Tokyo High

FIRST came the brain freeze. As it hit my upper palate and coursed down the oesophagus, I felt a series of tiny bites. Then a revolution slo...

FIRST came the brain freeze. As it hit my upper palate and coursed down the oesophagus, I felt a series of tiny bites. Then a revolution slowly gathered storm inside my stomach. First came the murmurs, then low-pitched rumbles of protest, before I buckled under a full-throttle kick to the gut.

Like chicken feet and Blondie, sake requires some getting used to. But this Japanese nectar with a deific ambassador is slowly rounding up disciples in the country8217;s metros.

The closest thing I could think of was toddy. Made from fermented rice, sake serves less by way of flavour than a pungent aftertaste one unfavourable reviewer likened it to drinking nail polish remover. Unlike grape wine, Indian foods don8217;t pair well with sake. But the demand is still increasing. 8216;8216;We receive regular enquiries from people who want to experiment, or from those who8217;ve travelled and want to replicate the experience,8217;8217; says Kush Nagrath, executive director of Mahima Hospitality, which runs Laidbackwaters in Delhi8217;s Qutub Hotel.

Since sushi and the robust teppan-yaki are its best, and perhaps only, partners, bartenders are democratising sake by alloying it with cocktails.

Last month, during the JW Marriott8217;s sushi and sake festival at the hotel8217;s Southeast Asian restaurant Spices, they introduced nine sake-based cocktails. 8216;8216;Like New World wines, this is the latest trend. Since it8217;s a neutral base, it8217;s also easier for customers to familiarise themselves with sake,8217;8217; says Rohit Sharma of Spices. The increased popularity of Japanese food has been a great excuse to push the drink.

When sushi walked out of five-stars and into independent restaurants, so did sake. For instance, at Farrokh Khambatta8217;s Joss in Mumbai; in New Delhi, Kylin, at Basant Lok, was the first lounge to introduce sake in February and the demand, says director Saurabh Khanijo, while not wildly exciting, is picking up. 8216;8216;We8217;re cultivating a taste for sake among regulars. If you order, say, sushi, you8217;ll get sake free,8217;8217; he says.

Be warned, sake8217;s not for career alcoholics. With about eight to 10 per cent alcohol content, the most you can hope for is a slight buzz. In cocktails, the wine is completely lost. But if you still prefer the doused effect of cocktails to just the hot/cold options of sake, then there8217;s everything from sakatinis8212;sake, vodka and vermouth; sake margaritas, where the Cointreau8217;s displaced by sake, to cosmopolitans, with vodka, sake and cranberry.

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The straight version8217;s also heavy on the wallet. At Spices, which offers five different varieties, from the mild Shochu to Masa Ounmai, a takori8212;five shots or 300 ml8212;costs about Rs 1,800. Individual shots, about 60 ml, are Rs 375 each. At Tiffin, 180 ml of the exclusive Hakkaisan sake costs about Rs 1,700. But the pricing, say hoteliers, is not high considering the exclusivity and cost.

8216;8216;When it comes to sake, we bear almost 40 per cent of the cost. Usually, it8217;s about 25 per cent,8217;8217; says Rahul Korgaokar of Tiffin. In Mumbai, they import it from Singapore or Japan. In Delhi, such is the grip of Nikko and Oberoi on local supplies that Laidbackwaters, which launched in February this year, hasn8217;t been able to provide sake. 8216;8216;Give me till August, it8217;ll be there,8217;8217; says Nagrath.

Like any dignified drink, there are also larger issues with sake. Such as, hot or cold?

The first time I had sake was at a yakitori joint in Tokyo8217;s Roppongi area. It was 10deg; celsius outside and my drink, on the brink of hot. For anything other than cooked wine, that8217;s just plain weird. But once inside, the warmth spreads out like a giant quilt.

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Since most Indian weather charts will never plunge that low, if you8217;re going to give it a go, then a brain freeze is definitely the better option.

With inputs by Sumana Mukherjee