February 10, 2024 • 34 mins
Episode 163. Word on the street is that travel to Japan is surging! One of the joys of travel to Japan is returning with a suitcase full of sake! But how best to do it?! This week, John and Timothy discuss the ins and outs of bringing back sake from Japan. What's allowed and what's not! Where to buy sake and how to package it. Import duties and duty free shops! If you want the lowdown on our experience bringing sake home from travel to Japan, this episode is for you. Let's UNPACK these topics and taste some of the sake (not for sale in the U.S.) we brought back ourselves. #SakeRevolution
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
John Puma (00:21):
Hello everybody.
And welcome to Sake Revolution.
This is America's first orpodcast.
I'm your host, John Puma fromthe Sake Notes.
Um, also I run the internet sakediscord and Reddit's r slash
sake community.
Timothy Sullivan (00:37):
And I'm your host, Timothy Sullivan.
I'm a Sake Samurai.
I'm a sake educator, as well asthe founder of the Urban Sake
website.
And every week, John and I willbe here tasting and chatting
about all things sake and doingour best to make it fun and easy
to understand.
Hi!
John Puma (00:53):
Well, hello, Tim.
Timothy Sullivan (00:56):
Long time no see.
John Puma (00:58):
yes.
Long time no see.
And, uh, have you been doinganything interesting?
Anything fun?
Timothy Sullivan (01:04):
Well, it did take a little jaunt to Japan.
John Puma (01:09):
Oh, you too?
Timothy Sullivan (01:11):
I think we got to let the cat out of the bag
right at the beginning here.
John Puma (01:18):
Uh, so yeah, so we ended up, uh, in Japan at the
same time.
This is not something that wehad planned to happen.
It just kind of worked out thatway.
Myshell and I were, uh, weredown in, in Japan for a couple
of weeks.
You and Scott, were over for,uh, what are you guys were there
for about like 10 or 11 days?
Timothy Sullivan (01:36):
About eight, eight days.
Yeah.
John Puma (01:37):
Eight days.
Okay.
For about eight days.
and, uh, yeah, we got to meet upin Tokyo on Thanksgiving of all
days.
Timothy Sullivan (01:46):
Yeah.
We had a,
John Puma (01:48):
Thanksgiving.
Timothy Sullivan (01:49):
yeah, we had a fun little sake adventure, but
it was not enough time,unfortunately, to do any
recording or any sake revolutionwork.
But we did, we did.
Reach our goal of meeting inJapan and having sake together,
John Puma (02:04):
yes, we definitely did that.
And we did that in my opinion,quite well.
I think I'm very happy with thesake drinking that we did.
we went to a little bit of aThanksgiving, uh, dinner with
some, with some other friends.
And, everybody brought sake withus.
So we, we poured a bunch ofdifferent things that were a lot
of fun to sip on.
And then after that, um, we hada little Nijikai with, John and
(02:28):
Myshell and Scott and Tim.
uh,
Timothy Sullivan (02:31):
John, what what's a Nijikai?
John Puma (02:34):
Oh, thanks for asking Tim.
That is the after party.
Timothy Sullivan (02:39):
All right,
John Puma (02:40):
Yes, yes.
What would that literally be?
Would that just be like secondevent or
Timothy Sullivan (02:44):
Niji kai.
So it's like the Second secondhour
John Puma (02:49):
second hour,
Timothy Sullivan (02:50):
Niji kai.
Second, oh meeting, second hourmeeting.
John Puma (02:54):
hour meeting.
There we
Timothy Sullivan (02:54):
I think
John Puma (02:55):
So we had our second hour meeting.
Uh, over at, uh, at a wonderfulplace that I had never been to
before.
And so, I love when I get to betaken to a place in Tokyo that
I've never been.
That's great.
Especially when it's Such a goodplace.
And this was Moto, Tokyo.
Timothy Sullivan (03:14):
Yes.
And I introduced you to MotoTokyo and it is literally, you
stumble out of Tokyo Stationacross the street and it is
there in a beautiful newbuilding, Yaesu Midtown building
on the Yaesu side of TokyoStation.
Highly recommended.
They have a standing bar infront and a wonderful restaurant
(03:37):
in the back area.
So anyone in Tokyo, Recommended.
John Puma (03:41):
Personally, I only experienced the standing bar on
the front, but it was more thanenough to sell me on the rest of
the experience.
It was really fantastic.
It was great to sip sake withyou and Scott, uh, over in
Japan, but, uh, what we're goingto talk about today is a
specific aspect of the going toJapan experience, perhaps maybe
the last aspect, and that is thecoming home And the bringing
(04:06):
sake with you, because, youknow, we in America, we get a
lot of sake here where there'sa, I would say, Tim, when, when
you started drinking sake,maybe, you know, maybe a
hundred, hundred, 200 bottleswere available in the U S or in
New York.
I say specifically about 200,yeah, something like that.
And now it's probably aboutdouble that I would say.
(04:30):
Especially since now you can,there's so many places that are
shipping sake all over thecountry and there's things that
only come to the west coast andetc, etc.
So you can get in America a goodamount, but that's a drop in the
bucket next to what you can findin Japan.
Yeah,
Timothy Sullivan (04:50):
podcast has always been to introduce
American listeners to sake.
This is our home and we want to.
Introduce sakes on this podcastthat are not too exotic or too
hard to find.
So we make it a rule that anysakes we feature are available
for sale somewhere in the UnitedStates.
(05:11):
But today we're, we're going tobreak that rule today.
John Puma (05:15):
We're gonna break our one rule.
Timothy Sullivan (05:19):
there are so many of our friends, John,
who've been going to Japan, notjust you and I there at the same
time, coincidentally, but somany people I know are taking
their vacation or planning theirvacation to Japan.
And one thing you don't heartalked about very much is kind
of self importing.
Back to the U.
S.
Like bringing a few bottles backwith you.
(05:41):
What's the best way to do it?
What are the rules?
What are the regulations?
how do you transport it?
So that's what we kind of wantedto talk about today.
John Puma (05:50):
Yeah.
So, um, so obviously everythingthat we're going to be saying
today is based on our personalexperiences, which means that
we're only going to be talkingabout American rules and
American regulations.
I honestly don't know what itwould be like if you lived in
Canada and you were bringingsake back or if you lived in
Mexico or something like that orEurope.
Um, but we know what it's liketo do it in America and
(06:10):
specifically in New York andeven more specifically at John
F.
Kennedy International Airport.
And so, um, you know, we, we canhelp with that because we know
how that goes.
And so that's really where we'regoing to be leaning in.
Um, I'm sure that there areresources to find out locally
what your own rules andregulations might be outside of
the U.
S.
Timothy Sullivan (06:30):
It has to be said that there's rules and
regulations, and then there's alittle gray area.
Right?
A little wiggle
John Puma (06:38):
little grey area.
Timothy Sullivan (06:39):
with how much, how much you can bring back.
Um,
John Puma (06:43):
the rules, in my opinion, at least, over the
last, um, over the last, like,15 years of doing this have
changed.
Because it used to be that whenyou were coming back, you had to
fill out a form, and there was aThere was a line item on the
form that was like alcoholicbeverages and you had to choose
the number of bottles that youwere bringing back with you.
And then later on, that wentaway and it was replaced by
(07:05):
another form that had how muchstuff and is your stuff more
than Like 10, 000 worth ofstuff.
And if it was like, no, theydidn't care about the rest.
And these days they don't evenask.
So I'm not sure exactly whathappened.
If they just realized thatnobody was bringing over
(07:27):
anything that was over, that waswild and crazy from Japan.
But, um, they don't even ask meanymore.
Tim, did I ask you?
Yeah,
Timothy Sullivan (07:36):
you don't have to, I remember the olden days
when you had to fill out thatform.
And I remember the 10, 000limit, but I did look up what
the federal regulations are.
