- [Announcer] tasteMAKERS
was funded in part by...

(soft piano music)

- [Narrator] In the hands
of those who take pride

in what they do, something
unique can be created.

Edward Jones is proud to
support the craftspeople

who define the Maker Movement.

(rhythmic upbeat music)

- In this episode
of tasteMAKERS,

you are going to
meet Yoshi Sako,

a sake brewer in Oakland,
California who is

producing small-batch sake
using only rice from this field.

(rhythmic upbeat music)

(upbeat music)

I'm Cat Neville, and
for the past two decades

I've been telling the
story of local food.

In that time, American
food culture has exploded

in tiny towns and big
cities from coast to coast.

In tasteMAKERS, I explore
the Maker Movement

and take you along
for the journey

to meet the makers
who define the flavor

of American cuisine.

(upbeat music)

Tucked inside a collective
of makers here in Oakland,

California, Yoshi Sako
is hand brewing sake

that's meant to
be food-friendly.

And judging by the
incredible array of places

that carry Den Sake on their
menus, he is hitting the mark.

(mellow guitar music)

- I was working in the
restaurant industry
for a long time,

as a sake buyer or sake
director, sake sommelier,

and I started to teach sake
class, and I was thinking,

how I can gain my
knowledge more,

you know, I study about sake.

I visited couple of
sake breweries in Japan

and did apprenticeship
for one month.

And I came back and,
you know, I was like,

"Okay, let's do it here".

That's how I started,
like a test brewing.

- He did a couple of
test brewings in his
friend's backyard

and realized, "Hey, this
is actually pretty good".

So that's when it kind
of really was born,

this idea of, "Okay, I
want my own brewery".

(mellow guitar music)

- Once I started it,
little by little, you know,

I kind of realized,
"Wow, this is hard.

"This is hard".

But, because I already started
it, I have to keep going.

So, just, that's why
I'm here now (laughing).

(machines whirring)

For the sake making process,

basically, we make steamed rice.

After that steamed rice is
carried into the cold room

to cool down to the
ideal temperature

and that steamed rice is
carried into the Koji room,

which is little
more heated room.

It takes about 50 to 55 hours
to cultivate the Koji mold.

So Koji is basically,
it's a fungus.

That fungus break
down the starch and
convert it into sugar.

What kind of Koji you make,

that's directly reflect
to the flavor of the sake.

So, it's been one of the most

important process, sake making.

We steam rice for two
different purpose.

One is for Koji making, and
one is for putting directly

into the fermentation tank.

We add water and together
water and the Koji rice

and the steamed rice takes
about 25 days to finish

the fermentation and we press
the mash and it becomes sake.

That press machine
is super old school,

and it requires manual labors,

and it takes, actually, three
days to press everything.

So, by pressing using that
way, sake becomes a little more

rounder, softer, and
tastes good too (laughs).

(upbeat music)

(door clacks)

- I've never seen
anything like this.

I've been in breweries, in
distilleries and wineries.

This is completely unique.

These tanks are full of water.

- Full of water, yeah.

- And how heavy are they?

- So, one drum is
about, like 500 pounds.

So, both together,
about 1,000 pounds.

- So, a 1000 pounds
are on this side,

and you're gonna leave this
hanging for about a day or so.

Correct?

- So, I started yesterday.

I hang only one drum yesterday.

Yesterday was the
first day of pressing,

and today is the second day,

I hang two drums after
restocking all the sake mash.

Then, leave it til tomorrow.

Then I remove all the sake lees,

leftover rice solids, then
start another pressing.

- [Cat] And so you just
are using massive amounts

of pressure to get every
single drop of liquid

and flavor out of
those rice grains.

- [Yoshi] Yeah.

- And so, it's coming
out of the bottom.

And then is it going into
that other tank back there?

- Yeah, exactly.

- Then what happens?

- So, two tanks was juice, is
gonna go into this big tank,

one tank and the other
two tanks juice is gonna

go into the other,
1,000 liter tank.

After that, I leave it
for about five days.

