Brewed from Yamada-Nishiki rice and Nada's famed natural spring water "Miyamizu," Sho-Une is made as a supreme expression of Japanese sake, graceful, with fruity scents and velvety smoothness. Specs list a 50% polish, Hakutsuru's proprietary yeast, Yabuta pressing, no aging, and double pasteurization. The rice is polished with precision to retain only the heart of the grain.

Junmai Daiginjo means no brewer's alcohol, just rice, water and koji, and at 50% seimaibuai half the grain has been milled away. Yabuta press and twice pasteurized means a clean, stable, consistently fruity style rather than a fragile, funky one.

Tasting notes: Gentle aromas of crisp apple, ripe nectarine and soft pear unfold into a smooth, lingering finish. The producer's European notes add delicate apple and pear balanced by lush strawberry and nectarine. Retail tasting notes describe peach and apple on the nose, a delicate texture and hints of pear, deeply complex yet smooth.

• Nose: apple, pear, white peach, nectarine, light floral lift
• Palate: velvety and silky, medium bodied, pear deepening through the glass
• Finish: clean, smooth and long, just off dry
• Profile: smooth, lush, fruity, floral
• Serve: 10 to 15°C, or 40 to 55°F chilled to lift the acidity and the floral, fruity aromas, or 65 to 75°F at room temperature, where umami and delicate rice notes emerge. Not recommended warmed.
• Storage: cool and dark. Refrigerate after opening and drink within a week.

Pairs ideally with rich, cheesy and salty dishes. The brewery also suggests beef steak, sardines and cheese fondue, and clams steamed in sake, sashimi, soy braised fish or vegetables, and broiled fish or prawns.