Taste with KJ – Katsuyama, Comics & Sixth Course!
Herewith lies a tale of artistry and inspiration, as well as collaboration and friendship. True Sake was happy to collaborate on this article featuring our good friend Jollan Seo, a talented multimedia artist and San Francisco’s most joyful dessert oasis, Sixth Course Dessert Boutique!
The idea for a dessert pairing article emerged as the stars aligned on a Saturday at the shop while a bunch of us caught up on life with our favorite boozy beverage. To keep the party going, Jollan and I decided to take sake to the streets with cans in hand and a strong hankering for fancy ice cream. We opted for a creamery close by that had an eclectic flavor called “Circus Animals,” in honor of the carnival that was happening in the middle of town that day. The base was vanilla, with rainbow sprinkles and a smattering of animal crackers (biscuit-like crackers shaped like animals… a popular cookie for kids). The sake we chose was Kikusui’s new nama genshu ‘shiboritate’ can which contains less sugar than the OG Funaguchi can, a slightly lighter abv (17% vs. 19%) and a similar amount of umami. Unfortunately, the ice cream was subpar at best… it also clashed with the sake. But as we sat in the park enjoying our treats, we realized that Jollan’s shirt colors mysteriously matched our cans of choice.
We were conversing about his work history, his life in SF and his relationship to the dessert boutique called Sixth Course located in the Mission District. As I listened to his background, I had a powerful urge to start taking notes. That’s kind of odd though, considering we were hanging out as friends and I had not yet verbalized my intention to write an article about him, sake or his favorite dessert spot. But I kept my idea vivid, as the colors in my photo of Jollan and his can were just the sign I needed to confirm the direction of True Sake’s August article of Taste with KJ.
In fact, many of you know Jollan without realizing it. He makes truly incredible comics at lightning speed for businesses he knows and loves. Since late 2022, Jollan has been a True Sake Saturday Tasting regular and has become friends with our entire staff. When he visits, he often gives us a comic based on something involving our business. It could be an event that occurred the week prior, a memory we shared with him, an upcoming holiday theme or a special occasion. He has a photographic memory of our expressions, personalities and even the clothes we wear and accessories we carry. From those details alone, we can always tell who is who and every week we are surprised and elated by his outrageously generous gifts.
As for Jollan’s history as an artist, he is a San Francisco native and earned a Bachelor of Science degree in game art and design at The Art Institute of San Francisco California. Upon graduating, he started working for Zynga, doing 3D art for Facebook games. After a few years of producing game art, he took a creative sabbatical to reconnect with his artistic side. He quickly discovered the hidden gem dessert boutique called Sixth Course, which has an elegant cafe with a big glass window and a bar of seats facing it so curious onlookers can see the masters in action. Jollan would enjoy perfectly constructed sweet treats with tea and a view, while working on watercolor marker still lifes of the desserts being created. Naturally, he became quick friends with chef/owner Gianina ‘Gia’ Serrano and assistant pastry chef Agnes Hardenstine. He soon started coming in with weekly cartoons of their dessert adventures as a gift of appreciation for their hospitality and friendship.
Our growing wall at True Sake
Now Jollan is employed by Apple, working with machine learning, AI and realistic 3D art including objects like furniture and full environments. With a solid work load and schedule intact, Jollan continues to visit his favorite businesses and gift them with not only cartoons, but special items like 3D printed figurines of each employee and lighted logo signs connected to an app that can create an infinite amount of color combinations and patterns (also 3D printed). He does this consistently for about 3-5 businesses, but the business that holds near and dear to his heart is his first love, Sixth Course.
As an avid aficionado of sweets and Jollan’s art, I knew someday we’d make it over to his dessert mecca. Jollan was my agent of sorts and asked Gia if it would be okay if I brought over some sake to share that I thought would pair nicely with some items from their current menu. I was very excited to hear that she gave an enthusiastic green light on the idea and she was more than gracious the day we tasted together. The featured sake was Katsuyama Junmai Ginjo ‘Lei’ from Miyagi prefecture. With an SMV of -42 (medium sweet) and an elevated acidity of 2.0, I thought this would pair best with the more fruity desserts on the menu, but I let the pros decide. Gia and Agnes tried the Lei and decided that we should stay away from chocolate-based desserts and focus on three more fruit-forward, delicately sweet items. Their choices were the following:
It Takes Two To Mango
Mango mousse, mango passion fruit compote, almond cream & joconde cake, almond sablé (GF)
Matcha Made In Heaven
Yerena Farms macerated strawberries, vanilla bean & ujido matcha panna cotta (GF)
Blue-tiful Blueberry
Mascarpone cream, blueberry compote, almond cake, vanilla shortcrust
Katsuyama Lei with the three pairings and Sixth Course’s cartoon of the week!
*Photo by Agnes
Katsuyama ‘Lei’ is one of about 3-4 sake in the store that have enough sugar and are viscous enough to pair with sweet, fruit-based desserts. Lei is like the young, yet fun little sister of the famous Bordeaux dessert wine Sauternes. Many claim the category kijoshu is a direct parallel to this famous noble juice, but Katsuyama delivers a heightened acidity which some classic kijoshu lack. Right away, notes of pear and lychee emerged. It had been awhile since I retried the stately Lei and I had forgotten how balanced it was between sweetness and acidity. I imagined it bursting with tropical fruit notes, but it was actually more subdued and nuanced. It also had a creamy, milk-like flavor to it. Some of the noticeable balance has to do with the fact that Lei is only 12% abv. It is also aged for one year and that allows the aromatic components to marry with the texture.