After five days, all those
white, kind of sediment

will stay at the bottom,

so I take out only clear part.

- Okay.

- So, that becomes the product.

We gonna do bottling.

Then, some products
will be pasteurized

and some products will
be sold as unpasteurized.

It's called Nama.

- Now, my favorite part,
we're going to taste the sake

and we're gonna
taste the pasteurized

and the unpasteurized,
side by side.

- We'll start with
unpasteurized, with Nama.

- The aroma of sake is rich.

There's a lot to
it and, you know,

the ingredients are so simple.

Oakland tap water,
sushi rice, Koji.

- And yeast.

- And the yeast.

- Yeah.

(soft bright music)

- It's delicious.

- Great.

- There is so much
depth of flavor,

and it has a round mouth feel.

It coats your tongue,
but it really does have,

kind of like, that sense
of banana and mango.

- Yeah tropical, a little bit.

- Absolutely.

It's delicious.

(soft bright music)

So this is much more crisp.

It doesn't have that roundness
that the other one did.

- It's real sharp.
- It's more austere,

I would say.
- Yeah, yeah.

I would say Nama
is more expressive,

more bold, you
know, more vibrant.

(light guitar music)

- Yoshi sources his
rice from only one farm

and that is here at Rue &
Forsman Ranch near Sacramento.

Not only does Michael Bosworth
grow about 10 varieties

of rice, he also uses
the farm as a haven

for migratory birds.

(mellow guitar music)

- Growing up on a farm,
you're always wanting to see

how you can use
what you're growing.

What other
applications are there?

I mean, obviously, we
can make great sushi,

we can make great Thai food,

but, you know, to
make a beverage,

we'd never done anything like
that before and so, you know,

I'm always excited to
collaborate with people

that are passionate about food.

And Yoshi is definitely
one of those people.

And I think he has a great
approach to making his sake

and, you know, it's just an
exciting collaboration for us.

(pleasant music)

- What variety of rice
do you grow for Yoshi?

Cause you have,
like, 10 different

varieties under cultivation.

- Yeah, that's right.

So, we grow a variety
called Calhikari for Yoshi.

It's a variety
that was developed

by the Rice Experiment
Station and it's a real great

Japanese type
short-grain variety

that can be used for sushi
and, obviously, now sake.

Holds up well, it's got
great flavor, great texture

in the mouth and, you
know, a nice aroma.

It's just, you know,
really delicious.

- So, I was really struck by
the partnership that you have

with the Nature Conservancy
to essentially act

as a weigh station
for migratory birds.

How did all of that come about?

- They developed a pilot
project, a pilot program

man, it was five
or six years ago,

and we participated in it.

It's something that, you know,

we thought had some
real potential.

What they did is they
looked at, you know,

various timings of
flooding a field and depth

and, kind of, cultural
practices, what
you did after you

harvested it, with the
straw and everything

and really looked at that and
looked at the bird response

and they tracked that and
they were out here every day

counting birds and they
came up with a great program

that said, "Well this
is the way to it, right.

"This is the timing
that's the most important.

"This is the water depth
that's the best for the birds

"and this is the management
from the farming side

"that's the best", and then
they scaled that program up,

and we've been huge
supporters of it ever since.

- [Cat] So, what kind of
birds do you see here?

- All kind, I mean there's,
obviously, you know,

you're gonna have the
traditional birds,

ducks and geese and
things like that,

but when we started
having lower water level

for the migratory birds,
you get dowitchers,

you get sandpiper, you
get avocets, stilts,

so many different, you
know, shore bird species

than, I guess, you
would typically see.

- That's so cool.

- Yeah.

(wings fluttering

(bird caws)

(light guitar music)

- A lot of people probably
familiar with wine

and so, you know,
as alcohol beverage

to pair with food, sake is
kind of similar to wine.

You know, sake also, you
know, can be drunk with food,

same as wine.

And the biggest difference
between wine and sake is

wine's backbone is acidity,

you know, the acid
from the foods

and sake's backbone
is more amino acid,

that creates more umami
flavor, more savory-ness.

