Any Sake terms you need to know? use this glossary to learn them all.

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Acidity: General scale of acidic content in sake.

Alcohol Percentage: Percentage of
Alcohol content in a sake by volume. usually around 15% - 16%.

Amakuchi: Word to describe sweet flavor in Sake

Aspergillus Oryzae: Scientific name for Koji mold.

Daiginjo - Classifcation name for sake made from rice milled down to at least 50% of it’s original size and made with Rice, water, yeast, Koji and the addition of distilled brewers alcohol.

Futsu-shu: NON-premium sake… could also be called “table sake”.

Genshu: Undiluted Sake. Hot off the presses, sake is normally about 20% Alcohol. Brewmasters usually add pure water to dilute the strength down to 15-16%. Genshu skips this step and give you full-on high octane sake. It’s strong! Also referred to as “cask strength” sake, it’s sometimes served on the rocks.

Ginjo - Classifcation name for sake made from rice milled down to at least 60% of it’s original size and made with Rice, water, yeast, Koji and the addition of distilled brewers alcohol.

Hiire: Also written Hiire. The process of heating sake to make is more shelf stable. Pasteurization.

Honjozo - Classifcation name for sake made from rice milled down to at least 70% of it’s original size and made with Rice, water, yeast, Koji and the addition of distilled brewers alcohol.

Jizake: this could be considered “micro brew” sakes. Basically, sake from a small producer.

Junmai - Classification name for sake made from rice milled down to at least 70% of it’s original size and made with only Rice, water, yeast and Koji - no additives.

Junmai Daigino - Classification name for sake made from rice milled down to at least 50% of it’s original size and made with only Rice, water, yeast and Koji - no additives.

Junmai Ginjo - Classification name for sake made from rice milled down to at least 60% of it’s original size and made with only Rice, water, yeast and Koji - no additives.

Kanpai: Japanese word for “Cheers!”

Karakuchi: a word to describe sake that is dry in flavor.

Kasu: the pressed rice solids or “lees” left over when sake is separated from the main mash after brewing.

Kobo: Japanese word for Yeast

Koji: Rice that has been inoculated with Koji-kin mold

Koji-kin: Aspergillus Oryzae. This is the name for the mold that is used to create koji rice

Koshu: Aged sake. Normally, sake should not sit around for years, but some premium sake is aged and produces a sake known as Koshu. This produces a golden-amber color and a complex flavor profile. It’s really similar to sherry. Personally, I love this stuff.

Kura: “Sake Brewery”

Kurabito: Worker at the Sake Brewery

Kuramoto: Head of the Sake Brewery, AKA the big cheese.

Masu: Square box used as a sake cup. Traditionally made from Cedar, but also now found in plastic. This square shape was originally used as a measure of rice.

Moromi: Main fermenting mash consisting of yeast starter, koji, steamed rice and water

Moto: Yeast Starter

Nigori: Sake that is only corsely filtered of rice solids after brewing. These tiny bits of the rice are left in giving this sake a creamy and miky appearance. Be sure to shake up a nigori before you pour. Sometimes called “cloudy” or “unfiltered” sake.

Nihon-shu - The way we refer to Japanese rice wine: “Sake” is referred to as “Nihon-shu” in japanese.

Nihonshu-do: a scale of measurement of the “specific gravity” of sake. higher positive numbers indicate generally drier sake, lower negative numbers represent generally sweeter sake.

Namazake: Nama is a word you should know! Trust me. Nama is just unpasteurized sake. It must be constantly refridgerated, consumed within a day or two of opening and is only available seasonally. The trade off for all this is that nama is known for it’s fresh, young, bombastic taste. Delicious!

ochoko: Small ceramic sake cup.

Prefecture: The country of japan is broken down into 47 locally governed units called Prefectures.

Sake Meter Value (SMV). A scale that indicates the relative sweetness or dryness of a sake. Postive number are Dryer, negative numbers are sweeter. Also referred to as “nihonshu-do”.

Seimaibuai : also known as Rice Milling Percentage. Indicates the precent of the rice grain remaining after milling away the outer hull prior to brewing

Shubo : Yeast Starter

Shuzo : Sake brewery. for example: Takara Shuzo means Takara Sake Brewery.

Taru: Sake that has been stored in cedar barrels, imparting a cedar-y taste to the sake. If you love to spend time in your cedar closet, this may just be the drink for you. The more subtle the cedar notes, the better.

Toji: Head brewer at the sake brewery

Tokkuri: Small carafe for serving and heating sake. Traditionally made from ceramic.