The best temperature to drink sake
Is sake better hot or cold?
Whether sake is enjoyed more hot or cold depends on the type of sake you are drinking. Thanks to advances in the sake brewing industry, many modern sakes are at their best when chilled or at room temperature. Warming premium sakes with delicate fruity or flowery palates may deflate the full flavour. Highly polished ginjo sake is generally considered better chilled.
good chilled sakes:
- Sudo Honke Satonohomare
- Shirataki Shuzo Jozen Mizuno Gotoshi
- Katokichibee Shouten Born Junsui
But it is a myth that sake is only warmed to disguise the taste of cheap, nasty sake. Many earthy, savoury sakes will open up beautifully with heat, to release sweet and rich notes. Personally, I love warm sake. It warms the body and soul, physically and metaphorically. I guess some like it hot.
good warm sakes:
- Tamanohikari Yamahai
- Tengumai Yamahai
- Kokuryu Junmai Ginjo
What temperature should you drink sake?
If you can forgive the dated cultural insensitivity of the 1967 James Bond film, ‘You Only Live Twice’, you may remember this immortal line:
James Bond: “I like sake. Especially when it’s served at the correct temperature, 98.4 degrees Fahrenheit, like this is.”
This isn’t far off. Most sake connoisseurs recommend warm sake to be heated to 35° -55 ° Celsius:
Hitohadakan – Body Temperature = 35° Celsius / 95° Fahrenheit
Nurukan – Warm Temperature = 40° Celsius / 104° Fahrenheit
Jokan – Slightly Hot Temperature = 45° Celsius / 113° Fahrenheit
Atsukan – Hot Temperature = 50° Celsius / 122° Fahrenheit
Tobikirikan – Very Hot Temperature = 55° Celsius / 133° Fahrenheit
Each sake brewery will give their recommendations for the optimal temperatures to enjoy their sake. But the most credible experts will tell you that it mostly comes down to personal taste. You may prefer chilled sake in the humid summer and warm sake in the colder winter months. The trick is to experiment and learn what you prefer. Just don’t boil it! The alcohol taste will become very acidic.
How to warm sake
Sake loves a hot water bath. I like to think of it as a hot spring (Onsen 温泉) for your sake.
- Decanter your sake from its bottle into a ceramic flask
- Pop it in saucepan and fill the pan with cold water until it reaches 80% of the flask’s height.
- Heat the pan until the water is boiling. Gently heat until you reach your optimal temperature.
For the love of god, don’t put it in the microwave. You’re better than that.
How do you keep sake warm?
Most ceramic sake flasks will keep your sake warm for a good long time. If you want to keep your sake hot for longer, you can buy some pretty swish sake warmer sets like this one from Takashi:
For a more economical sake warmer set, choose a ceramic set with a candle holder feature.
Keen to find out more about Japanese sake? Read some more sake blogs here.
