Published: 2018/2/28
Original URL: https://kiki-voice.jp/journal/408
※This essay contains a bonus image that can be seen at the original URL above, past the paywall (KIKI-VOICE subscription required).
#10: Sake Cup
No matter what anyone says, the cup is an important aspect of drinking sake.
The author Fujieda Shizuo wrote a short story called Denshin Ugaku, which includes a scene where a sake cup speaks in human tongue. The readers probably have no idea what I’m talking about all of a sudden, but I’m simply saying what was written.
Anyway, that doesn’t actually matter. The point is that the shape of the sake cup can have a large effect on the sake’s taste. I like both dry sake and sweet sake, but the cup shape is the deciding factor. To be specific, I like it when the form is not too shallow but not too deep, with a thin rim. This is because when I place it to my lips and tilt the cup, the sake flows smoothly and easily into my mouth, and when I close my lips, the stream cuts off quickly. With a cup like this, I can fully enjoy the sake’s aroma and taste without drinking too much.
Now, having written this far, I’ve forgotten what I wanted to say in this essay in the first place. I’m not sure how many cups I’ve drank either. Where am I, anyway? I feel like I had company, but I don’t know anymore.
Hmm, well, I’ll take another sip and then think about it some more. Readers, I recommend turning off your phone when you’re drunk. You never know who you might end up calling.
Vessels are a profound thing. Even if the liquid poured inside is the same, changing the vessel makes it feel almost as if the contents themselves have changed. It’s often said that a healthy body fosters a healthy spirit. Similarly, a vessel and its contents cannot be separated.
All right, this is getting bad. I’ll get the bill and then resume drinking at home, with my favourite sake cup.
Hm? What am I going to drink, you ask?
Hepalyse, of course
*Hepalyse is a cure for hangovers