And the limit is according tothe
uscustomsandborderprotections.
gov website, one liter ofalcoholic beverages for personal
(07:59):
use can be brought back dutyfree.
John Puma (08:03):
Well About that Well, that's I guess duty free I don't
I don't bring my so alright, soLet's let's talk about duty free
then if we're gonna bring dutyfree into it So Tim, I am new to
traveling.
What is duty free?
Mm hmm.
(08:23):
Mm
Timothy Sullivan (08:24):
Well, there are these special stores in the
Tokyo airports, and they offerduty free products.
And I don't know a lot aboutthis topic, but as far as sake
is concerned, there is a goodvariety of well known brands
that have placement in theseduty free shops.
(08:46):
and for several brands, it's apretty big money earner.
And getting placement in theseduty free shops in the airport
is a great way to getdistributed.
Now, there's one thing youreally need to be careful of.
If you fly back to the U.
S.
and you're going to landdomestically, like, let's say
(09:07):
you fly from Haneda, to, um,Chicago, and then you change
planes and then you go to NewYork, you can't bring the duty
free carry on sake into theplane because
John Puma (09:24):
Oh, that's a problem mm
Timothy Sullivan (09:27):
you're, not flying direct to your
destination, you really can'tbuy duty free sake.
at the airport because you'reswitching planes and you can't
carry those on domestically.
So if you're flying direct fromTokyo to your final destination,
it is a great way to buy two orthree bottles.
I, on my last trip where I wasflying direct, I got some
(09:52):
Noguchi Junmai Daiginjo and someKuheiji, some really high end
sakes.
And they're, of course, so muchcheaper there than they would be
in the States.
So Duty Free is your last chancecafe when you're leaving Japan
and you're flying direct to yourdestination in the US.
(10:12):
It's really worth it to pick upthree or even four bottles and
just bring them along to theStates.
John Puma (10:18):
Okay.
And, and that is, that is oneliter by the book.
Okay.
Timothy Sullivan (10:24):
Technically, here's the,
John Puma (10:26):
I said by the book,
Timothy Sullivan (10:28):
if you are arriving with more than one
liter, technically you'resupposed to declare it and pay
some very small duty on theimport of the alcohol.
But everything I've heard frompeople who do that, the, the
officers just wave them throughit.
They don't want to be botheredwith the paperwork for 2 and 30
(10:50):
cents of duty.
John Puma (10:51):
so, um, so let's say you are not going to limit
yourself to the sakes that areavailable, at the airport.
And again, these are very highend sakes.
As, As, as Tim mentioned, he gotsome Noguchi, some really nice
Noguchi from there.
And, but let's say you, youknow, you're, you're walking
around Tokyo, you're going to ashop, and you see something that
just looks really nice, and youhave never gotten it in America
(11:12):
before, and you want to take ithome with you.
You can do that.
It, it takes a little bit of,you should, there should be some
prep, but you can do that.
Now, uh, for me, I always bringthese things called wineskins,
that's something that I prefer.
They, you can buy them onAmazon, they come in like packs
of eight or whatever.
Uh, and basically they aresealed, bubble wrap, wine
(11:36):
shaped, containers that havedouble, command strip closing on
them that is technicallyreusable.
and so the idea is that yoursake is safe in there with the
bubble wrap.
And if it does happen to break,the double seal will keep the
liquid inside the bag.
And so You know, you are puttingglass into luggage.
(12:00):
Your mileage may vary.
You may have some bad situationswith that.
and we'll talk about that in alittle bit too, but generally
speaking, that's what I like todo.
There are, uh, I want to saymany of these shops in Japan
will bubble wrap things for youand your mileage may vary on the
quality of the bubble wrapping.
In some cases, uh, some, somemore reputable places, I don't
(12:23):
even bother with the wineskinbecause they wrap it so well
that I just feel very confidentin them.
Timothy Sullivan (12:30):
I have some thoughts on.
That I have never usedwineskins, so I can't say
they're Sake Revolution TMapproved because 50 percent of
us have never tried.
John Puma (12:42):
Mm
Timothy Sullivan (12:42):
But what I've done in the past with success
has been asked the shop tobubble wrap it.
I just say I'm traveling withthe bottle and usually in Japan.
They're pretty hardcore abouttheir wrapping.
And yeah, so it's very securelywrapped.
And then what I do is in mysuitcase, I would usually take
(13:04):
some of my t shirts or somelaundry and wrap it in that.
The number one most importantthing I've experienced is that
there should be no movement,like no shaking.
So the bottle should be.
Secure and strapped down.
If there's empty space in thesuitcase and things can slosh
around, that's a recipe fordisaster.
(13:25):
So even if you fill it up withlike crumpled newspaper or
something so that there's nomovement of the stuff inside.
And the other thing that I thinkis really important, I.
had great success once I boughta metal suitcase.
Like a, I have an aluminumsuitcase that is not flexible in
(13:47):
any way, and that has helped alot.
So I really recommend a metalfirm sided suitcase versus ones
that are fabric or, do you knowwhat I mean?
That
John Puma (13:56):
Right, Right.
Right.
So personally my shell and Ionly have Suitcases, so they're
hardback, but they're plasticright there.
They're reasonably firm They'renot nearly as fine.
No, I know your case youraluminum case and they're not
like that But they're also notfabric and they're not very
squishy
Timothy Sullivan (14:15):
I want to talk about another version.
Uh, uh, a version up from whatwe're talking about.
John Puma (14:23):
A version up from what we're
Timothy Sullivan (14:24):
yeah, so we're talking about bringing bottles,
wrapping them in bubble wrappingclothes and putting them in your
suitcase and putting your,checking your suitcase.
But I did something on my lasttrip.
I brought home half a case.
I brought home six bottles in abox.
So on my last day in Tokyo, Iwent to a liquor store, a sake
(14:49):
shop, Imadaya in Ginza, and Ipurchased six bottles and I
asked them to put it in acardboard box and bubble wrap
the heck out of everything.
And then I took that box and Ichecked it into the airplane as
a piece of luggage
John Puma (15:06):
Yeah.
Timothy Sullivan (15:08):
and it arrived with no problem.
So that is another thing you cando.
If you bring a dedicated carrierfor sake, you can put bottles in
there and bring them back.
At that point, you reach a levelof sake where it's probably good
to report it that you'rebringing in a case or whatever.
(15:30):
And it's very common that peoplecome back from Europe with a
case of wine.
So it's not anything to beworried about.
If the agents do want to imposea duty or a tax on it, again,
it's very low and
John Puma (15:45):
low.
It's worth it.
It's totally worth it.
Timothy Sullivan (15:48):
I've heard from so many people that even if
they do pull you aside andcharge you for it, it's very
low.
And usually they don't want tobe bothered with the paperwork
for something of that, thatsize.
So it's really worth it.
I brought six amazing bottles ofsake and they were a fraction of
the cost if you could buy themhere.
(16:08):
And if most, in most cases, youcouldn't buy them here, which is
the whole point of this episode.
So, it's an amazing way to getsome sake to bring back to share
with your friends and family andenjoy for yourself.
Highly recommended.
And if you can deal with alittle bit of the packing
stress, you're golden, right?
John Puma (16:30):
Yeah.
I do think that while we'retalking about sake that we
brought back, we should take aquick moment here and sip some
sake that we brought back.
Timothy Sullivan (16:38):
Yes.
And we are breaking our rule.
Like you said, these are sakethat are not for sale in the U.
S.
Sorry, dear listener.
Just this once, we're going totease you with a sake you cannot
get in the States.
John Puma (16:51):
right, but we are going to be giving you our
recommendations for things thatyou could find when you're in
Japan next time you go
Timothy Sullivan (16:57):
Exactly.
Exactly.
So for all of you going toJapan, look out for these two
brands.
