Five alcohol all-stars share their tips for best enjoying whiskey, gin, sake, sherry and wine

Headshot by Noah Fecks
I’m beyond grateful, and completely humbled to be in such amazing company in this article by the fabulous Laura Hayes. Not only does she write for the Washington Post and numerous other publications, but she also blogs about fabulous regional cuisine via her site, Best Thing on the Menu. Thank you Laura, and all of the women included in this article.

  • By Laura Hayes

Chantal Tseng pours a glass of sherry using a venencia, an ages-old tool that helps aerate the fortified wine.

Chantal Tseng pours a glass of sherry using a venencia, an ages-old tool that aerates the fortified wine. Photo by Scott Suchman

When you raise a glass of craft whiskey to your lips, you’re not just sipping some potent amber alcohol. You’re also consuming centuries’ worth of history, countless aroma compounds, and the immeasurable fruits and labors of a hard-working distillery.

And that bottle of sake you’re drinking alongside your California roll? It’s way more than the sweet results of fermented rice. Rather, it’s an ancient liquor steeped in Japanese tradition with roots in religious ceremonies. And don’t even get us started about what’s going on in your favorite bottle of wine.

The takeaway? You sure do drink a lot. And also: For the layman, this alcohol stuff can be  complex.

Which is why we set out to find D.C.’s preeminent authorities who could answer our burning questions and demystify our favorite types of alcohol. And did we mention they all happen to be women?

Along the way we learned the best way to mix a martini (James Bond is wrong!), how hot your sake should be (trick question: It’s best served cold) and whether you should buy wine from Trader Joe’s or Whole Foods (sorry, Two Buck Chuck).

Chantal Tseng
Sherry Pro, Mockingbird Hill, 1843 Seventh St. NW; 202-316-9396, drinkmoresherry.com. (Shaw-Howard U)

Mockingbird Hill, the ham and sherry bar Tseng co-owns with husband Derek Brown in Shaw, prides itself on being transparent in its mission to bring good sherry to the D.C. market. “We’re not subtle about what we’re doing,” she says. “We’re like, ‘Hi, we’re a sherry bar, come on in!’ ”

No, ‘The Day We Fight Back’ is not like the SOPA/PIPA fight. It’s a bigger challenge.

Tseng, who has been bartending in D.C. since 2000, admires sherry for its versatility. “You don’t want to manipulate it too much. But at the same time, it’s super adaptable. Sherry makes any cocktail better.” She’s amassed 102 different sherries for the bar, and serves them in flights with small bites inspired by La Venencia, a popular Madrid wine bar.

“This is something that’s been around 3,000 years for a reason,” she says. “It was the ‘IT’ drink during Shakespearean times and in Colonial America.”

Sherry Tips
What to pair with sherry (besides ham): “Miso soup — especially with a nutty Amontillado sherry. Most table wines clash with miso dishes, but Amontillado and miso are a match because they share an earthy, or ‘umami,’ flavor profile.”
How long does a bottle last: “Manzanillas and finos are meant to be enjoyed fresh; even a week is pushing it. Dessert-like sherries like Pedro Ximenez can last longer, thanks to sugar, but finish a bottle off before the
one-month mark.”

Tiffany Dawn Sototiffany
Master Sake Teacher, sake2you.com
Soto is a “super taster,” meaning she has more taste buds than the rest of us. Good thing, because the aromatics in sake are far more delicate than those in wine, requiring a palate attuned to subtlety. “There are about
20 kinds of squash I can identify in sake,” Soto says.

The Howard County, Md., resident is the only non-Japanese female kikizakeshi (master sake teacher) certified in brewing, service and education. She acquired the title after collecting four certifications from the Sake Service Institute, taking additional courses and completing two brewing apprenticeships.

Through her business, Sake 2 You, she runs “sake safaris” to Japan, teaches a class geared toward business professionals called “Sake for Success” and is working on a book about incorporating sake into everyday life. “I’m trying every day, all day to make people feel like it’s less bourgeois,” Soto says.

