, the bottle is sealed still after 25 years, so seen as its been sealed it should be ok right?

I wouldn't bank on it. I think you've got a collector's item there and once you open it it'll be worthless. I will say sake is a wonderful drink. Try and get some fresh stuff for consumption. Warm it up if you can. Yum.

X

Sake is soooo good. It's been a while since I've had a good bottle...

As far as I know sake is supposed to be consumed relatively soon after it is bottled. A 25 year old bottle might be... well, who knows? If you purchased it then you could open it and tell us... but would you want to?

Let us know what you decide...

Me thinks this weekend is going to be a Sake kind of weekend...

I drank the stuff many years ago when I was in Japan and thought it was kind of an acquired taste. It didn't do much for me.

The last time I had sake, it involved an untempered glass jar and a Bunsen burner in the annex basement of my college fraternity. The jar exploded, but no one was hurt. That's about all I remember about sake.

I think in this case it is best to think of sake like beer (that comparison only partially holds). Sake is brewed in a similar way to beer, so the freshness is related. Afterall, you wouldn't really want to drink a 25 year old bottle of budweiser. That being said, sake has a higher alcohol content, so depending on the variety I suppose it could be drinkable.

I'm by no means an expert, this is just how I understand it.

Originally Posted by urahara454

I bought the sake today, its called hakutusuru sake, its a gift box, the bottle is sealed still after 25 years, so seen as its been sealed it should be ok right?

I'd take it back and get something new- it'll probably taste worse than 25 year old coke.