John and I have picked.
Each something different that webrought back from our most
recent trip, that we think isreally delicious and really
John Puma (17:10):
Yes, and I'm pretty sure we bought both of these
bottles at the same place
Timothy Sullivan (17:14):
Yes.
John Puma (17:15):
Yes, and that would be Imariya in Ginza 6 in Ginza
highly recommended it's in thebasement 2 level.
Yeah
Timothy Sullivan (17:25):
And they have a great sake selection, walls
and walls of refrigerated sake,and lots of modern stuff, lots
of classic stuff.
You really can't go wrong, evenif you
John Puma (17:38):
they and they will wrap up your sake really well as
well
Timothy Sullivan (17:40):
Yes.
All right, well, I am chompingat the bit.
Is it all right if I introduceMy sake first.
John Puma (17:47):
Yes, I think so
Timothy Sullivan (17:49):
All right.
Well, I'm going to reveal one ofthe all time favorite sakes I've
had in Japan.
It is not exported.
It's from a small producer.
And when I go to Japan, I'm onthe lookout.
I'm lucky that This sake isdistributed in Tokyo, so at some
specialty sake shops in Tokyo, Iam able to source it, and I
(18:12):
always stock up whenever I seeit.
The sake that I'm introducingtoday is Tanaka Roku-ju-go, or
Tanaka 65.
So that's the name of the sake.
The brewery is Shiraito, andit's from Fukuoka Prefecture.
(18:33):
The brewery was founded in 1855,and Katsunori Tanaka is the
eighth generation president andhe's a very young sake brewer.
He got his education andreturned to the brewery as a
worker in 2009 and.
(18:53):
They make a brand calledShiraito, but this is their
secondary brand that the son ofthe former president brought in,
and he named it after his familyname, Tanaka.
It's from Fukuoka.
And the one thing I'll say abouttheir production is that they
use.
(19:13):
a method that is really uniqueas far as their pressing goes.
It's called haneki shibori, andit's a very old press where they
have a long arm coming off andthey actually hang stones
hanging off the side of thepress.
So they use these small rocks topull down the arm that squeezes
(19:35):
the sake.
So it's a super old fashionedpressing method and they, they
make a wonderful, wonderfulstyle of sake.
And yeah, so I can give you thestats real quick for mine.
So again, this is Shiraitoshuzo.
This is from Fukuoka.
The rice type is Yamada Nishiki.
(19:55):
The milling rate, as it says onthe front label, Tanaka 65, the
milling rate is 65.
So this is a Junmai grade sake.
The alcohol is 14 percent and itis one of my favorites.
So if you ever see Tanaka 65 inJapan, grab it and try it.
So John, I'm on the edge of myseat.
(20:17):
What sake did you smuggle?
I mean, what sake did you bringback from Japan?
John Puma (20:22):
So, um, I brought back, uh, so this is a brand
that actually recently becameavailable in the United States,
but it is a rice variety that isnot currently available.
And for me, that's one of thefun things about going to Japan
is like finding all thesebreweries.
And they're these brands that Ithoroughly enjoy and I love
their stuff.
And then finding out that theymake all sorts of other stuff
(20:43):
that I've never had before.
And, and so this is the GakiMasamune, Junmai Ginjo.
Aiyama now, Kama is, uh, fromFukushima Prefecture.
The name of the brewery is Okidai Kichi Honten.
Aiyama is a rice type that hasreally been heating up in Japan.
You've seeing it a lot morerecently, the last couple of
(21:04):
years it's become like a stapleand for a lot of different
brands.
but it hasn't quite startedcoming over to the States yet.
That's it's going to happen,but, when it does, it's going to
be a wonderful day.
But, for the moment though, it'ssomething that's usually just
available in Japan.
And I really enjoy this varietyof sake.
One, when I was looking at thatlist of sakes I brought over
(21:27):
earlier, I think like five ofthem were Aiyama.
Timothy Sullivan (21:32):
Hmm.
John Puma (21:32):
I think like four of them were from brands you can
get in the US that they justdon't have the Aiyama yet So
it's really nice to be able toget something Familiar but new
in this case.
Gaki Masamune is a fantasticbrand.
Everything they make iswonderful Uh, in the states
right now you can get their, um,their Honjozo and their Junmai,
(21:52):
and they're both fabulous.
And in my apartment you can getthe Aiyama, milled down to 60
percent of its original size,and it is, uh, 15 percent
alcohol by volume.
Timothy Sullivan (22:03):
Wonderful.
So it sounds like we both gotsome really good smaller batch
sakes, right?
And I think we should open themup and get them in our glass and
give people a tasting note foreach of them.
John Puma (22:19):
Absolutely.
Why don't you go first, Tim?
Timothy Sullivan (22:22):
right.
All So this is again, the TanakaRokujugo Junmai or the Tanaka
65.
To me, this smells amazing.
So the aroma is very gentle,very soft.
And it has notes of pear, apple,and melon, maybe a little
(22:44):
pineapple, but very subtle.
The version that I'm drinkingnow is the pasteurized version.
They also sell an unpasteurizednama version of this, which is
almost like an usunigori.
It has a little bit ofcloudiness to it, and that comes
from that rustic press thatthey're using, that old
fashioned press.
So, uh, just absolutely lovely.
(23:06):
So the aroma is very Enchanting,hints of melon, apple pear, as I
said.
And I'll give it a taste.
So on the palate, it's reallyclean, soft, gentle, round,
balanced, kind of likeeverything.
For me, this kind of hits thesweet spot of balance between
just a hint of riciness andthose lovely fruit notes.
(23:30):
It's not overwhelming 14 percentalcohol, 65 percent milling.
It just, it kind of just hitsthat sweet spot.
Do you know what I mean?
Just like all, all the elementsare in balance.
And.
It's just charming.
So I love it.
John Puma (23:47):
Sounds good.
All right.
So now it's my turn.
This again is the Gaki,Masamune, Junmai, Ginjo, Aiyama.
Hmm.
So the fun thing for me aboutAiyama is I often get.
A little strawberry on the nose.
(24:09):
And that I think is a lot offun.
I think it's a fun thing to geton sake.
So it's got your tropical fruit,but it leans a little bit more
in the berry realm.
Specifically, as I mentioned,strawberry.
And that's exactly what I'mgetting here.
Oh, wow.
And this is just nice andfruity.
It's got a nice amount of bodyto it.
(24:31):
It's not like.
So full bodied that it's Thickor cloying or anything like
that.
It's still light enough.
The finish is nice and crisp butthe initial burst of flavor on
your palate is just wow Justwonderful wonderful stuff Hmm
(24:51):
absolutely, I cannot recommendthis enough and when I am a
starts coming to the StatesYou're all gonna be very happy
people.
Since we're sipping some sake, Ineed to make a slight confession
about this year's batch.
Uh, for the first time ever, uh,and again, we've been at this
for a while.
For the first time ever, we didhave a loss.
(25:14):
We did lose a bottle.
Timothy Sullivan (25:16):
Oh, you mean coming back, you had a broken
bottle
John Puma (25:19):
We had a broken, but we had a fallen soldier.
It happened finally.
Um, and it is very, it was kindof heartbreaking.
So what happened was, uh, ourflight was pretty late in the
day.
So we had our luggage shipped tothe airport ahead of us.
And we did a little shoppingaround Tokyo and we went to the
(25:39):
Kochi, antenna shop.
And we've talked about antennashops before, I believe on the
show.
And we came across a sake fromBijofu, which is a brand we get
in the States using a yeast thatI've literally never heard of.
And it was, so it was a Bijofu,Junmai, Ginjo.
