Kyoto Support » Tag: sake

Kyoto Support » Tag: sake - Recent Posts http://openkyoto.com/kyoto-support/tags/sake Sad to say, but this lovely old town requires some support. en-US Thu, 09 Feb 2012 13:19:12 +0000 http://bbpress.org/?v=1.0.2 <![CDATA[Search]]> q http://openkyoto.com/kyoto-support/search.php peko on "Sake Bars in Kyoto: Nihonshu Bar Asakura, Jizake Bar Zen, Sake Bar Yoramu" http://openkyoto.com/kyoto-support/topic/sake-bars-in-kyoto#post-258 Wed, 20 Oct 2010 18:29:01 +0000 peko 258@http://openkyoto.com/kyoto-support/ Jizake Bar Zen I finally made it to Jizake Bar Zen. I visit with Sake Samurai Timothy Sullivan of <a href="http://www.urbansake.com" rel="nofollow">http://www.urbansake.com</a>. Jizake Bar Zen serves 'aged', 'fresh' sake (熟成した生酒). We had one sake that had been refrigerated for 13 years!! This is true Japanese 'mania'. Overall I really enjoyed Zen and owner 'Punch'. You won't easily find a line-up of sake, a collection, like Punch has. Very Reasonably Priced A very pleasantly surprising thing about Zen is that it was really cheap, relatively speaking, for Kyoto. We had about 8 kinds of sake, several aged a long, long time, and that bill was about 7,000 yen in total. I was rather fearful when we asked for the check after downing the 13 year old, 'fresh' sake. In Kyoto, this could have easily been 2 or 3 times the cost. Location Jizake Bar Zen has moved from Gion. It is now located on the corner of Sanjo and Muromachi Streets, on the 5th floor of a very old and shabby building, circa 1970's Japan. Zen itself, has a very nice, new, Japanese Zen garden meets aged/fresh sake bar interior. Inside and out, Zen is a very paradoxical place! Map <a href="http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?hl=en&ie=UTF8&lr=lang_en&msa=0&msid=115039365892753127164.000445cff35fa2bfc5a51&ll=35.00836,135.758722&spn=0.003585,0.004855&z=18&iwloc=00049310ce57c90742147">Jizake Bar Zen@KyotoFoodie/OpenKyoto Map</a> Ligger on "Sake Bars in Kyoto: Nihonshu Bar Asakura, Jizake Bar Zen, Sake Bar Yoramu" http://openkyoto.com/kyoto-support/topic/sake-bars-in-kyoto#post-233 Mon, 30 Nov 2009 01:06:41 +0000 Ligger 233@http://openkyoto.com/kyoto-support/ I took a friend to Asakura and we sampled three different cold sakes. The friendly owner suggested some special tofu and we tried it. Wow, what an excellent combination of flavors. The bar was very softly lit and not smokey. We went over to Yorum's place after that and... no space in the place. That write up in the NY Times and all the other hype have ruined the local intimacy. Yorum was not too sweet about giving us the heave ho either. Now to try your third recommendation, if I can only track it down. Gion is such confusing maze for me. peko on "Sake Bars in Kyoto: Nihonshu Bar Asakura, Jizake Bar Zen, Sake Bar Yoramu" http://openkyoto.com/kyoto-support/topic/sake-bars-in-kyoto#post-194 Sun, 06 Sep 2009 02:41:17 +0000 peko 194@http://openkyoto.com/kyoto-support/ I know of three (premium) sake bars in Kyoto: Nihonshu Bar Asakura, Jizake Bar Zen, Sake Bar Yoramu. How about you? I highly recommend Nihonshu Bar Asakura and Jizake Bar Zen, and highly don't recommend Sake Bar Yoramu. Asakura 日本酒BARあさくら (full name: Nihonshu Bar Asakura) ENGLISH SPOKEN! FRIENDLY OWNER! EXCELLENT SAKE SELECTION! The owner speaks English very well and lavishes attention on foreign customer to assure that they have a wonderful sake experience in Kyoto. Asakura has a broad and varied collection of premium sake, including very