95 points,"Fine delicate nose with some pear and fine mealy hints. Fresh and fruity. Lovely concentration and freshness on the palate with fine spicy characters adding complexity, and nice texture and harmony. Everything pulls in the same direction: there is lovely texture and freshness."- Dr Jamie Goode, WineAnorak.com Combining Japanese tradition and fine wine expertise, IWA 5 is the most ethereal sake we have ever tasted. Richard Geoffroy, the former Chef de Cave at Dom Pérignon, has always loved Japan and its culture. So, when he left the world's most famous Champagne house, he embarked on a new adventure to create a comparable sake. IWA 5 is crafted using three different rice varieties - Yamada Nishiki, Omachi and Gohyakumangoku - grown on four sites in snowy Tateyama in Toyama Prefecture. This lesser-known region was chosen for its unique terroir, its rural beauty and the deep connection to nature. At Shiraiwa Brewery, 35% of each rice grain is gently polished away, the rice is then washed, soaked, steamed, cooled, inverted, mashed, fermented using five different yeast strains and pressed. Richard Geoffroy then blends it as he might a Champagne, using different sake bases, reserve sakes from previous years and decades of experience. It's then filled into a bottle made by the same glass manufacturer who creates the bottles for Domaine de la Romanée-Conti (the world's most expensive wine), sealed with a glass Vinolok and allowed to rest for a year before release. Rather than following a consistent recipe, IWA 5 will change subtly with each year's new expression… Assemblage 2 was bottled in June 2020 and puts a greater emphasis on purity and aromatics than its predecessor. Imagine a classic Japanese sake combined with the luxurious French savoir-faire that only Champagne can provide. The result is rich, clean and floral, with a hauntingly beautiful weightlessness. This is a sake in perfect harmony that simply has to be tasted to be believed.£20.14 per 100.00ml