Cell 66 and I did not know whatcell 66 was so I felt like I
(26:04):
needed to have this so we boughtit and when we got to the
airport, I put it in a Wine skinand kind of stuffed it in my bag
haphazardly Which was a mistakebut when you're in the airport,
you don't want to be open up allyour bags you feel like I feel
like a nuisance and I so I didnot give it the attention it
(26:25):
needed and unfortunately Um,when we got home, we discovered
that that one had broken, butthe wineskin did its job
Timothy Sullivan (26:34):
Okay, so the sake didn't get all over your
clothes, but
John Puma (26:37):
A little sake got out that the wineskin was on its
like fourth use, I think.
So don't use them over and overagain, maybe.
Timothy Sullivan (26:46):
So, do you think that there was just too
much wiggle room in the bag?
That it wasn't like
John Puma (26:51):
Hmm, I'm not sure exactly.
Um, I think that maybe I didmaybe put a little too much in
that might have been part of theproblem We realized when we got
home that if I would have put itin a different by a different
case that There was a lot morespace in another case that I
could have used and I didn'tjust didn't think of it.
I was I was in a rush and I didnot think clearly and so one
(27:14):
bottle one bottle fell For themost part, we did all right, I
think.
Timothy Sullivan (27:21):
Well, you can't win them all.
And I think that for all theyears you've been going to
Japan, your track record's beenamazing.
I want to mention two otherthings, picking up on one thing
you said, just said, John, whichis about shipping.
Your suitcases to the airport.
And that's an insider pro tipthat I don't think many people
(27:44):
going to Japan know about.
Japan has a highly developeddomestic shipping network, and
you can send your heavy luggage.
from your hotel to the airportor from one hotel to another
hotel.
You just have to plan one dayahead and get it there by the
(28:04):
deadline and then for a smallamount of money somewhere
between like Between 8 and 20,you can ship a suitcase and it
will arrive safe, sound,pristine, cared for.
And, it is such a convenient wayto move things around.
And one thing that I've done inthe past is I've had my, like my
(28:27):
last hotel in.
Japan, the last night I'mstaying, and if I'm shopping
around the country as I'mtraveling, I'll send things to
that hotel, and they'll all bethere waiting for me when I
check in on that last day.
John Puma (28:41):
Yes.
And it's a great feeling to openthe door to your room and all
the stuff that you've beenbuying is waiting for you.
Timothy Sullivan (28:46):
Yes.
John Puma (28:47):
It's like Christmas.
Timothy Sullivan (28:48):
Yeah.
If you have a suitcase that youwant to pack some sake in and
you send it to the airport, youdon't have to lug it on the
train or you don't have to lugit in the taxi.
It can just be waiting for youat the pickup area in the
terminal.
And I've done that a few timesand it is so convenient and just
makes traveling with a heavysuitcase filled with your sake
(29:11):
so much easier.
John Puma (29:13):
Yeah.
and for the record, though, withregard to packing sake, and this
is probably something we shouldhave mentioned earlier, with
regard to packing sake, spaceisn't always the problem.
Weight is where they get you.
Or weight's where you're goingto get yourself.
And I don't know if it's thecase for all airlines, but
typically they're looking at,um, a weight limit of about 50
(29:37):
pounds if you're flying, um,economy or premium economy.
so 50 pounds, you figure yourbag, the, you know, the hard
case itself is at least 10pounds.
If you're using somethingaluminum, like what Tim has,
it's probably closer to 13 or14.
Timothy Sullivan (29:56):
Yeah.
And sake is heavy.
It is.
John Puma (29:58):
sake is heavy.
Timothy Sullivan (29:59):
It's heavy.
So if you're flying economy andyou don't have status on an
airline, 50 pounds is the limit.
And like I recommended before,packing things into a box and
checking a wine box as a pieceof luggage is another option.
And I've done that with wineboxes that are just You know,
(30:21):
filled with bubble wrap.
And I've also done it with likewine boxes that have the
styrofoam form where you can putthe wine bottles in and both
have worked very, very well.
So sending a box as, as a pieceof luggage is another option to
keep in mind.
John Puma (30:35):
I have to say the box from the store seems like a
really that's a pro move that Ihad not previously Considered I
will say I was at another shopthe very last day.
I was there and they werepreparing boxes to ship out to
people domestically and theywere doing six bottle boxes of,
of ishobin.
Timothy Sullivan (30:56):
Hmm,
John Puma (30:57):
to myself, maybe that's the good way to get the
ishobins home.
Timothy Sullivan (31:02):
I'm wondering what the weight is of one box
with six Isshobin.
I wonder how much that weighs.
John Puma (31:07):
A lot.
Timothy Sullivan (31:09):
It's heavy.
And I think as a, as a finalnote, there are custom suitcases
that are made just fortransporting bottles.
And I am seriously, seriouslyconsidering.
Investing in one of these.
You can bring a case of sakehome in one of these wine
(31:29):
suitcases.
12 bottles fit in there
John Puma (31:33):
that's impressive.
And 12 bottles is under thelimit as long as the case isn't
too heavy.
So as long as you're as long asthe container isn't very heavy
you you'd be alright
Timothy Sullivan (31:43):
Yeah.
So those dedicated winesuitcases are another option.
I'm looking into them.
I haven't pulled the trigger ormade any decision, but if I go
to Japan more and more in thefuture, now that We're traveling
there more.
I think it might be worth theinvestment to bring back, a good
amount of sake each time.
John Puma (32:02):
I might I might go into the realm of what you did
two trips ago and just buy a, bya 12 pack styrofoam, encased box
and we're always coming up withnew ways to bring sake back.
Timothy Sullivan (32:16):
Yes.
John Puma (32:16):
and improved ways.
Timothy Sullivan (32:18):
But for any listeners who are going to
Japan, at the very least, ifyou're a sake drinker and a sake
fan, you should stop into a sakeshop in Japan and pick a few
bottles.
off the shelf, put them in yoursuitcase and bring them home and
enjoy them with friends andfamily here.
Like it's an experience that isso rewarding and so nice and
(32:41):
your friends and family willlove you for it.
John Puma (32:43):
Yes.
At least I hope they do.
And if they, if your friends donot love you for it, find new
friends.
Timothy Sullivan (32:48):
Yes.
Find new friends or share withus.
John Puma (32:51):
Or share with us, yeah, we'll be your friends.
Timothy Sullivan (32:54):
All right.
Well, so nice to taste with you,John, and so fun to break our
rule and taste something notavailable in the States.
Uh, we hope our listeners willforgive us just this one time.
And we want to thank ourlisteners so much for tuning in.
We really do hope that you'reenjoying our show.
Now, if you would like to showyour support for Sake
Revolution, the best way to dothat is to join our community on
(33:17):
Patreon.
We are a listener supportedshow, and the support that we
receive from our patrons allowsus to host, edit, and produce
this podcast for you regularly.
Thank you so much to ourpatrons.
If you'd like to learn more,visit
Patreon.com/SakeRevolution.
John Puma (33:35):
Uh, and be sure to visit our website
SakeRevolution.Com.
We've got a lot of fun thingsthere.
Things like.
show notes for every episode,transcript of every episode.
Uh, we've got, there's aseparate part of the site that
lists every sake we've ever hadon the show with all of the
stats.
If you're curious about if we'veever featured your favorite sake
(33:57):
before.
You can go over there.
If you're curious about a sakewe've we've shown before and you
can't remember all the detailsThey're all on the website.
In addition.
The website has a link to ourstore and Our store you can pick
up things like stickers You canpick up things like t shirts
working on a couple of othergoodies in the future Buy them
(34:19):
for the sake revolution Lover inyour life.
With that said, Tim, I hope youhave a little bit of that sake
left in your glass.
All right.
A little bit.
All right.
Oh, everybody, please raise yourglass.
Remember to keep drinking sakeand Kampai!
Timothy Sullivan (34:41):
Kanpai!
Hello everybody.
And welcome to Sake Revolution.
