Sake samurai thinks outside the bento box W. Blake Gray, Special to The Chronicle Friday, September 5, 2008 True Sake's Beau Timken takes his challenge to San Franci... Beau Timken, heads into San Francisco's Regalito Rosticer... The guacamole-sake pairing was a success. Smoked Duck Breast a la Lyonnaise made by chef Laurent Ka... More... Beau Timken stands outside a Mexican restaurant in the Mission District with a stern look on his face. The owner of True Sake, America's first sake-only store, is holding a Neoprene bottle bag and looking at his watch. It's showdown time. It's early Friday evening and the Mission is hopping with revelers. Timken, wearing a suit jacket, is all business, and before we even walk in the door, he's talking about the challenge ahead. The mission (in the Mission): Prove that sake works with Mexican food. It's just one more stop on Timken's seemingly endless quest to introduce sake into every kind of restaurant imaginable. To do so, he asks himself and his dining companions a simple question: Does sake pair well with this dish? Over and over and over again. "I can die when every wine list in town has a sake on it," says Timken, 42, whose regular swims in San Francisco Bay keep him in such good shape that he just might live long enough to succeed. The wine and spirits industry has plenty of product evangelists. PR agencies, some of them government-financed, promote wines from certain countries or regions. Large liquor distributors keep cocktail experts on the payroll so that when a new spirit is launched, they can teach bartenders how to use it. What makes Timken unusual is that he does not directly profit from his sake evangelism. Generally, more interest in sake means more interest in his Hayes Valley store. But he doesn't sell sake to restaurants, so when he orders four entrees, four appetizers and three side dishes for a party of two, it's not something he can easily call a business expense. Over several hours on two different nights, I ask him repeatedly why he devotes himself to this. Why he carries a notebook that reads "Sake Quest" on the outside, in which he keeps detailed notes on his previous culinary challenges (sake with a Middle Eastern yogurt-cucumber salad works well; with tabbouleh, not so much). Why he takes it as a personal affront when a chef or waiter doesn't get excited about the taste of the sake he pours for them. It's like asking a mountain climber why he climbs: he doesn't really have an answer, and doesn't seem to understand why there's a question. Love at first sip "I joke that I was born 400 years ago in a brewery in Kobe," he says, before launching into a retelling of his own sake epiphany with, "One of the greatest things that happened to me was tasting premium sake for the first time." Timken was living in South Africa in the early 1990s as apartheid was ending. He arrived there as a backpacker, having quit his job in finance in his native Ohio to tag along with his brother, Mark, on an overland trip from Cairo to Capetown. Once there, Timken realized the major U.S. corporations that had pulled out of the country to protest apartheid would soon want to return. So he and a partner set up a "Made in USA" trade show to reintroduce them to South African partners. He made a lot of money, but the South African rand was not openly circulated, so he could take very little out of the country. Timken, who holds a bachelor's degree in government and history from Pomona College in Claremont (Los Angeles County), decided to use his time and rand to get an MBA at University of Capetown. "For relaxation, I would go to one of the two sushi restaurants in Capetown," says Timken, who would order hot sake because that's all that was offered. "One day, these fishermen were drinking something out of bottle with Japanese writing on it," Timken says. "I held up my glass and wanted to try it. They said, 'Taste yours first.' I did. Then I tasted a sip of theirs. The difference was so startling, it was transformational. I was blown away." Since that time, Timken has been obsessed with premium sake, and has become one of the world's leading non-Japanese experts on it. Timken was named a "sake samurai" - one of just nine in the world, and three outside Japan - by the Japan Sake Brewer's Association. He has judged sake competitions in Japan, Los Angeles, Hawaii and London, as well as San Francisco. Unlike most sake experts, he doesn't speak Japanese; it's likely that he knows more about sake than any other non-Japanese speaker in the world. Yet all that expertise sometimes seems to bring him as much resentment as joy, particularly on his often quixotic quest. When it comes to sake, Timken admits he has a chip on his shoulder, but he can't help himself. Mistress vs. wife "I know a lot of chefs from them coming into the store," he says. "Wine is their wife. Sake is their mistress. I want to take sake out of mistress-hood and give it the same love as wine." Quest on: Timken goes to Chez Spencer, a French restaurant in the Mission. Chef-owner Laurent Katgely acknowledges Timken when we enter. But Timken doesn't talk to him right away. "I don't want him to change the menu to make it more 'sake-friendly,' " Timken says, a note of derision on the last words. "I want to walk in here with the brews and match up flavor against flavor." There's a definite competitiveness to Timken's quest. In the French restaurant, Timken explains a few flavors that are challenging for pairing with sake: tomatoes, because of their acidity (sake has much lower acidity than wine); very spicy food; heavy