Did you know that there is a Sake Institute of Ontario? The SIO a not-for-profit trade organization with the principal objective of educating and promoting the responsible consumption and enjoyment of sake. Talk about respectable ambitions. In an attempt to...
There were sake cocktails galore and suddenly the idea of adding a little rice to a night out on the town didn’t seem like such a strange proposition any more. Yes, it was a little hot. But it’s the end of May, and more than 750 people getting their sake on tends to heat things up a bit
We’re not saying beer and wine festivals don’t deserve praise, but there’s something extra notable about an entire outing dedicated to sake. And what better way to celebrate all things fermented rice than by ringing in the largest sake festival of its kind in Canada?
Today's Notable Young Entrepreneur is Metropolitan Wines & Spirits Owner Vivian Hatherell, whose boutique wine agency also specializes in premium sake and is also a direct reflection of her core interests in life, as well as her career
Today is International Sake Day. In advance of the occasion, we caught up with National Sake Sommelier Michael Tremblay at Ki in Toronto for a little sake crash course. Tremblay is Ontario’s first certified Advanced Sake Professional, having trained with world-renowned sake expert John Gauntner in New York and Tokyo
Yesterday, we were raving about our recent dining experience at ki modern Japanese + bar and we want to offer our readers the same... so here's what's on the table
Today's Notable Young Professional is sake aficionado Miki Ellis, who's responsible for training seminars, creating pairings for private/tasting menus, keeping sake flights fresh, overseeing the sake list, and hosting sake dinners at Vancouver's Minami and Miku restaurants
Though we’ve had tastes of sake here and there, it wasn’t until a recent trip to London that we really developed a penchant for the Japanese fermented rice beverage. So we were quite thrilled, then, to find an invite to Ki’s intimate dinner and sake tasting in collaboration with the Ontario Spring Water Sake Company sitting in our inbox upon arrival back in Canada
A few months ago we had the pleasure of experiencing a unique sake tasting at Toronto's Ki courtesy of sake sommelier Michael Tremblay – one of only five in Canada. One thing we've always wanted to know, though: what makes someone an expert on sake? We caught up with Michael following his recent three-week trip to Japan, where he had the rare opportunity to work at several sake breweries across the country, to talk about his experience and what he's looking to bring to Canada
Michael Tremblay is what you'd call a sake sommelier, someone deeply versed in the art of curating inventive pairings between Japan's national beverage and the modern twists on Japanese cuisine at Bay Street hot spot Ki. He knows the distinctions of Japan's diverse sake-producing prefectures, whether to serve mixed or straight, and that pancetta-wrapped Unagi kushiyaki with Kozaemon "House Junmai" from Gifu Japan (served warm) is a match made in heaven