This is America's first orpodcast.
I'm your host, John Puma fromthe Sake Notes.
Um, also I run the internet sakediscord and Reddit's r slash
sake community.
Timothy Sullivan (00:37):
And I'm your host, Timothy Sullivan.
I'm a Sake Samurai.
I'm a sake educator, as well asthe founder of the Urban Sake
website.
And every week, John and I willbe here tasting and chatting
about all things sake and doingour best to make it fun and easy
to understand.
Hi!
John Puma (00:53):
Well, hello, Tim.
Timothy Sullivan (00:56):
Long time no see.
John Puma (00:58):
yes.
Long time no see.
And, uh, have you been doinganything interesting?
Anything fun?
Timothy Sullivan (01:04):
Well, it did take a little jaunt to Japan.
John Puma (01:09):
Oh, you too?
Timothy Sullivan (01:11):
I think we got to let the cat out of the bag
right at the beginning here.
John Puma (01:18):
Uh, so yeah, so we ended up, uh, in Japan at the
same time.
This is not something that wehad planned to happen.
It just kind of worked out thatway.
Myshell and I were, uh, weredown in, in Japan for a couple
of weeks.
You and Scott, were over for,uh, what are you guys were there
for about like 10 or 11 days?
Timothy Sullivan (01:36):
About eight, eight days.
Yeah.
John Puma (01:37):
Eight days.
Okay.
For about eight days.
and, uh, yeah, we got to meet upin Tokyo on Thanksgiving of all
days.
Timothy Sullivan (01:46):
Yeah.
We had a,
John Puma (01:48):
Thanksgiving.
Timothy Sullivan (01:49):
yeah, we had a fun little sake adventure, but
it was not enough time,unfortunately, to do any
recording or any sake revolutionwork.
But we did, we did.
Reach our goal of meeting inJapan and having sake together,
John Puma (02:04):
yes, we definitely did that.
And we did that in my opinion,quite well.
I think I'm very happy with thesake drinking that we did.
we went to a little bit of aThanksgiving, uh, dinner with
some, with some other friends.
And, everybody brought sake withus.
So we, we poured a bunch ofdifferent things that were a lot
of fun to sip on.
And then after that, um, we hada little Nijikai with, John and
(02:28):
Myshell and Scott and Tim.
uh,
Timothy Sullivan (02:31):
John, what what's a Nijikai?
John Puma (02:34):
Oh, thanks for asking Tim.
That is the after party.
Timothy Sullivan (02:39):
All right,
John Puma (02:40):
Yes, yes.
What would that literally be?
Would that just be like secondevent or
Timothy Sullivan (02:44):
Niji kai.
So it's like the Second secondhour
John Puma (02:49):
second hour,
Timothy Sullivan (02:50):
Niji kai.
Second, oh meeting, second hourmeeting.
John Puma (02:54):
hour meeting.
There we
Timothy Sullivan (02:54):
I think
John Puma (02:55):
So we had our second hour meeting.
Uh, over at, uh, at a wonderfulplace that I had never been to
before.
And so, I love when I get to betaken to a place in Tokyo that
I've never been.
That's great.
Especially when it's Such a goodplace.
And this was Moto, Tokyo.
Timothy Sullivan (03:14):
Yes.
And I introduced you to MotoTokyo and it is literally, you
stumble out of Tokyo Stationacross the street and it is
there in a beautiful newbuilding, Yaesu Midtown building
on the Yaesu side of TokyoStation.
Highly recommended.
They have a standing bar infront and a wonderful restaurant
(03:37):
in the back area.
So anyone in Tokyo, Recommended.
John Puma (03:41):
Personally, I only experienced the standing bar on
the front, but it was more thanenough to sell me on the rest of
the experience.
It was really fantastic.
It was great to sip sake withyou and Scott, uh, over in
Japan, but, uh, what we're goingto talk about today is a
specific aspect of the going toJapan experience, perhaps maybe
the last aspect, and that is thecoming home And the bringing
(04:06):
sake with you, because, youknow, we in America, we get a
lot of sake here where there'sa, I would say, Tim, when, when
you started drinking sake,maybe, you know, maybe a
hundred, hundred, 200 bottleswere available in the U S or in
New York.
I say specifically about 200,yeah, something like that.
And now it's probably aboutdouble that I would say.
(04:30):
Especially since now you can,there's so many places that are
shipping sake all over thecountry and there's things that
only come to the west coast andetc, etc.
So you can get in America a goodamount, but that's a drop in the
bucket next to what you can findin Japan.
Yeah,
Timothy Sullivan (04:50):
podcast has always been to introduce
American listeners to sake.
This is our home and we want to.
Introduce sakes on this podcastthat are not too exotic or too
hard to find.
So we make it a rule that anysakes we feature are available
for sale somewhere in the UnitedStates.
(05:11):
But today we're, we're going tobreak that rule today.
John Puma (05:15):
We're gonna break our one rule.
Timothy Sullivan (05:19):
there are so many of our friends, John,
who've been going to Japan, notjust you and I there at the same
time, coincidentally, but somany people I know are taking
their vacation or planning theirvacation to Japan.
And one thing you don't heartalked about very much is kind
of self importing.
Back to the U.
S.
Like bringing a few bottles backwith you.
(05:41):
What's the best way to do it?
What are the rules?
What are the regulations?
how do you transport it?
So that's what we kind of wantedto talk about today.
John Puma (05:50):
Yeah.
So, um, so obviously everythingthat we're going to be saying
today is based on our personalexperiences, which means that
we're only going to be talkingabout American rules and
American regulations.
I honestly don't know what itwould be like if you lived in
Canada and you were bringingsake back or if you lived in
Mexico or something like that orEurope.
Um, but we know what it's liketo do it in America and
(06:10):
specifically in New York andeven more specifically at John
F.
Kennedy International Airport.
And so, um, you know, we, we canhelp with that because we know
how that goes.
And so that's really where we'regoing to be leaning in.
Um, I'm sure that there areresources to find out locally
what your own rules andregulations might be outside of
the U.
S.
Timothy Sullivan (06:30):
It has to be said that there's rules and
regulations, and then there's alittle gray area.
Right?
A little wiggle
John Puma (06:38):
little grey area.
Timothy Sullivan (06:39):
with how much, how much you can bring back.
Um,
John Puma (06:43):
the rules, in my opinion, at least, over the
last, um, over the last, like,15 years of doing this have
changed.
Because it used to be that whenyou were coming back, you had to
fill out a form, and there was aThere was a line item on the
form that was like alcoholicbeverages and you had to choose
the number of bottles that youwere bringing back with you.
And then later on, that wentaway and it was replaced by
(07:05):
another form that had how muchstuff and is your stuff more
than Like 10, 000 worth ofstuff.
And if it was like, no, theydidn't care about the rest.
And these days they don't evenask.
So I'm not sure exactly whathappened.
If they just realized thatnobody was bringing over
(07:27):
anything that was over, that waswild and crazy from Japan.
But, um, they don't even ask meanymore.
Tim, did I ask you?
Yeah,
Timothy Sullivan (07:36):
you don't have to, I remember the olden days
when you had to fill out thatform.
And I remember the 10, 000limit, but I did look up what
the federal regulations are.
And the limit is according tothe
uscustomsandborderprotections.
gov website, one liter ofalcoholic beverages for personal
(07:59):
use can be brought back dutyfree.
John Puma (08:03):
Well About that Well, that's I guess duty free I don't
I don't bring my so alright, soLet's let's talk about duty free
then if we're gonna bring dutyfree into it So Tim, I am new to
traveling.
What is duty free?
Mm hmm.
(08:23):
Mm
Timothy Sullivan (08:24):
Well, there are these special stores in the
Tokyo airports, and they offerduty free products.
