long lost sake

 

While trying to organize the garage to make room for thirty gallons of wine, I came across a sealed bucket of sake, buried in a pile of pails I use for ferments, molds, and anything else you need food grade buckets for. 

I made this stuff a year ago and got discouraged with its progress so I just stowed it away, as an uncompleted project, and forgot about it.

I had every intention of tossing it until I opened the bucket and realized this was the real thing.  A bucket of naturally aged sake from polished white rice made in the traditional Japanese way.  I went through a lot of trouble making this stuff.  It would be a crime to not try and salvage it.

One whiff was all it took to evoke memories of long summer days at the underwater bridge at sulfer creek, consuming vast quantities of fluids as we lounged in chest deep jacuzzi-like effervescence and wallowed in our care-free existence.  We were all jobless bohemians back then.  Barefoot and broke but we always had money for fluids, gasoline, tobacco, and other fruits of our charmed, Huck Finn existences.  The beverage of choice was sake.  It's the only drink that's best served warm and we weren't into ice chests, even when the temps matched our body temperatures.  It was the perfect drink for the circumstances and we went through cases of the stuff.

I won't get into how sake is made.  Let's just say it was the most difficult and time consuming alcohol project I attempted and I'm not eager to make a second attempt.  That said, I now have a much deeper respect for the Japanese culture.  Sake is only ONE thing they can do with rice and water.

Anyway...  I need to wait a week or so to let the isinglass clarify the sake before I bottle it so I decided to design a label.

    

I considered using Full Metal Alchemist as the icon but perished that thought and opted for Samurai Girl instead.

Ya like?