Umami Mart enhances your sake experience with the right accessories

If you’re in the market for gorgeous vessels for your sake, peruse Umami Mart’s site, which is full of glassware and barware and all kinds of wonderful things to enhance your sake experience.

Many Americans had their first encounter with sake at a local sushi restaurant, served piping hot, which is not, frankly, how you should drink sake. Sake, like wine or beer, is produced in many different ways. Each type starts with the same base ingredient — rice — but the flavor and aroma vary widely. And, just like wine and beer, the serveware you use impacts your experience of sake’s flavor and aroma.

The team at Umami Mart in Oakland guides people through the experience of sake, helping novices and sake experts alike choose the right accessories.

Most sake should be served cold, not hot. If you do wish to heat your sake, so do gently, says Yoko Kumano, co-owner of Umami Mart. She recommends pouring your sake into a ceramic carafe and placing the carafe into a pot of simmering water.

And did you ever wonder about the square, typically cedar, sake boxes, which are called masu cups? You can drink directly from the masu, of course. You can also place your sake glass into the box and then pour your sake, allowing it to overflow into the box. This represents abundance and generosity when serving guests.

In addition to its gallery-like array of serveware, Umami Mart has a bar where patrons can sip and sample sake on site. And in fact, Oakland-made Den Sake is its biggest seller. “We have a close relationship with Den and are the no. 1 seller of their sake, across retail and restaurants,” says Umami Mart co-owner Kayoko Akabori.

Umami Mart
4027 Broadway, Oakland, CA 94611
510.250.9559