Sake Club India brings in exclusive Sake wines to celebrate World Sake Day
It was a perfect marriage between specially picked Sake wines and Japanese cuisine at the Japanese restaurant Kofuku New Delhi.
NEW DELHI: On October 1, World Sake Day marked the beginning of Japanese rice wine Sake-doused celebrations across the world, and India was no exception. On a humble note, New Delhi’s authentic Japanese cuisine restaurant Kofuku in association with Sake Club India played host to serving the luscious renowned prefectures’ Sake range as well as Japanese delicacies under its specially crafted Washoku menu. It was a perfect marriage between specially picked Sake wines and Japanese cuisines starting from salads to carpaccio, sushi, and main course.
New Delhi-based beverage expert and writer Ravi Joshi a.k.a. “Colonel Joe” and founder of Sake Club India chose to serve the guests with an interesting and exclusive lineup of Sake wines- Kamikokoro Kokageno Sakana (Okayama prefecture), Hakushika Yamadanishiki Honjozo (Hyogo prefecture), Yonetsuru Limited Junmai Ginjo (Yamagata prefecture), and Hakutsuru Junmai Excellent (Kobe prefecture) to pair well with a variety of Japanese cuisines.
The Washoku menu specially crafted by Kofuku took off with Salads Okura Gomae and Salmon Tartare, followed by the appetizers Mix Vegetable and Tofu Katsu and yaki Chicken Wings. The Japanese Carpaccio included Tofu Carpaccio With Onion Salsa Salmon -Avocado Carpaccio, and Sake Sampler Sushi and Vegetable Cream Cheese Maki Roll.
Then followed a sumptuous authentic Japanese main course with Grilled Chicken Miso Yaki, Salmon Fried Rice, and Yaki Soba Veg. And last but not least the mouthwatering desserts summed up the evening with Matcha Mochi and Gomae Ice Cream.
According to Ravi Joshi, World Sake Day is celebrated on October 1 each year coincides with the beginning of the annual rice harvest, when sake production in Japan begins. That is the sake brewing season in Japan, which typically begins in the fall. A former Army Officer and an Engineer, Ravi owns the coveted Champagne Scholarship from France. After Champagne, Ravi honed his skills further, working with winemakers across France and travelling to different wine regions of the world. In 2020, Ravi was invited by the Japan Sake and Shochu Makers Association (JSS) as the only one from India in a group of seven global scribes to tour Sake breweries across Japan. On his return, Ravi founded Sake Club India (SCI), an Indo-Japanese community to create awareness of Sake in the country.
While commenting about the Sake Club India he founded, Joshi said that deriving from a continued feedback from our followers to also include other authentic beverages from the Pan Asian region in their activities, he decided to diversify Sake Club India activities. “Now apart from Sake, you look forward to also seeing beverages like Japanese Whisky, Shochu, Korean Makkoli, and Chinese Baijiu, not to forget authentic Indian beverages like Feni and Mahua in this space. This list is by no means exhaustive. Befittingly, our tagline also becomes “Sake and Beyond”, he added.
Ankur Sahni of Kofuku said that Kofuku which means ‘Happiness’ in Japanese aspires to spread ‘Happiness’ through its scrumptious food. “We are honoured to present some of the greatest Japanese food recipes with exotic presentations. We invite our guests to enjoy traditional IZAKAYA STYLE (sitting on Tatami) of informal eating and drinking. Our flagship restaurant has been in Mumbai since the year 2012 and now moved to places like Leh- Ladakh, Goa & Delhi. With KOFUKU’S new outlet in Gurgaon we are spreading our wings to reach every individual who is looking for some authentic taste of Japan in Gurgaon,” he added.