Sake Tips
What sushi haters can eat with sake: “My favorite pairing is a pulled pork sandwich with a very bright ginjo (the second-highest sake quality level). But there are about 18,000 different sake varieties, so you can pair it with anything.”
What makes her shudder: “Besides sake bombs? When people microwave sake to temps above 100 degrees. It kills off the original alcohol, requiring grain alcohol to be added back in. It’s not even sake at that point! So stick with the cold stuff.”

rachel

Photo by Laura Hayes

Rachael Ewing
Whiskey Sommelier, Ri Ra Georgetown, 3125 M St. NW; 202-751-2111, rira.com/georgetown
While enrolled as a student at the University of Aberdeen in Scotland in 2008, Ewing showed up at The Grill Bar, one of the city’s oldest and most celebrated pubs, and asked for a job. “I knew nothing about whiskey, but they gave me a chance,” she says.

Ewing had planned for a career in international development, but she chose a different path after discovering she had a great palate. Her current position allows her to work with a unique challenge: She’s severely dyslexic. Ewing says it’s satisfying to find a career that rewards her sensory perception skills: “I’m very observant, which helps me behind the bar. My mind just picks up on things like body language because I’m trying to find my way around words.”

Now at 25, Ewing is one of 1,300 certified Scotch experts in the world, according to the certifying body, The Scotch Whisky Experience.

Scotch Tip
The best Scotch for beginners: “Glenrothes was my gateway whiskey. I use Scotch and whiskey interchangeably because Scotch is whiskey distilled from malted barley. Also, don’t be afraid of water. If that’s what it takes to get you to honor the art form and drink it straight, do it!”

nicole

Photo by Laura Hayes

Nicole Hassoun
Gin Goddess, The Gin Joint, 2317 Calvert St. NW; 202-234-4110, newheightsrestaurant.com. (Woodley Park)

Hassoun started at The Gin Joint — an 11-seat bar below New Heights — in March 2010 as a bartender, with only a shot of gin knowledge.

“There was literally no training,” she says. “In my first few days I found myself pretending to need more ice only to dash in the back to pop open a book to find recipes.”

Now as manager and beverage director, Hassoun possesses enough knowledge to play gin matchmaker with guests who need a little guidance. “Only one in 300 people come in and know what they want,” she says.
Beyond gin, Hassoun’s true passion is tonic. With help from Mom, she makes her own under the moniker Chronic Tonic (thechronictonic.com).

Gin Tips
Shaken or stirred? “Stirred! Never ever shake a martini. It bruises the liquor and turns it a milky white. Stir it 35 times instead, and it will be just as cold and more pure.”
How to make a good drink at home: “Stay away from sugar. Use fresh fruit juices instead.”

kathyKathy Morgan
Master Sommelier, kathymorganms.com
Morgan, the 19th female to be named master sommelier in North America by the Court of Master Sommeliers (there are 135 master sommeliers in North America), was exposed to vino at an early age by parents who liked to entertain and didn’t believe in a kids table.

The sommelier track caught her eye while she was working as a cocktail waitress on dollar beer night in college. “Once I understood wine wasn’t just for stuffy old French men, I realized it’s the coolest job in a restaurant,” Morgan says.

As a consultant, she helps restaurants like Bryan Voltaggio’s Aggio build creative wine lists, and organizes private events for oenophiles.

Wine Tips
How to get a good value: “Lesser-known varietals are likely to have a lower markup. If you like the new oak and concentrated fruit taste of California cabernet, try Aglianico from Southern Italy.”
Better grocer for wine: Trader Joe’s or Whole Foods Market? “Whole Foods. They have staff to guide you.”