And I don't know a lot aboutthis topic, but as far as sake
is concerned, there is a goodvariety of well known brands
that have placement in theseduty free shops.
(08:46):
and for several brands, it's apretty big money earner.
And getting placement in theseduty free shops in the airport
is a great way to getdistributed.
Now, there's one thing youreally need to be careful of.
If you fly back to the U.
S.
and you're going to landdomestically, like, let's say
(09:07):
you fly from Haneda, to, um,Chicago, and then you change
planes and then you go to NewYork, you can't bring the duty
free carry on sake into theplane because
John Puma (09:24):
Oh, that's a problem mm
Timothy Sullivan (09:27):
you're, not flying direct to your
destination, you really can'tbuy duty free sake.
at the airport because you'reswitching planes and you can't
carry those on domestically.
So if you're flying direct fromTokyo to your final destination,
it is a great way to buy two orthree bottles.
I, on my last trip where I wasflying direct, I got some
(09:52):
Noguchi Junmai Daiginjo and someKuheiji, some really high end
sakes.
And they're, of course, so muchcheaper there than they would be
in the States.
So Duty Free is your last chancecafe when you're leaving Japan
and you're flying direct to yourdestination in the US.
(10:12):
It's really worth it to pick upthree or even four bottles and
just bring them along to theStates.
John Puma (10:18):
Okay.
And, and that is, that is oneliter by the book.
Okay.
Timothy Sullivan (10:24):
Technically, here's the,
John Puma (10:26):
I said by the book,
Timothy Sullivan (10:28):
if you are arriving with more than one
liter, technically you'resupposed to declare it and pay
some very small duty on theimport of the alcohol.
But everything I've heard frompeople who do that, the, the
officers just wave them throughit.
They don't want to be botheredwith the paperwork for 2 and 30
(10:50):
cents of duty.
John Puma (10:51):
so, um, so let's say you are not going to limit
yourself to the sakes that areavailable, at the airport.
And again, these are very highend sakes.
As, As, as Tim mentioned, he gotsome Noguchi, some really nice
Noguchi from there.
And, but let's say you, youknow, you're, you're walking
around Tokyo, you're going to ashop, and you see something that
just looks really nice, and youhave never gotten it in America
(11:12):
before, and you want to take ithome with you.
You can do that.
It, it takes a little bit of,you should, there should be some
prep, but you can do that.
Now, uh, for me, I always bringthese things called wineskins,
that's something that I prefer.
They, you can buy them onAmazon, they come in like packs
of eight or whatever.
Uh, and basically they aresealed, bubble wrap, wine
(11:36):
shaped, containers that havedouble, command strip closing on
them that is technicallyreusable.
and so the idea is that yoursake is safe in there with the
bubble wrap.
And if it does happen to break,the double seal will keep the
liquid inside the bag.
And so You know, you are puttingglass into luggage.
(12:00):
Your mileage may vary.
You may have some bad situationswith that.
and we'll talk about that in alittle bit too, but generally
speaking, that's what I like todo.
There are, uh, I want to saymany of these shops in Japan
will bubble wrap things for youand your mileage may vary on the
quality of the bubble wrapping.
In some cases, uh, some, somemore reputable places, I don't
(12:23):
even bother with the wineskinbecause they wrap it so well
that I just feel very confidentin them.
Timothy Sullivan (12:30):
I have some thoughts on.
That I have never usedwineskins, so I can't say
they're Sake Revolution TMapproved because 50 percent of
us have never tried.
John Puma (12:42):
Mm
Timothy Sullivan (12:42):
But what I've done in the past with success
has been asked the shop tobubble wrap it.
I just say I'm traveling withthe bottle and usually in Japan.
They're pretty hardcore abouttheir wrapping.
And yeah, so it's very securelywrapped.
And then what I do is in mysuitcase, I would usually take
(13:04):
some of my t shirts or somelaundry and wrap it in that.
The number one most importantthing I've experienced is that
there should be no movement,like no shaking.
So the bottle should be.
Secure and strapped down.
If there's empty space in thesuitcase and things can slosh
around, that's a recipe fordisaster.
(13:25):
So even if you fill it up withlike crumpled newspaper or
something so that there's nomovement of the stuff inside.
And the other thing that I thinkis really important, I.
had great success once I boughta metal suitcase.
Like a, I have an aluminumsuitcase that is not flexible in
(13:47):
any way, and that has helped alot.
So I really recommend a metalfirm sided suitcase versus ones
that are fabric or, do you knowwhat I mean?
That
John Puma (13:56):
Right, Right.
Right.
So personally my shell and Ionly have Suitcases, so they're
hardback, but they're plasticright there.
They're reasonably firm They'renot nearly as fine.
No, I know your case youraluminum case and they're not
like that But they're also notfabric and they're not very
squishy
Timothy Sullivan (14:15):
I want to talk about another version.
Uh, uh, a version up from whatwe're talking about.
John Puma (14:23):
A version up from what we're
Timothy Sullivan (14:24):
yeah, so we're talking about bringing bottles,
wrapping them in bubble wrappingclothes and putting them in your
suitcase and putting your,checking your suitcase.
But I did something on my lasttrip.
I brought home half a case.
I brought home six bottles in abox.
So on my last day in Tokyo, Iwent to a liquor store, a sake
(14:49):
shop, Imadaya in Ginza, and Ipurchased six bottles and I
asked them to put it in acardboard box and bubble wrap
the heck out of everything.
And then I took that box and Ichecked it into the airplane as
a piece of luggage
John Puma (15:06):
Yeah.
Timothy Sullivan (15:08):
and it arrived with no problem.
So that is another thing you cando.
If you bring a dedicated carrierfor sake, you can put bottles in
there and bring them back.
At that point, you reach a levelof sake where it's probably good
to report it that you'rebringing in a case or whatever.
(15:30):
And it's very common that peoplecome back from Europe with a
case of wine.
So it's not anything to beworried about.
If the agents do want to imposea duty or a tax on it, again,
it's very low and
John Puma (15:45):
low.
It's worth it.
It's totally worth it.
Timothy Sullivan (15:48):
I've heard from so many people that even if
they do pull you aside andcharge you for it, it's very
low.
And usually they don't want tobe bothered with the paperwork
for something of that, thatsize.
So it's really worth it.
I brought six amazing bottles ofsake and they were a fraction of
the cost if you could buy themhere.
(16:08):
And if most, in most cases, youcouldn't buy them here, which is
the whole point of this episode.
So, it's an amazing way to getsome sake to bring back to share
with your friends and family andenjoy for yourself.
Highly recommended.
And if you can deal with alittle bit of the packing
stress, you're golden, right?
John Puma (16:30):
Yeah.
I do think that while we'retalking about sake that we
brought back, we should take aquick moment here and sip some
sake that we brought back.
Timothy Sullivan (16:38):
Yes.
And we are breaking our rule.
Like you said, these are sakethat are not for sale in the U.
S.
Sorry, dear listener.
Just this once, we're going totease you with a sake you cannot
get in the States.
John Puma (16:51):
right, but we are going to be giving you our
recommendations for things thatyou could find when you're in
Japan next time you go
Timothy Sullivan (16:57):
Exactly.
Exactly.
So for all of you going toJapan, look out for these two
brands.
John and I have picked.
Each something different that webrought back from our most
recent trip, that we think isreally delicious and really
John Puma (17:10):
Yes, and I'm pretty sure we bought both of these
bottles at the same place
Timothy Sullivan (17:14):
Yes.
John Puma (17:15):
Yes, and that would be Imariya in Ginza 6 in Ginza
highly recommended it's in thebasement 2 level.
Yeah
Timothy Sullivan (17:25):
And they have a great sake selection, walls
and walls of refrigerated sake,and lots of modern stuff, lots
of classic stuff.
You really can't go wrong, evenif you
John Puma (17:38):
they and they will wrap up your sake really well as
well
Timothy Sullivan (17:40):
Yes.