frying oils (unlike the lighter oil used in Japanese tempura). This immediately makes his plan to try a Mexican restaurant next seem like a fool's errand. "Are you saying we should run from the Mexican challenge?" Timken says. "Do we take our guns to the fight, walk in, see the menu and walk out? No way. I'm going in there." But Timken tries to stay objective about pairings. He has a four-step scale: Works World Class (WWC), Works Well (WW), Works (W) and Does Not Work (DNW). Over the course of two meals, he concedes that several dishes are DNW with both sakes he has brought, and only awards one WWC (see "Sake showdown," at right). Timken and I are disagreeing somewhat animatedly about the success of one pairing when Katgely walks over and asks how things are working with the sakes. Timken goes back through his notes and reads off the Ws and DNWs. Then he asks Katgely why he doesn't have a sake on his list. "If I go somewhere, I love to drink sake," Katgely says. "I don't consider myself a knowledgeable person about sake. If I sell something I need to know something about it. I like sake, though. I like it for leisure-type drinking." Katgely tastes the sakes, nods with approval, then returns to the kitchen, leaving Timken steaming. "What would it take to get him to think of sake in his restaurant?" Timken says. "He just admitted he likes sake. What would it take? Are his elements too big here that it doesn't work in their realm? He's thinking big flavor and he doesn't have the experience of tasting big flavors in sake. It's all about comfort level. Did you hear what he said? 'I don't know anything about sake. I'm not an expert.' " Timken finally slows down on his rant when he notices that behind us, a couple is trying to decide on a bottle of wine: He wants red, she wants white. They get the red. Timken says in a voice just loud enough for them to hear that if the restaurant only had sake on the list, she wouldn't be forced to drink a bottle of wine she doesn't want. Focus on what works Timken is not looking for pairings that send cherubs flying up the walls shooting arrows of pure gustatory delight. Getting sake on tasting menus isn't his objective, because that's already been done all over the Bay Area, although he calls raw fish starter courses a sake "ghetto." Instead, he wants sake to stay on the table throughout the meal, as a bottle of wine would. Timken says, not for the first or last time, "When you bring a bottle of wine to a meal, you're not looking for that perfect pairing. You're throwing wine at a variety of flavors and hoping it works with them all. It doesn't have to Work World Class. That score 'Works' is very important. It's the key." When we meet at the Mexican restaurant - Regalito Rosticeria, which Timken chooses because it's a sit-down place where one might conceivably bring a bottle of wine - the chip on his shoulder is intact. The conversation is interesting and very pleasant - as long as I'm liking the sake. But he's prickly when I ask him which cuisines other than Japanese go best with sake, particularly Chinese and Vietnamese food. "You're stuck in that Asian food mindset," Timken says. "I am so confident in sake. Find me a cuisine that doesn't work with sake. Every culture has things with roots and things with tails and things that get pulled out of the ocean. The brews go well with those." After some coaxing, he grants that crab is a particularly good sake partner; its delicacy works well with sake's subtle flavor. He later offers five favorite pairings from earlier stops on his quest (see "Five great matchups," Page F4). The Mexican food isn't quite as successful paired with sake as the French food, but that's generally the same for wine. Nonetheless, more things worked than not. It's not enough; Timken has regrets. "In retrospect, I would have brought a junmai with a little more sweetness and richness. A yamahai or kimoto sake," he says. But one of his rules is that he never looks at the menu ahead of time. A quest has to have rules. But was it a successful leg of the quest? He doesn't meet the owner of Regalito. Weeks later, Katgely hasn't yet added sake to the wine list, even though Timken left him the bottles. "That's not my job," Timken says. "I'm not a sake distributor. Hopefully a sake distributor will read this and say, maybe we should place it there. I plant the seed. I'm like Johnny Appleseed." After leaving Regalito, we go to nearby Tokyo Go-Go to drink a little more sake and haggle over the results. Much later, I discover that while I was away from the table, he wrote in my notebook: "We as Western drinkers have a chance to blow new life into an ancient beverage ... we will prevail!" The samurai's quest endures. For pairing tips, five great matchups and a sake showdown see pages F4 and F5 Five great matchups The following five dishes scored the highest rating in Beau Timken's sake-quest notebook: 1. Pasticcio of pig's trotter, kidney, chestnuts and nettle Restaurant: Incanto Italian Restaurant and Wine Bar, San Francisco Sake: Mukune Junmai Ginjo from Osaka prefecture -- "The flavors were immense, deep and rich beyond belief. Mukune completely stood up to the grandness of this dish." 2. Sea bass ceviche with lime, orange-poached camote, avocado and big corn Restaurant: Essencia restaurant, San Francisco Sake: Umenishiki Junmai Ginjo from Ehime prefecture -- "With the soft lime tones, this pairing is superb. The Ginjo cuts the acidity of the fruit. The freshness of the fish comes out in a gentle and lively way. Excellent acidity play." 3. Coracao de frango (chicken hearts on a skewer) Restaurant: Espetus restaurant, San Francisco Sake: Gokyo Junmai from Yamaguchi prefecture -- "This pairing has a mystical richness almost with maple syrup qualities. The tight and focused flavor of the chicken heart is kept compact with the deep savoriness of the Gokyo. Savory success and umami galore." 