Oyster & Sake Pairing - Sake On-nomi #35

12月 02, 2021

Event Summary:

It was as fun, delicious and informative night on sake and oysters!

Adam Loo, the business owner of The Oyster Cart, was first inspired by a batch of oysters that he really loved a lot. However, back then, the oysters were only readily available at buffet lines. With no capital to set up a restaurant or the experience to run the business, he came up with a unique business plan. He would cycle around the estate with an Ikea trolley cart full of oysters and shuck oysters live for customers at their house. From there, his business grew exponentially, and he could import oysters from all over the world and get daily feedbacks from his growing customer base. Eventually, The Oyster Cart was born and it now resides at 168 Rangoon Rd, Singapore 218437.

Unlike other oyster places, The Oyster Cart specialises in premium oysters that are on the lean and briny side. They also do not do a full shuck of the oysters to keep the oysters as lively as possible when they reach your doorstep. Adam mentions that the best way to know if the oysters are fresh is to touch the edge of the oyster meat, it would move slightly.

In this pairing session, The Oyster Cart chose 2 types of Oysters, called the Crown Flagship (CLF) and the Crown Premium (LF), both harvested in Ireland, Cooley Peninsula.

How to tell the Oysters apart?
CLF - thinner, flakes, fairer shells. Tasty, delicate texture, briny and nutty in flavour.
LF - Tougher, smoother, darker shells. Firm texture, slightly mineral with full blown sweetness towards the center of the meat.

Here are the results of the Oyster and Sake Pairing from our participants:

What interesting results we have here! Let's dive into the highlights of each pairing.

Manotsuru Junmai Ginjo
This pairing had such synergy! you can still taste the brininess of the oysters while tasting the sake. Manotsuru Junmai Ginjo is from Niigata, Sado Island. On that island, the irrigation of the padi fields is filtered through oyster shells to build minerality. That same minerality from the sake complements oysters well!

Kawatsuru Junmai Ginjo Olive

This is an example of a pairing that transcends flavours. The sake tastes completely different paired with the oysters. It now tastes soother and more buttery, the pickled fruit now tastes fresh! Lovely.

Imayotsukasa Junmai Ima Oyster
This is a sake made for specifically made for shellfish. It is THE sake to go with oysters with higher acidity, sweet smelling and a tad bit dry. It puts the oyster in the spotlight while acting as a strong supporting character and it's is not so sweet like champagne and rose.

Azumaryu Junmai Daiginjo
From the Naguya prefecture, the Eastern Dragon (Azumaryu) spots a sweeter style of junmai daiginjo with typical yeast no. 9 Apple-melon aroma! This is good example of a pairing that doesn't really gel. We rarely use Junmai Daiginjo pairing as much of the rice is being polished away, which in turn lowers acidity and umami needed for food pairings. Still a very enjoyable sake on its own! Last few bottles for sale here https://theartofsake.com/products/azumaryu-junmai-daiginjo?_pos=1&_sid=607a8cd4d&_ss=r

Hideyoshi Aged Daiginjo Tenma
This is an excellent aged Sake with cuvee of 3 different vintages of specifically made Daiginjos. It is extremely rich and smooth with bartley meady notes, cherry and stone fruit. Its nutty Characteristics is better paired with the CLF oysters which are also nutty.

Do try the pairings mentioned and you can get the oysters from here:

https://www.theoystercart.com/

Cheers,
Sayuri Lim

Photo Credit: BH Tan

For our Sake On-nomi #35, we bring you 5 sakes paired with 2 type of oysters that’ll amp up your umami game! Take this chance to try the Imayotsukasa "IMA" Oyster Junmai, a sake developed for 3 years specially to complement the taste of oysters. Raw oysters and Japanese sake pair beautifully together for reasons that other alcoholic beverages can't quite replicate. From brininess to sweetness, creaminess to silkiness, the two share many of the same qualities, making them natural companions.

1) a sake tasting flight of 5 x 70ml bottles
2) a placemat containing sake tasting notes and Zoom details
3) an hour's session with our in-house educator, Adrian Goh and Adam Loo from The Oyster Cart
4) 5x 2 types of oysters

Event Date: 24th Oct 2021, 8pm.

Don't miss another event, stay tuned at https://theartofsake.com/collections/ira-sake-onnomi

Our Previous Sake On-nomi

Sake On-nomi #34 - Experience Kozaemon
Sake On-nomi #33 - Fall for the flavours of Autumn
Sake On-nomi #32 - Sake All-Star! World Sake Day
Sake On-nomi #31 - Mid-Autumn Sake Pairing
Sake On-nomi #30 - Sake of the Mountain Peak
Sake On-nomi #29 - SG Childhood Snacks and Sake Pairing
Sake On-nomi #28 - Beginner's Guide to Japanese Sake
Sake On-nomi #27 - World Chocolate Day with Sake
Sake On-nomi #26 - Royals of the Sake World
Sake On-nomi #25 - Sake and Snacks Party with DDDK!
Sake On-nomi #24 - Dreams of Hourai-zon
Sake On-nomi #23 - "Sake Warming!"
Sake On-nomi #22 - Rebloom of Sakari
Sake On-nomi #21 - The Art of Sake x Lion City Meadery
Sake On-nomi #20 - Celebrate CNY with Sake!
Sake On-nomi #19 - Gozenshu: Brewery of Ancient Style
Sake On-nomi #18- Taste Of Manotsuru
Sake On-nomi #17 - Juyondai Vertical Tasting
Sake On-nomi #16 Cheese & Sake Pairing
Sake On-nomi #15 Toko Virtual Tour
Sake on-nomi #14 Seasonal Sake
Sake On-nomi #13 Daiginjo Kanpai for World Sake Day
Sake On-nomi #12 Chocolate Sake Pairing
Sake On-nomi #11 Guess the Daiginjo
Sake On-nomi #10 Sake Rice Selection
Sake On-nomi #9 - Aged Ham with Sake Pairing
Sake On-nomi #8 - Japanese Sake GI
Sake On-nomi #7 - Cheese with Sake Pairing
Sake On-nomi #6 - Namazake Selection
Sake On-nomi #5 - Sake Blind Tasting
Sake On-nomi #4 - Premium Daiginjo Selection
Sake On-nomi #3 - Unique Style Selection
Sake On-nomi #2 - Niigata Sake Selection
Sake On-nomi #1 - Dewazakura from Yamagata

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