COURTESY OF IWA SAKE
After 28 years as renowned head winemaker at Dom Pérignon, Richard Geoffroy has turned his attention to Japan and the centuries-old tradition of sake making. His new brand of sake, IWA (iwa-sake.jp), aims to challenge the Japanese sake industry status quo of singlebatch brewing and bottling by instead incorporating the champagne-making techniques of blending different varieties of rice. The outcome has been met with both surprise and praise for IWA’s sense of balance and harmony. “It’s really about being true to sake in, one, a sense of purity and aromatics of flavor, and two, to be flowing,” says Geoffroy. “The magic of sake is the seamless flow.” Geoffroy has selected Margotto Hawai‘i (margotto-hawaii.com), the truffle-centric Japanese-meets-French fine dining gem in Honolulu, as IWA’s inaugural partner in Hawai‘i. The restaurant hosted an exclusive soirée pairing IWA sake with a 12-course degustation prepared by executive chef Yohei Yagishita and sushi chef Angie of Tsukimaki in November of last year.
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