Okay, before we dive in, I have to mention how amazing Gia’s creations are. Not only are they so gorgeous that they are hard to take a bite of…once you start, they are absolutely some of the best desserts you will ever have the pleasure of eating. Desserts that reach this stratosphere of balance and flavor are few and far between. The times in my life I have tasted this level of quality in a dessert is very rare and when I have, I remember them being at some of the most famous restaurants in the world. It’s mind boggling that any of us lucky enough to live in San Francisco can wander into this extraordinary boutique and enjoy the ‘sixth course’ of a tasting menu without having to commit to a full-fledged tasting experience at an outrageously expensive restaurant. Having a dessert at Sixth Course midday is like cheating on the game of life. So cool!!!
Jollan and I enjoying Katsuyama at Sixth Course!
Our Tasting Notes!
With the Matcha Made In Heaven, we had a duo of delicate flavors: matcha and vanilla bean. The silky creaminess and very soft sweetness of the panna cotta was a great match with Lei’s milk-like tone and glucose level. But what knocked this pairing out of the park was the refreshing macerated strawberries. Gia mentioned how the juicy acidity of the strawberries, “accentuates brightness in Lei,” which made the Lei a booster of sorts that sent the flavor of the macerated berries skyrocketing.
The Blue-tiful Blueberry was a pleasure to eat with mascarpone cream, fresh blueberry compote with almond cake and a crunchy vanilla shortcrust. Texturally, this dessert is a dream. Cream as soft as a cloud, with a rich, but balanced almond cake and compote mixture below, then a sturdy tart crust on bottom. Initially, it seemed this dessert might be too flavorful for Lei to contend with, but the most pleasing effect occurred. While the dessert was a bit sweeter than the sake, the sake was just sweet enough not to disturb the balance of flavors and its acidity served the purpose of refreshing the palate after each bite. It was a complimentary and contrast pairing all in one! The pairing transcended to greatness when each component of the dessert was paired alone with Lei. When pairing the almond cake and blueberry compote without the crust or mascarpone cream, once a sip of sake was taken, both the dessert and sake vanished without a trace. It was the most ultimate example of balance in a pairing where both components completely merged, leaving the consumer satisfied and mesmerized at what dessert and sake can do together!
As for It Takes Two To Mango, this pairing was challenging for a number of reasons, one being the higher level of sweetness. Gia explained that with desserts containing certain tropical fruits such as mango, pineapple and even kiwi, there are copious amounts of protease enzymes which need to be inactivated by cooking before other dessert making techniques can be utilized. She then explained some differences between pectin and gelatin, as well as the varying sugar structures of fructose vs. glucose. Even as a sake educator who teaches classes heavily focused on biochemistry, I was hitting my limit of baking science comprehension.
This dessert had mango mousse filled with passionfruit compote and almond creme with a joconde cake base. More sugar is required when dealing with much higher acidity level fruits. This dessert is outstanding on its own, but when adding Lei into the mix; aromatics from the sake dissipated and all we got was a waterlike mouthful of tartness. With both the sugar content and acidity in the dessert outweighing the Lei, we all knew this would be the most challenging pairing of the three. Gia mentioned how the dessert and pairing were “clashing, not a marriage,” and “the sake’s alcohol stays on the palate longer.” These issues were welcomed considering it gave us the opportunity to talk more about why the pairing wasn’t successful. Besides the obvious interplay of acidity and sugar, Gia mentioned how Katsuyama Lei works best with desserts that contain more dairy, such as the panna cotta in the Matcha Made in Heaven and the mascarpone cream in the Blue-tiful Blueberry. In the latter dessert, the mascarpone cream is more prevalent which helped balance the sake. The further the ratio of cream lessened, the more difficult the sake pairing became. As for the mango dessert, the ratio of cream is less due to the cakes composition as a whole. It's approximately 1/3rd each of mango puree, meringue and cream combined to make up the mousse, whereas the other desserts showcase cream as a feature.
Pairing Results:
The consensus was that everyone loved the Katsuyama Lei with the matcha and vanilla bean panna cotta topped with strawberries. Agnes especially loved the textural elements here. Max, a friend and regular who participated in the tasting, felt the sake had a cream-soda like quality that matched really well with the mascarpone cream. Kulin, another good friend of the business, thought the blueberry dessert and Lei were, “very balanced.” Gia felt that the blueberry dessert and panna cotta were equal in terms of sake pairing success.
After so much sugary experimentation, Gia was so thoughtful and brought out an entire spread of salty chips, veggies and various dips for us to cleanse our palate with. Thank you Gia for your generous hospitality and expertise!!!
*Note! When visiting for the first time, make sure to try all that Sixth Course has to offer! Don’t forget to check out their wide array of gelato pops, traditional to modern flavors of macarons and caramel & ganache-based bon bons. We didn’t include these in the tasting since they are more bite-sized, but I took some home and WOW! Let’s just say it’s been a dessert-laden weekend at my house!
Left to right: Gia, Max, Jollan, Agnes, Kulin and KJ
Thank you so much to Gia, Agnes and the team at Sixth Course for opening your doors to me and allowing this exuberant sake pairing experience to happen! I look forward to more collaborations between True Sake and Sixth Course into the future. As always… a deep, heartfelt THANK YOU to Jollan, for not only making such beautiful personalized art for us all, but for being such a wonderful friend! I know I speak for the entire staff at True Sake, both past and present when I say this. Kanpai to small business and community! We all look forward to creating more happy memories together.
*Follow Jollan & Sixth Course on Instagram: @sixthcoursesf @jotozoto
**If you have any experiences you’d like to share from either True Sake or Sixth Course, email me at KJ@truesake.com and you could be featured in our September newsletter! Until next time!