John Gauntner – Home Brew Sake

I just finished reading John Gauntner’s book: Sake’s Hidden Stories and it was a joy. I really enjoyed “getting to know” some of the brewers from across Japan. John takes us to meet key people of 13 kura, from the Akita and Iwate regions in the north to Yamaguchi in the southwest. These kura include:

Daishinshu of Nagano Prefecture
Dassai of Yamaguchi Prefecture
Nanbu Bijin of Iwate Prefecture
Tairin of Gifu Prefecture
Kikuyoi of Shizuoka Prefecture
Rihaku of Shimane Prefecture
Tsuyu Masamune of Osaka Prefecture
Daishichi of Fukushima Prefecture
Taketsuru of Hiroshima Prefecture
Yuri Masamune / Yuki no Bosha of Akita Prefecture
Tama no Hikari of Kyoto
Shichihonyari of Shiga Prefecture
Rikyubai / Mukune of Osaka Prefecture Continue reading “Sake’s Hidden Stories – One of John Gauntner’s Books”

This past week I attended John Gauntner’s Sake Professional Course (SPC). I had a very good time both in class and with the other participants at the Izakaya’s outside of class. The class is three days of non-stop sake information loaded with special little stories that only someone who has spent a long time in the industry and with the many kura could have accumulated. I expected the course to be focused on, well training Sake Sommelier, over my own interest in Sake Brewing. I was not disappointed in this expectation but the course was more than just for the Sommelier.

The 46 attendees were from four major categories: the restaurant business, distributors and distribution channel, individuals with a special interest in sake and sake brewers like me. The interactions between these interests were mostly complementary and enhanced the overall experience and learning. Continue reading “John Gauntner’s Sake Professional Course”