rare aged sake. (We had 21 and 23 year old aged sake -- sake is usually drunk fresh, within 6 months to a year.) location: Asakura is just south of the Kiyamachi Street and Oike Street intersection in the Kiyamachi neighborhood near the Kamo River. Walking south from the intersection, take the first street left. Up the little lane you will notice a large red wooden sculpture of a sake carafe (tokkuri) -- this landmark is NOT Asakura. Walk just past the red tokkuri and on the right will be the steps of nondescript building. Take this flight of stairs to the second floor. Asakura is on the right, immediately at the top of the stairs. hours: 7:00 pm - 2:00 am (Closed Tuesday and 'sometimes' on Sunday and Monday. Call first to be sure.) Asakura only seats 11 people, so you might want to call about seating too. OpenKyoto article: <a href="http://openkyoto.com/dining/sake-bar-asakura.html" rel="nofollow">http://openkyoto.com/dining/sake-bar-asakura.html</a> website: <a href="http://ameblo.jp/sakebar/" rel="nofollow">http://ameblo.jp/sakebar/</a> (no English) tel: 075-212-4417 address: Kyoto-shi, Nakagyo-ku, Kiyamachi Oike-sagaru, Hitosujime Higashi-iru, Daikyu Building 2F (京都市中京区木屋町御池下がる一筋目東入る大久ビル2F) map: <a href="http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?hl=en&ie=UTF8&lr=lang_en&msa=0&msid=115039365892753127164.000445cff35fa2bfc5a51&ll=35.011475,135.771092&spn=0.007179,0.007167&z=17&iwloc=00046c792533c44415caa">Nihonshu Bar Asakura@KyotoFoodie/OpenKyoto Map</a> Jizake Bar Zen 地酒BAR 膳 Jizake (Local Sake) Bar Zen Excellent jizake (local sake) selection. Jizake literally means local sake or regional sake, but you can think of it as artisan or craft sake too. Jizake Bar Zen is located in exclusive Gion nightlife district and is run by an interesting character nick-named Punch. Previously Punch was a truck driver and has a 'punch perm' like yakuza often sport in Japan. location: Near subway Oike Station. From the Sanjo-Karasuma intersection walk west on Sanjo Street to Muromachi Street, the first street on the left. Look for the ugly building on the south-west corner. Most of the buildings in the neighborhood are ugly, but they are short and ugly, not 5 stories tall. hours: (approx) 6 pm - 12 mid-night, or later. Closed 'sometimes'. website: <a href="http://www9.plala.or.jp/zizakebar/" rel="nofollow">http://www9.plala.or.jp/zizakebar/</a> (no English) map: <a href="http://www9.plala.or.jp/zizakebar/sub-1.html" rel="nofollow">http://www9.plala.or.jp/zizakebar/sub-1.html</a> (no English) Punch's Punch Perm (blog article) <a href="http://zizake-wataribune-50-1950.blog.eonet.jp/default/2009/07/post-4d28.html" rel="nofollow">http://zizake-wataribune-50-1950.blog.eonet.jp/default/2009/07/post-4d28.html</a> tel: 075- 241-4007 (no English) mobile: 090-3494-7214 (no English) address: Kyoto-shi, Nakagyo-ku, Muromachi-dori Sanjo Nishi-iru, Koromonotana-cho 61-1 Mikasa Bldg 5F (京都市中京区室町通三条西入衣棚町61-1 三笠ビル5F) map: <a href="http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?hl=en&ie=UTF8&lr=lang_en&msa=0&msid=115039365892753127164.000445cff35fa2bfc5a51&ll=35.00836,135.758722&spn=0.003585,0.004855&z=18&iwloc=00049310ce57c90742147">Jizake Bar Zen@KyotoFoodie/OpenKyoto Map</a> Sake Bar Yoramu 酒バーよらむ The owner is an Israeli resident of Kyoto who loves sake. In 2000 he has made his 'ideal' bar, where you can try several good quality sake by small portions with just right kind and amount of food. Eight people can sit at the counter and there is a small table