What You Should Know About Sake
Sake (properly pronounced to rhyme with “way” instead of sounding like “fee”) is used according to a few traditions you should educate yourself on if you should want to show courtesy when ordering sake at a Japanese restaurant.
First, you should distinguish the parts of a Japanese sake set. Rice wine is poured out of a glass termed a tokkuri, which is tall with a narrow neck, and it also can be poured out of a katakuchi, which is like a tea kettle. The katakuchi sake set is what you would use in the San San Ku Do Shinto sake ceremony at Japanese weddings. There are two cups you will see in a sake set for drinking from: the ochoko (a small cup) or a masu (a square wooden box cup).
Sake is often warmed to room temperature by filling the tokkuri with sake and then sitting the glass in warm water. Alternatively, you can enjoy the sake chilled.
When serving to guests, it is impolite to pour your own glass. Pour for your guests, and your guests are to pour for you. In Japanese culture, it is polite to pour holding the decanter with only one hand if the person you are pouring for is of higher rank than you; otherwise, you may use two hands.
Only in a restaurant setting, you can toast by saying “Kanpai”.
Have fun!










