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Jakarta Post

Dying spirit spreads its wings

After a long period of relative dormancy, sake — a traditional beverage of Japanese origin that is made from fermented rice — is gaining popularity among Jakarta’s upscale communities

Arif Suryobuwono (The Jakarta Post)
Jakarta
Fri, June 19, 2015

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Dying spirit spreads its wings

After a long period of relative dormancy, sake '€” a traditional beverage of Japanese origin that is made from fermented rice '€” is gaining popularity among Jakarta'€™s upscale communities.

V IN+ has now established Saké+, the only Japanese restaurant in town with an extensive saké collection, and organized a saké-pairing omasaké ('€œI trust you [chef]'€) dinner, arguably the first of its kind ever held in town.

'€œThere were demands for saké from our clients, who wanted not only a supply of wine but also saké from us. So, rather than just being a saké importer and supplier, our shareholders decided to establish Saké+,'€ explained Yolanda Simorangkir, general manager of VIN+, which, without much fanfare, has been selling sake for several years.

The city, of course, is no stranger to saké. The drink has been available in the city'€™s high-end Japanese restaurants for decades, ever since business relations with Japan flourished after Indonesia'€™s independence.

An aunt of this writer is married to a Japanese businessman and divides her time between Jakarta and Tokyo. She recalled saké dinners at three Japanese restaurants in the city back in 1965.

At that time, demand for saké was limited to the city'€™s Japanese business communities and their Indonesian business partners, she added.

But now, more and more people are embracing the thrill of the drinkable rice.

'€œAlthough lately we are getting more Japanese patrons, the majority of our customers are still locals. They say they prefer saké to hard liquor because unlike vodka or whisky, which often gives them a hangover the morning after, saké induces sleepiness and makes them feel refreshed upon waking up,'€ said Saké+ Operational Manager Sherly Wiraatmaja.

Sake +
Sake +

The campaign to make saké the new in-drink for Jakarta'€™s cognoscenti may be part of struggling Japanese saké makers'€™ strategy to promote consumption overseas.

The International New York Times quoted a London-based food and beverage consultant in its August article last year as saying the saké industry wouldn'€™t survive if it stayed locked in the local market.

The article cited that saké consumption in Japan had fallen sharply since the 1970s because of a decreasing birthrate and a switch by many drinkers to wine, beer, whisky and shochu (a Japanese spirit).

This resonates with my aunt, who switched to wine after too many disappointing bottles of heavily discounted saké past its prime sold in Jakarta'€™s duty-free shops.

'€œShochu, not saké, dominates the liquor shelves of the supermarkets in Japan,'€ she said, '€œIt is more versatile, healthier, cheaper and easier to drink. You can have it on the rocks and mix it with other beverages to your own liking. Saké, the good stuff, is not to be mixed with anything. It'€™s always expensive, even in Japan.'€

But times have changed. Reasonably priced duty-paid outlets VIN+ and Saké+ have been offering excellent, fresh batches of saké, with more choice than ever. And saké doesn'€™t have to be drunk neat, as advocated by traditionalists. It can also be mixed into cocktails.

Indonesians new to saké may easily find it a charming novelty drink. Part of its allure lies in it being usually served in attractive small cups with artistically prepared Japanese food.



Similarly alluring is its smoothness, freshness, crispness, inherent sweetness, at times fruitiness, and subtle floral aroma with each sip.

There is something in it subliminally reminiscent of the Japanese staple, rice, and other starch-based food Indonesians may be familiar with such as fermented cassava, glutinous rice and palm wine.

Moreover, saké is not as flashy and hyped as wine, thus providing a discreet alternative for those whose aesthetic leans to the low-key side of luxury.

'€œDrinking saké is about sipping appreciatively and enjoying the simple pleasure and subtlety of the highly polished grain of rice brewed in good quality water,'€ said my aunt, who sees saké as an end in itself.

However, droves of young patrons who frequent Saké+ drink seem to see things differently.

'€œThey regard saké, whose alcohol content is as moderate as wine, as a mere warm-up beverage before finally heading to a night club to further indulge in hard liquor. Their goal is simply to get drunk,'€ Sherly said.

If stupor is seen as a means to reset oneself, a form of escapism to reach a blissful state of ignorance, the use of saké to achieve it has at least give the rice spirit a new lease of life outside its birthplace.

After all, saké can'€™t keep both its feet firmly planted in its past. In order to survive, it has to let itself be subjected to whatever it takes to enable its other foot to stride into the future.



'€” Photos courtesy of VIN+

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