“Hello all! Today ill be reviewing “born Tokusen” at both cold and warm (103F) temperatures. First tasting was at a chilled temperature directly from the refrigerator; this nihonshu is crystal clear in appearance and right off the bat the nose.... what a nose indeed!! It is a delicious intermingling of succulent apples and pears with no scent of alcohol to accompany to my pleasant surprise. Tasting notes are of fresh apple and a very interesting dairy butter flavor on the finish that lingers on the palate. The bite of alcohol on this one is very high (was a wake up call at first haha) and unfortunately I feel this hides the taste of pear from this nihonshu. I’d recommend getting at least four or five bottles for palate purposes under your belt before purchasing this one due to the fact that the zip from the alcohol could easily hide any and all subtle flavors this nihonshu hides in its layers.
Warm nose and tasting: After my initial tasting fresh from the refrigerator I decided to give this one a warming up in my tokkuri to see if any thing changes. All of the delicate nose is lost from the warming but the flavor gains such an interesting umami flavor, with the very subtle buttery flavor mentioned above comes to life at the forefront in pleasant fashion; along with an almost peppery spice. Overall this is a delicious bottle with more secrets to hide under is strong alcohol taste (unfortunately)... it will definitely need a revisit to keep picking it apart :).”
Thank you for your detailed review, Kody! We are happy to learn how you enjoyed this sake - thank you for sharing your insights on both cold and warm serving temperature! We hope to keep learning about sake with you.
“Crystal clear color, dense. Aroma with spicy notes, some anise hints are present. Flavor with flowery hints, anise with a good alcoholic presence on palate.”