That's the biggest difference.

And, especially here, people
are used to eating food

with beverage with high
acidity, like wine.

So, I decided to raise
acidity on my sake,

so that people here,
they don't really have

to switch their brain to
pair drinks with food.

It's easier for them,
I think and also,

the food I eat here is a
little bit different from food

that Japanese
people eat in Japan.

Here, it's a little
bit more protein-rich,

little bit more fattier,
so need the acidity

to cut through it too.

So, it's two reasons
I kind of like decided

to raise acidity for my sake.

(pleasant music)

(cars whizzing)

- So, I'm standing here in
the heart of San Francisco

with Beau Timken, who is
the founder of True Sake

and how many years have
you been doing this, 17?

- This is the 17th year.

So, we were the first people
to open a dedicated sake store

outside of Japan.

- So, how did you
get to know Yoshi?

- Yoshi's done sake programs
for different restaurants,

and we just know each
other through that

and I knew Yoshi
was very passionate.

His wife, they're a team and
that team is making fantastic

sake right now that I'm
very proud of selling,

and I'm very proud of, you
know when people come in

and saying, "Let us
taste something's

"that's made in America"
and Yoshi's done,

just such a great job.

Makes me very happy for him.

- Yoshi, here in the heart,
essentially, of wine country,

is making a sake, specifically
with a higher level

of acidity, to pair with
food and that's kind of what

he's hoping for.

Do you see other brewers,

kind of, taking that approach?

- Sure, I mean, that's
the way it is in Japan.

So, you're brewing
for your village.

You're brewing for what you
eat and what you're made of.

Yoshi, his village is
Oakland, California,

but it's also super food
centric, food savvy people.

So, he's making sakes
that go well with burgers,

go well with pasta, go well
with all these alien foods

to the sake world, but they fit.

He makes sake that
has body, has acidity,

but it's for everything.

I mean, snack food.

Yoshi's sake with potato chips,

forget about it, I'm not joking.

It's great.

(soft serene music)

- So, Soba Ichi, which is
right here on the same property

as us, they were one
of our first customers.

They serve the sake and
it's great, because people

drink it here, they
like it and, you know,

they're able to say, "It's
made right over there".

So, people always think that's
really interesting and cool.

- Our specialty is soba.

Soba is Japanese
buckwheat noodles,

which is very traditional

or popular in Japan.

It's a great collaboration
with Den Sake and our food.

- Besides serving the sake
as a drink, the chef, Koichi

also uses the sake kasu,
which are the pressed lees,

and he uses it to make,
actually, a cheese appetizer.

He mixes it with cream cheese
and you can really taste,

kind of the sweetness
from the sake.

It's kind of neat that the
byproduct from making the sake

doesn't go to waste.

Chefs are able to use it
in dishes they prepare.

(soft serene music)

- Our next stop is here
in Healdsburg, California

at SingleThread Farms,
where Japanese ethos

is woven throughout the
entire, incredible experience.

(soft serene music)

So, explain the menu here.

I mean, obviously it's
rotating with the seasons,

but just, generally,
when people come in,

what kind of experience
are they going to have?

- So, it's 11 courses.

Ideally in good weather you
start with a glass of champagne

on a rooftop, kind of relaxing
and watching the sunset.

Then you come down and we
have what we internally

refer to as the hassun course,

which is an array of
small bites, fresh fish,

fresh produce from the
farm and then, you know,

10 courses from there,
really all kind of rooted

very closely, thematically
with their place,

historically in kaseki
cuisine, but of course,

our rendition on it.

- And so, how does sake
kind of weave its way

into the wine program?

- It's usually, actually,
later on in the menu

with, kind of, more
aromatic, more savory dishes.

Often times, pairing with sake
can be slightly challenging.

They don't have that same,
sort of, high acidity,

mouth-watering,
crisp quality to them

that a lot of white wines
can give you very naturally.

And so Den Sake, you know,
that really gets a little more

total acid to it.