for 2 or 3 people. Yoramu only serves 'junmai' sake, or pure rice sake without added brewers alcohol. (This is the only kind of sake that should be made in my opinion.) This same space is a soba noodle restaurant during the daytime, run by a different person. location: "Sake Bar YORAMU is on Nijo-dori, south of the Imperial Palace Park (Gosho). The cross street is Higashinotoin-dori, which is two streets east of Karasuma. The closest subway stop is KARASUMA-OIKE (#1 exit). Turn left upon emerging from the subway exit, and keep going past the first cross street (Oshikoji). Turn right at the next street, which is Nijo-dori. Go past the first cross street, and Sake Bar YORAMU will be the third building on your right. Slightly further but also less than a ten-minute walk away is the subway's MARUTAMACHI station." (source: Yoramu website) hours: 6 pm - 12 mid-night. Closed on Sunday, Monday and Tuesdays. website: <a href="http://www.sakebar-yoramu.com/index_eng.html" rel="nofollow">http://www.sakebar-yoramu.com/index_eng.html</a> map: <a href="http://www.sakebar-yoramu.com/access_eng.html" rel="nofollow">http://www.sakebar-yoramu.com/access_eng.html</a> tel: 075-213-1512 address: Kyoto-shi, Nakagyo-ku, Nijo-dori, Higashinotoin-sagaru, Minamigawa (京都市中京区二条通東洞院東入る南側) Our experience at Yoramu: Yoramu is quite small and only seats 8 or 9 people at the counter which was full when we arrived. We were offered a little table and told the clear the magazines, a fan and so on off ourselves. We had to hunt around for some little stools -- all self-service. Then, Yoramu told us that he was busy and that we should wait a bit before ordering. THEN, he noticed that the door hadn't closed after we came in and asked us to go and close it! DUDE! No way! Yoramu only serves premium sake so it is not going to be cheap. That kind of service is unacceptable -- anywhere, least of all Kyoto, Japan. I would love to recommend and support a fellow foreigner running a business in Kyoto, but with this kind of service, I would have to say to give Yoramu a miss. Too bad. peko on "Where to buy fine sake in Kyoto" http://openkyoto.com/kyoto-support/topic/where-to-buy-fine-sake-in-kyoto#post-97 Sat, 07 Mar 2009 04:36:07 +0000 peko 97@http://openkyoto.com/kyoto-support/ -- Added Osaki Shoten 大崎商店 info (above) today I stopped in at Osaki Shoten 大崎商店 in Fushimi yesterday and was very impressed with their selection. The owner is friendly and really into excellent sake. I doubt that they speak English though. They don't even have a website. The building is a large machiya and the store is packed with sake and shochu. If you are in the neighborhood, it is certainly worth a peek. Though this store is in Fushimi, they stock fine sake from all over Japan. peko on "Where to buy fine sake in Kyoto" http://openkyoto.com/kyoto-support/topic/where-to-buy-fine-sake-in-kyoto#post-88 Thu, 12 Feb 2009 16:09:21 +0000 peko 88@http://openkyoto.com/kyoto-support/ I just got back from a midnight run to Kunitaya, you just cannot argue with a place like that! Surely THE VERY BEST selection of sake in Kyoto AND open until 1 am. peko on "Where to buy fine sake in Kyoto" http://openkyoto.com/kyoto-support/topic/where-to-buy-fine-sake-in-kyoto#post-6 Sat, 08 Nov 2008 16:06:31 +0000 peko 6@http://openkyoto.com/kyoto-support/ Mediocre sake can be had at any convenience store and even some vending machines, even in Kyoto. If you are coming all the way to Japan, you probably want to get some good stuff. Peko recommends namazake (生酒), namazake is unpasteurized sake. Getting fine sake is actually more of a challenge than you might expect. Here are a few places that I recommend. -- Central Kyoto -- Tsunoki 津之喜 Tsunoki is an 8th generation shinise sake dealer centrally located in Nishiki Market. We reviewed Tsunoki on KyotoFoodie. This article has a good deal of useful information. <a href="http://kyotofoodie.com/tsunoki-premium-sake-dealer-in-nishiki-market-kyoto/" rel="nofollow">http://kyotofoodie.com/tsunoki-premium-sake-dealer-in-nishiki-market-kyoto/</a> Map: <a href="http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&msa=0&msid=115039365892753127164.000445cff35fa2bfc5a51&ll=35.006,135.765502&spn=0.002109,0.002575&z=18&source=embed">OpenKyoto/KyotoFoodie Map - Tsunoki</a> Kunitaya　國田屋 Kunitaya is located just a minute or so walk north of the Kawaramachi-Marutamachi intersection, it is on the west side of the street. The Kawaramachi-Marutamachi intersection is near the south-east corner of Gosho, the Imperial Palace grounds and just west of Keihan Jingu Marutamachi Station. Kunitaya is remarkable for its selection of unpasteurized sake, mostly from the Uehara brewery in Shiga Prefecture. Kunitaya has a large selection of other alcoholic beverages as well. Also, it is open until 1 am (except Sunday). Map: <a href="http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&msa=0&msid=115039365892753127164.000445cff35fa2bfc5a51&ll=35.022564,135.769494&spn=0.008435,0.0103&z=16&source=embed">OpenKyoto/KyotoFoodie Map - Kunitaya</a> -- North Kyoto -- Ukai Shoten 鵜飼商店 Ukai Shoten is located in the somewhat inconvenient Nishijin weaving district, which is quite wanting of excellent sake dealers.Ukai Shoten has been in business since 1905 and only carries namazake (they do carry non-sake products too). Ukai Shoten is located on Omiya-dori (street) about half way between Kitaoji and Imadegawa streets. no website tel: 075-761-0124 (no English spoken) address: Kyoto-shi, Kamigyo-ku, Omiya-dori, Teranouchi-agaru, 3 Chome (京都市上京区大宮通寺之内上る三丁目) map: <a href="http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?hl=en&ie=UTF8&msa=0&msid=115039365892753127164.000445cff35fa2bfc5a51&ll=35.036442,135.748537&spn=0.001643,0.001891&z=19&iwloc=00048ab98b2ad0a31eaaf">OpenKyoto/KyotoFoodie Map - Ukai Shoten</a> -- Fushimi (South Kyoto) -- Osaki Shoten 大崎商店 This store, located in Fushimi ward (south Kyoto) and has an exceptional selection of sake from all over Japan including a large offering of fresh, unpasteurized 'nama' sake. Fushimi, of course, is the center of sake production in Kyoto. Fushimi is the second largest sake production region in Japan. The delicate taste is said to be feminine which is due to the mineral content of Fushimi's famous water. Osaki Shoten is not particularly convenient. It is about a 15 minute walk from the nearest station (Fushimi Momoyama and Momoyama Goryomae). If you live in south Kyoto or are touring sake breweries in Fushimi, or you are really into naga sake, you would probably like to visit this quaint old store, jam packed with sake. The building is an exquisite Fushimi machiya. Osaki Shoten has no website and probably no English service. no website tel: 075-601-0137 (no English spoken) Kyoto-shi Fushimi-ku Misuhan-cho 479 (京都市伏見区三栖半町479) <a href="http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?hl=en&ie=UTF8&msa=0&msid=115039365892753127164.000445cff35fa2bfc5a51&source=embed&ll=34.934567,135.757091&spn=0.009394,0.013819&z=16">Google Map »</a>