 

Awesome write up on FS Taste about Sake Month

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Celebrate International Sake Day with Four Seasons Baltimore’s PABU


October 1, 2013 in News

Sake at Four Seasons Baltimore's Pabu

Tiffany Dawn Soto wants to talk sake. A master sake sommelier or kikzake-shi, she is a leading sake expert in North America, consulting for a variety of companies and leading “sake safaris” several times a year in Japan. Fortunately for us, Soto’s also the part of the team at Four Seasons Hotel Baltimore, home to PABU Izakaya, where she regularly helps diners choose from more than 100 premium sakes and leads seminars on demystifying this often-misunderstood fermented rice beverage (for starters, it’s not actually rice wine).

In honour of International Sake Day (October 1) and Four Seasons Hotel Baltimore’s month of sake events, here’s the Taste Q&A about all things sake.

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What’s your favourite, surprisingly amazing, food and sake pairing?

Dawn Soto: My absolute favorite food to pair with sake is a pulled pork sandwich with a rich tangy sauce (I usually make mine from a sake base). There are dozens of sakes that would pair well with this, but personally, I like Wataribune Junmai Ginjo.

What are some of the more common misconceptions about sake, and how do you address them?

DS: When I’m speaking with guests that are dining at PABU for the first time, I spend about 60% of my time clearing up misconceptions. The most common is that sake should be served hot, because previously they have been served something called sanzoushu (sake cut with grain alcohol). The alcohol content of sanzoushu is higher and does not taste good, and heating it masks the flavour and reduces the alcohol content. Premium sakes, on the other hand, are much lower in alcohol content than people think (another big misconception), actually only 15-16% on average, so if we heated it up, there wouldn’t really be any alcohol left.

Another misconception about sake is that it will give you a bad hangover, which is true for sanzoushu, but not for sake. In reality, premium and super premium sakes are sulfite-free, low in residual sugar, and lacking the impurities that give you a bad hangover.

What would be your dream way to celebrate International Sake Day?

DS: Ideally, I would spend a whole month in Japan. October is the end of rice harvest, and with all of the Japanese maple trees changing colour, it is a magnificent sight to see. I would love to work my way through four prefectures (regions) throughout the month, maybe attend the autumn festivals and enjoy as much kubocha (Japanese pumpkin) tempura as I could get my hands on.

What kind of glass do you recommend and why?

DS: Every premium and super premium sake calls for a different glass. When a sake has more nuanced aromatics, I prefer a glass with a larger bowl like a bordeaux or burgundy glass, which helps increase the evaporative surface, thus releasing more aromatics. When a sake has aromatics that are more overt (typical of futsuushus and junmais), I tend to gravitate towards a small stemless glass with little surface area. When a sake is clean in style with a lighter delicate nose, I prefer a stemmed glass with a small bowl (Spieglau port or sherry glass). When I don’t have the luxury of many options, I recommend a stemmed glass with a bowl that isn’t too large or small.

What’s your best piece of advice for people wishing to learn more about sake?

DS: Try as many labels as you can! I’m a firm believer that every sake is not for every palate, but with about 18,000 labels produced each year, spread out over 48 prefectures, there is a sake for everyone. Decide if you like a new sake on your second sip because most people aren’t used to rice alcohol, so you’ll taste more alcohol than is really there on your first sip. If you aren’t sure where to start, begin with Niigata because that region produces a style of sake that is incredibly clean, light, elegant, and food-friendly, which tends to be approachable. And of course, come visit me in Baltimore! -Bonnie Schiedel

Sake at Pabu, Four Seasons Baltimore

Follow Master Sake Sommelier Tiffany Dawn Soto on Twitter @HeySakeLady or visit her website, Sake2You.com.

Learn about wine from another friendly, expert Four Seasons sommelier, Dana Farner on Taste or get the inside scoop on a night out in Tokyo from Four Seasons Magazine.

– See more at: http://taste.fourseasons.com/2013/10/celebrate-international-sake-day-four-seasons-baltimores-pabu/#sthash.mGir6tND.dpuf

Japan’s Youngest Budding Sake Sommelier

I don’t necessarily agree with this assessment, and I can’t vouch for her talent, I but I love her spirit and passion.