It's really amazing
how well I can slot it

into a lot of our
different courses.

- You're pairing the Den Sake
with a dish here on the menu.

Can you tell me about the dish?

- So, the dish is traditionally
a white fish dish.

Often times we're using
coastal black cod from here

off the California coast.

It's been smoked over
cherry blossom wood

in one of those
earthenware vessels.

There's one called an
ibushi gin or smoker.

We take the lid off table
side and kind of put it

in the center and it
wafts all this wonderful

cherry blossom wood smoke, kind
of all throughout the table.

And, for tables that
haven't quite gotten

that far on the menu,
it's also kind of awesome,

because they're like, "Oh
my gosh, what is that smell?

"I can't wait to
get to that course."

Kind of builds anticipation.

- Well, that's what I love
is that it feels like here

there are kind of like
these little extremely

thoughtful surprises
around every corner.

The idea that you can
choose this handmade cup

and it's completely unique.

The fact that you're serving
the sake out of vessels truly

made in Japan and it's
this very, kind of, hushed

and quiet environment that
allows people to fully,

I think experience the flavors

and the sights and the sounds.

- Absolutely.

A lot of people say it's almost
like there's a dance going

when you dine here.

Things kind of just
come and go and waft by.

We really try to appeal to
all the senses and such.

(soft strings music)

- Here at Quince in
San Francisco, wine
is the major star

of the beverage program and
because of its high acidity,

Den Sake has made the list.

Let's check in with
their sommelier now.

(pleasant music)

This is a restaurant that
is very, very wine-focused

and Yoshi kind of like, got
the door open to be included

in your tasting menu, right?

- So, we have one tasting
menu for the evening,

and then we offer a wine
and sometimes other beverage

pairing, so we kind
of came to a dish

that needed something
a little different.

So, this dish came out.

It was called wild nettles.

It had potato, oyster,
basically, kind of a different

version of a chowder.

So, we were tasting all
of these wines with it

and nothing was really
working out for us.

- And so when you
tasted that Den Sake,

what were the flavors in
that sake, in particular,

that worked with
this particular dish?

- Oddly enough, there was
this banana and tropical note

in this sake that I just
kind of fell in love with,

and for me, it was a
very textural pairing.

That's what we were missing
with wine or other beverages.

It kind of just
enveloped the oyster.

It had enough acidity to cut
through the creamy aspect

of the dish and that
banana note kind of worked

with the wild nettle, which
is a notoriously difficult

ingredient to pair with.

- Like, artichokes or
something like that.

- It's something like that.

Artichoke, eggplant,
those kind of ingredients.

The Den Sake, it came in here.

It was perfect.

It was received well.

That's what makes
that sake so unique,

is that it can kind of cut
through those richer elements,

which you would normally never
be able to do with a sake.

(light pleasant music)

- Here at Rintaro, which
is actually one of Yoshi

and Lani's favorite restaurants,

their sake is on the list,
but what's more exciting

is that the lees from
their sake making process

actually makes an
appearance in the kitchen.

So, I'm standing
here in Rintaro.

Yoshi and Lani, they said
this was kind of like

their favorite place
and like, they used to,

when they lived closer
to the restaurant,

they would be here every week.

- Yeah, they were just
absolutely regular customers

and they would come late
and they would drink a lot,

and they would sit at
the yakitori grill,

and when he started
experimenting with making

his own sake, he would
bring us his lees,

like the sake pressings.

They were always
really flavorful,

really aromatic and delicious.

So, I've been using them
for a long time, actually.

- So, what do you
do with the lees?

- The thing that I do
mostly is preserve fish.

I use it to cure black
cod, sometimes to cure

the local king salmon.

We also occasionally
make a soup out of it.

It's kind of like a miso soup

and rather than adding
miso, you add the sake lees

and I've got a sake
lees pickled wasabi.

(soft serene music)

- Next up, we're
stopping by Umami Mart

to chat with Yoko about
how best to serve sake.

So, there are an
array of glasses

to be able to enjoy your sake.