All right, well, I am chompingat the bit.
Is it all right if I introduceMy sake first.
John Puma (17:47):
Yes, I think so
Timothy Sullivan (17:49):
All right.
Well, I'm going to reveal one ofthe all time favorite sakes I've
had in Japan.
It is not exported.
It's from a small producer.
And when I go to Japan, I'm onthe lookout.
I'm lucky that This sake isdistributed in Tokyo, so at some
specialty sake shops in Tokyo, Iam able to source it, and I
(18:12):
always stock up whenever I seeit.
The sake that I'm introducingtoday is Tanaka Roku-ju-go, or
Tanaka 65.
So that's the name of the sake.
The brewery is Shiraito, andit's from Fukuoka Prefecture.
(18:33):
The brewery was founded in 1855,and Katsunori Tanaka is the
eighth generation president andhe's a very young sake brewer.
He got his education andreturned to the brewery as a
worker in 2009 and.
(18:53):
They make a brand calledShiraito, but this is their
secondary brand that the son ofthe former president brought in,
and he named it after his familyname, Tanaka.
It's from Fukuoka.
And the one thing I'll say abouttheir production is that they
use.
(19:13):
a method that is really uniqueas far as their pressing goes.
It's called haneki shibori, andit's a very old press where they
have a long arm coming off andthey actually hang stones
hanging off the side of thepress.
So they use these small rocks topull down the arm that squeezes
(19:35):
the sake.
So it's a super old fashionedpressing method and they, they
make a wonderful, wonderfulstyle of sake.
And yeah, so I can give you thestats real quick for mine.
So again, this is Shiraitoshuzo.
This is from Fukuoka.
The rice type is Yamada Nishiki.
(19:55):
The milling rate, as it says onthe front label, Tanaka 65, the
milling rate is 65.
So this is a Junmai grade sake.
The alcohol is 14 percent and itis one of my favorites.
So if you ever see Tanaka 65 inJapan, grab it and try it.
So John, I'm on the edge of myseat.
(20:17):
What sake did you smuggle?
I mean, what sake did you bringback from Japan?
John Puma (20:22):
So, um, I brought back, uh, so this is a brand
that actually recently becameavailable in the United States,
but it is a rice variety that isnot currently available.
And for me, that's one of thefun things about going to Japan
is like finding all thesebreweries.
And they're these brands that Ithoroughly enjoy and I love
their stuff.
And then finding out that theymake all sorts of other stuff
(20:43):
that I've never had before.
And, and so this is the GakiMasamune, Junmai Ginjo.
Aiyama now, Kama is, uh, fromFukushima Prefecture.
The name of the brewery is Okidai Kichi Honten.
Aiyama is a rice type that hasreally been heating up in Japan.
You've seeing it a lot morerecently, the last couple of
(21:04):
years it's become like a stapleand for a lot of different
brands.
but it hasn't quite startedcoming over to the States yet.
That's it's going to happen,but, when it does, it's going to
be a wonderful day.
But, for the moment though, it'ssomething that's usually just
available in Japan.
And I really enjoy this varietyof sake.
One, when I was looking at thatlist of sakes I brought over
(21:27):
earlier, I think like five ofthem were Aiyama.
Timothy Sullivan (21:32):
Hmm.
John Puma (21:32):
I think like four of them were from brands you can
get in the US that they justdon't have the Aiyama yet So
it's really nice to be able toget something Familiar but new
in this case.
Gaki Masamune is a fantasticbrand.
Everything they make iswonderful Uh, in the states
right now you can get their, um,their Honjozo and their Junmai,
(21:52):
and they're both fabulous.
And in my apartment you can getthe Aiyama, milled down to 60
percent of its original size,and it is, uh, 15 percent
alcohol by volume.
Timothy Sullivan (22:03):
Wonderful.
So it sounds like we both gotsome really good smaller batch
sakes, right?
And I think we should open themup and get them in our glass and
give people a tasting note foreach of them.
John Puma (22:19):
Absolutely.
Why don't you go first, Tim?
Timothy Sullivan (22:22):
right.
All So this is again, the TanakaRokujugo Junmai or the Tanaka
65.
To me, this smells amazing.
So the aroma is very gentle,very soft.
And it has notes of pear, apple,and melon, maybe a little
(22:44):
pineapple, but very subtle.
The version that I'm drinkingnow is the pasteurized version.
They also sell an unpasteurizednama version of this, which is
almost like an usunigori.
It has a little bit ofcloudiness to it, and that comes
from that rustic press thatthey're using, that old
fashioned press.
So, uh, just absolutely lovely.
(23:06):
So the aroma is very Enchanting,hints of melon, apple pear, as I
said.
And I'll give it a taste.
So on the palate, it's reallyclean, soft, gentle, round,
balanced, kind of likeeverything.
For me, this kind of hits thesweet spot of balance between
just a hint of riciness andthose lovely fruit notes.
(23:30):
It's not overwhelming 14 percentalcohol, 65 percent milling.
It just, it kind of just hitsthat sweet spot.
Do you know what I mean?
Just like all, all the elementsare in balance.
And.
It's just charming.
So I love it.
John Puma (23:47):
Sounds good.
All right.
So now it's my turn.
This again is the Gaki,Masamune, Junmai, Ginjo, Aiyama.
Hmm.
So the fun thing for me aboutAiyama is I often get.
A little strawberry on the nose.
(24:09):
And that I think is a lot offun.
I think it's a fun thing to geton sake.
So it's got your tropical fruit,but it leans a little bit more
in the berry realm.
Specifically, as I mentioned,strawberry.
And that's exactly what I'mgetting here.
Oh, wow.
And this is just nice andfruity.
It's got a nice amount of bodyto it.
(24:31):
It's not like.
So full bodied that it's Thickor cloying or anything like
that.
It's still light enough.
The finish is nice and crisp butthe initial burst of flavor on
your palate is just wow Justwonderful wonderful stuff Hmm
(24:51):
absolutely, I cannot recommendthis enough and when I am a
starts coming to the StatesYou're all gonna be very happy
people.
Since we're sipping some sake, Ineed to make a slight confession
about this year's batch.
Uh, for the first time ever, uh,and again, we've been at this
for a while.
For the first time ever, we didhave a loss.
(25:14):
We did lose a bottle.
Timothy Sullivan (25:16):
Oh, you mean coming back, you had a broken
bottle
John Puma (25:19):
We had a broken, but we had a fallen soldier.
It happened finally.
Um, and it is very, it was kindof heartbreaking.
So what happened was, uh, ourflight was pretty late in the
day.
So we had our luggage shipped tothe airport ahead of us.
And we did a little shoppingaround Tokyo and we went to the
(25:39):
Kochi, antenna shop.
And we've talked about antennashops before, I believe on the
show.
And we came across a sake fromBijofu, which is a brand we get
in the States using a yeast thatI've literally never heard of.
And it was, so it was a Bijofu,Junmai, Ginjo.
Cell 66 and I did not know whatcell 66 was so I felt like I
(26:04):
needed to have this so we boughtit and when we got to the
airport, I put it in a Wine skinand kind of stuffed it in my bag
haphazardly Which was a mistakebut when you're in the airport,
you don't want to be open up allyour bags you feel like I feel
like a nuisance and I so I didnot give it the attention it
(26:25):
needed and unfortunately Um,when we got home, we discovered
that that one had broken, butthe wineskin did its job
Timothy Sullivan (26:34):
Okay, so the sake didn't get all over your
clothes, but
John Puma (26:37):
A little sake got out that the wineskin was on its
like fourth use, I think.
So don't use them over and overagain, maybe.
Timothy Sullivan (26:46):
So, do you think that there was just too
much wiggle room in the bag?