4. Grilled rockfish sandwich Restaurant: Ketch Joanne Restaurant and Harbor Bar, Princeton-by-the-Sea Sake: Chikurin Junmai Ginjo from Okayama prefecture -- "The zestiness of the tomatoes and onions on the sandwich really popped with the fruitiness of the Chikurin." 5. Crawfish etouffee Restaurant: Coop's Place, New Orleans Sake: Hakkaisan Honjozo from Niigata prefecture -- "The Honjozo's smoothness mellowed the madness and produced a smooth and confident collection of flavors. Round and delicious." - W.B.G. Pairing tips -- Timken points out that traditional sake pairings from Japanese pubs known as izakayas are mostly salty, savory dishes, such as pickled vegetables, grilled chicken skewers with soy sauce or salt, tempura and "rigid cuts" of seafood, like squid legs. It's more likely for a good sake to have some sweetness than a good wine (Riesling excepted), and a little sweetness is a good contrast for salty food. Miso, which also contains fermented rice, is a brilliant sake companion. -- As with wine, acidity plays a big role. Most sakes have an acidity rating on the bottle that varies from about 0.7 to 2.0; higher numbers are generally more acidic. Timken recommends softer, lower-acidity sakes with clean, soft foods like sushi or sashimi, while the more acidic brews can stand up to meat and game. -- Difficult matches for sake include tomato dishes, because of the acidity, and very spicy food, because of sake's delicacy as well as its alcohol level, slightly higher than most wines, which can clash with the heat in the food. -- Also as with wine, body is important. Try lighter daiginjos with starters and for sipping, ginjos with appetizers and junmais with more robust main courses -- Mushroom dishes are a natural match for junmai and/or yamahai sakes because both food and drink have earthiness and complexity. - W.B.G. Sake showdown On his pairing quests, Beau Timken likes to bring a rich junmai and a more delicate daiginjo or ginjo. The sakes were rated according to Timken's scale: Works World Class (WWC) Works Well (WW) Works (W) MEXICAN To pair with the Mexican cuisine at Regalito Rosticeria in San Francisco, Timken brought Chikurin Fukamari Junmai, Okayama prefecture ($28), and Umenishiki Sakehitosuji Junmai Ginjo, Ehime prefecture ($29). Enchiladas verdes (with green chile and chicken) -- Chikurin Fukamari (WW) -- Umenishiki (W) Comments: A surprising success with the Chikurin. There are roasted notes in both sake and dish that play well together. Guacamole with crisp corn tortillas -- Chikurin Fukamari (WW) -- Umenishiki (W) Comments: Timken appreciated how the "creaminess of the junmai goes hand in hand" with the guacamole, versus the Umenishiki, which cleanses the palate from the rich avocados. Cochinita pibil (slow-roasted, banana leaf-wrapped citrus and achiote-marinated pork garnished with onions and cilantro. Served with black beans and tortillas) -- Chikurin Fukamari (WW) -- Umenishiki (W) Comments: The Umenishiki tastes fruity with this dish, with red-wine-like fruit notes. Black beans together with the tortilla brings out a floral note and a sweetness on the ginjo's finish, though Timken preferred how the junmai balanced out the salty, savory flavors. FRENCH To pair with the French cuisine at Chez Spencer in San Francisco, Timken brought a Yuki no Bosha Daiginjo, Akita prefecture ($54) and Wakatake Junmai, Shizuoka prefecture ($25) Smoked duck breast a la Lyonnaise with poached eggs and lardons -- Yuki no Bosha Daiginjo (W) -- Wakatake Junmai (WW) Comments: I felt the dish worked better with the daiginjo by lengthening the finish of the sake and bringing out a floral note. The junmai tasted harsh. But Timken loved how the "savoriness of the sake dances with the savory tones of the duck. The egg and the junmai also do so well together to create a creamy soft pairing." Curried cauliflower veloute -- Yuki no Bosha Daiginjo (WW) -- Wakatake Junmai (W) Comments: Timken liked how the creaminess of the soup matched the fruit of the daiginjo. "A very unusual pairing in principle, but the result was a great flavor." Foie gras torchon with vanilla-scented blackberry, pain de campagne -- Yuki no Bosha Daiginjo (WW) -- Wakatake Junmai (W) Comments: The foie gras seemed to overwhelm the delicate daiginjo, though the blackberry helped the pairing. Timken was more bullish, finding a "superb" mix of flavors: "The fruit gets balanced and the sweetness comes forth on the creamy, salty richness of the foie gras." Forest mushroom risotto with shaved Parmesan -- Yuki no Bosha Daiginjo (W) -- Wakatake Junmai (WWC) Comments: Mushrooms, junmai - what's not to like? The rich mushrooms come exploding out of the flavor of the brew, says Timken. "If the junmai were lightly warmed, it would be out of this world." - W. Blake Gray W. Blake Gray, a former Chronicle staff writer, lives in San Francisco. E-mail comments to wine(a)sfchronicle.com. http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/09/05/WIJT12K58R.DTL This article appeared on page F - 1 of the San Francisco Chronicle -- ------------------------------ * Dr. James Ellingson, jellings(a)me.umn.edu * * University of Minnesota, mobile : 651/645-0753 * * Great Lakes Brewing News, 1569 Laurel Ave., St. Paul, MN 55104 *