Kind of explain to me
why these are designed

the way that they're
designed in order

to enhance the flavor
and aroma of the sake.

- Those are meant for hot sake.

One of the reasons why is
because they're easier to heat

in a bath of water,
or the tokkuri is,

and then the ceramic is
easier to hold, if it's warm.

- And then, how about
these? These are so fun.

- So, those are wonderful
because you have the stem,

so if you're having a
chilled sake and you really

don't want the heat from
your fingers to transfer

to the sake, this
is a nice option.

Just like a wine glass
too, for the stem.

- So, there are also
wooden boxes that are used

for drinking sake?

- Yes yeah.

They're called masu.

I have one right here.

Masus are wooden
boxes made from cedar.

Commonly, you're gonna see a
flute like this in the masu,

and then they'll pour
the sake into the flute

and then they'll
let it overflow.

And this is an expression
of plentifulness,

of, you know, being
grateful to whoever it is

you're pouring for, like an
overflowing of, you know,

of bounty and kind of,
you know, gratitude.

- And again, it's like sake
is a wonderful beverage.

You can put it in just a
straight up wine glass,

but being able to use
all these different ways

to consume it, it adds
just one more level of,

just kind of, fun to it,

frankly.
- Yeah.

(pleasant music)

- Yoko, actually, she
does have this bar

and the Den Sake is
your biggest seller.

- It is, yeah.

It's delicious.

People really seem to relate
to the flavor profile.

Once, you know, you
pour it for people,

they really remember it.

There's kind of this,
like, you know, distinct

Den aroma that he's cultivated
in the past seven batches

at this point.

- Yoshi, he's
learned complexity.

Sometimes some
Namas are too big.

Yoshi's Namas have
great food partner.

It has strength.

It's solid.

He only has limited
ingredients, right?

He's got Oakland water man

and he's got rice
from up in Sacramento.

And he's working
within these confines

and he's making sake that
tastes like Japanese sake.

(light bouncy music)

- Having been his friend
before he started making sake,

when he still was in
the restaurant industry,

what did you think as he
was making this transition

to producing a local product?

I mean, that's a
huge leap to take.

- It seemed hard, cause I know
that, like a lot of really

traditional Japanese products,
there's so much technique,

and so much history and culture

and skill that's
acquired over, you know,

generations and generations
and generations.

But, the fact that he
was such a sake devotee,

to begin with and he's
got such an enthusiasm.

- It's worked.

- It's worked
extremely well, yeah.

- I can't believe he's
only been open for,

not even two years.

- Yeah, it's impressive.

It's impressive,
because of him and like,

his single-mindedness,
which I think

is why it's a good sake.

(pleasant music)

- It's been about a year
since he released batch one

and it's been amazing.

It's just taken off more
than we ever thought.

The James Beard
nomination was humbling.

The first time, ever, a
sake producer was nominated.

- Sake making, you
know, in the beginning,

I just wanted to see how
it's going, how they do it.

Then, little by
little, I kind of like,

I started to, having more
motivation in the going deeper

to the sake making process.

You know, once I started the
test brewing, I realized,

"Wow, this cannot
be just a side job.

"I have to fully
put myself into it".

I started getting know
about the ingredients,

how I can treat them to
create my ideal style sake.

I kind of started to
having more, you know,

confidence about, you
know, what I can make,

but it's never ending.

I'm still learning every day.

Every time I make sake,
I learn something new.

(pleasant music)

- For more information
on Den Sake Brewery,

as well as all the
other incredible makers

we featured in this series,

just head to
wearetastemakers.com.

Thanks for joining
me here in California

and I'll see you next time.

Connect with us online
at wearetastemakers.com

through social media
on these handles.

(bright lively music)

- [Announcer] tasteMAKERS
was funded in part by...

(soft serene music)

- [Narrator] In the hands
of those who take pride

in what they do, something
unique can be created.

Edward Jones is proud to
support the craftspeople

who define the Maker Movement.

(dreamy music)

(upbeat music)