That it wasn't like
John Puma (26:51):
Hmm, I'm not sure exactly.
Um, I think that maybe I didmaybe put a little too much in
that might have been part of theproblem We realized when we got
home that if I would have put itin a different by a different
case that There was a lot morespace in another case that I
could have used and I didn'tjust didn't think of it.
I was I was in a rush and I didnot think clearly and so one
(27:14):
bottle one bottle fell For themost part, we did all right, I
think.
Timothy Sullivan (27:21):
Well, you can't win them all.
And I think that for all theyears you've been going to
Japan, your track record's beenamazing.
I want to mention two otherthings, picking up on one thing
you said, just said, John, whichis about shipping.
Your suitcases to the airport.
And that's an insider pro tipthat I don't think many people
(27:44):
going to Japan know about.
Japan has a highly developeddomestic shipping network, and
you can send your heavy luggage.
from your hotel to the airportor from one hotel to another
hotel.
You just have to plan one dayahead and get it there by the
(28:04):
deadline and then for a smallamount of money somewhere
between like Between 8 and 20,you can ship a suitcase and it
will arrive safe, sound,pristine, cared for.
And, it is such a convenient wayto move things around.
And one thing that I've done inthe past is I've had my, like my
(28:27):
last hotel in.
Japan, the last night I'mstaying, and if I'm shopping
around the country as I'mtraveling, I'll send things to
that hotel, and they'll all bethere waiting for me when I
check in on that last day.
John Puma (28:41):
Yes.
And it's a great feeling to openthe door to your room and all
the stuff that you've beenbuying is waiting for you.
Timothy Sullivan (28:46):
Yes.
John Puma (28:47):
It's like Christmas.
Timothy Sullivan (28:48):
Yeah.
If you have a suitcase that youwant to pack some sake in and
you send it to the airport, youdon't have to lug it on the
train or you don't have to lugit in the taxi.
It can just be waiting for youat the pickup area in the
terminal.
And I've done that a few timesand it is so convenient and just
makes traveling with a heavysuitcase filled with your sake
(29:11):
so much easier.
John Puma (29:13):
Yeah.
and for the record, though, withregard to packing sake, and this
is probably something we shouldhave mentioned earlier, with
regard to packing sake, spaceisn't always the problem.
Weight is where they get you.
Or weight's where you're goingto get yourself.
And I don't know if it's thecase for all airlines, but
typically they're looking at,um, a weight limit of about 50
(29:37):
pounds if you're flying, um,economy or premium economy.
so 50 pounds, you figure yourbag, the, you know, the hard
case itself is at least 10pounds.
If you're using somethingaluminum, like what Tim has,
it's probably closer to 13 or14.
Timothy Sullivan (29:56):
Yeah.
And sake is heavy.
It is.
John Puma (29:58):
sake is heavy.
Timothy Sullivan (29:59):
It's heavy.
So if you're flying economy andyou don't have status on an
airline, 50 pounds is the limit.
And like I recommended before,packing things into a box and
checking a wine box as a pieceof luggage is another option.
And I've done that with wineboxes that are just You know,
(30:21):
filled with bubble wrap.
And I've also done it with likewine boxes that have the
styrofoam form where you can putthe wine bottles in and both
have worked very, very well.
So sending a box as, as a pieceof luggage is another option to
keep in mind.
John Puma (30:35):
I have to say the box from the store seems like a
really that's a pro move that Ihad not previously Considered I
will say I was at another shopthe very last day.
I was there and they werepreparing boxes to ship out to
people domestically and theywere doing six bottle boxes of,
of ishobin.
Timothy Sullivan (30:56):
Hmm,
John Puma (30:57):
to myself, maybe that's the good way to get the
ishobins home.
Timothy Sullivan (31:02):
I'm wondering what the weight is of one box
with six Isshobin.
I wonder how much that weighs.
John Puma (31:07):
A lot.
Timothy Sullivan (31:09):
It's heavy.
And I think as a, as a finalnote, there are custom suitcases
that are made just fortransporting bottles.
And I am seriously, seriouslyconsidering.
Investing in one of these.
You can bring a case of sakehome in one of these wine
(31:29):
suitcases.
12 bottles fit in there
John Puma (31:33):
that's impressive.
And 12 bottles is under thelimit as long as the case isn't
too heavy.
So as long as you're as long asthe container isn't very heavy
you you'd be alright
Timothy Sullivan (31:43):
Yeah.
So those dedicated winesuitcases are another option.
I'm looking into them.
I haven't pulled the trigger ormade any decision, but if I go
to Japan more and more in thefuture, now that We're traveling
there more.
I think it might be worth theinvestment to bring back, a good
amount of sake each time.
John Puma (32:02):
I might I might go into the realm of what you did
two trips ago and just buy a, bya 12 pack styrofoam, encased box
and we're always coming up withnew ways to bring sake back.
Timothy Sullivan (32:16):
Yes.
John Puma (32:16):
and improved ways.
Timothy Sullivan (32:18):
But for any listeners who are going to
Japan, at the very least, ifyou're a sake drinker and a sake
fan, you should stop into a sakeshop in Japan and pick a few
bottles.
off the shelf, put them in yoursuitcase and bring them home and
enjoy them with friends andfamily here.
Like it's an experience that isso rewarding and so nice and
(32:41):
your friends and family willlove you for it.
John Puma (32:43):
Yes.
At least I hope they do.
And if they, if your friends donot love you for it, find new
friends.
Timothy Sullivan (32:48):
Yes.
Find new friends or share withus.
John Puma (32:51):
Or share with us, yeah, we'll be your friends.
Timothy Sullivan (32:54):
All right.
Well, so nice to taste with you,John, and so fun to break our
rule and taste something notavailable in the States.
Uh, we hope our listeners willforgive us just this one time.
And we want to thank ourlisteners so much for tuning in.
We really do hope that you'reenjoying our show.
Now, if you would like to showyour support for Sake
Revolution, the best way to dothat is to join our community on
(33:17):
Patreon.
We are a listener supportedshow, and the support that we
receive from our patrons allowsus to host, edit, and produce
this podcast for you regularly.
Thank you so much to ourpatrons.
If you'd like to learn more,visit
Patreon.com/SakeRevolution.
John Puma (33:35):
Uh, and be sure to visit our website
SakeRevolution.Com.
We've got a lot of fun thingsthere.
Things like.
show notes for every episode,transcript of every episode.
Uh, we've got, there's aseparate part of the site that
lists every sake we've ever hadon the show with all of the
stats.
If you're curious about if we'veever featured your favorite sake
(33:57):
before.
You can go over there.
If you're curious about a sakewe've we've shown before and you
can't remember all the detailsThey're all on the website.
In addition.
The website has a link to ourstore and Our store you can pick
up things like stickers You canpick up things like t shirts
working on a couple of othergoodies in the future Buy them
(34:19):
for the sake revolution Lover inyour life.
With that said, Tim, I hope youhave a little bit of that sake
left in your glass.
All right.
A little bit.
All right.
Oh, everybody, please raise yourglass.
Remember to keep drinking sakeand Kampai!
Timothy Sullivan (34:41):
Kanpai!
Popular Podcasts
Crime Junkie
Does hearing about a true crime case always leave you scouring the internet for the truth behind the story? Dive into your next mystery with Crime Junkie. Every Monday, join your host Ashley Flowers as she unravels all the details of infamous and underreported true crime cases with her best friend Brit Prawat. From cold cases to missing persons and heroes in our community who seek justice, Crime Junkie is your destination for theories and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Whether you're a seasoned true crime enthusiast or new to the genre, you'll find yourself on the edge of your seat awaiting a new episode every Monday. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people. Follow to join a community of Crime Junkies! Crime Junkie is presented by audiochuck Media Company.
24/7 News: The Latest
The latest news in 4 minutes updated every hour, every day.
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.