{"id":18865,"date":"2017-10-18T00:26:33","date_gmt":"2017-10-18T00:26:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/?p=18865"},"modified":"2017-10-18T00:26:33","modified_gmt":"2017-10-18T00:26:33","slug":"an-amazing-meal-at-houraiken-nagoya-with-japanese-wine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/restaurants\/an-amazing-meal-at-houraiken-nagoya-with-japanese-wine","title":{"rendered":"An amazing meal at Houraiken, Nagoya, with Japanese wine"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-18881\" src=\"http:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171807-500x333.jpg\" alt=\"Houraiken Nagoya\" width=\"500\" height=\"333\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171807-500x333.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171807-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171807-400x267.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171807.jpg 800w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Hot on the heels of one of the most memorable meals of my life a few days ago in Tokyo, I had a very special experience last night, dining at the main restaurant of <a href=\"http:\/\/www.houraiken.com\/english\/\" target=\"_blank\">Houraiken<\/a> in Nagoya (they have three branches). Houraiken is an old, traditional restaurant whose speciality is eel (<em>unagi<\/em>).<\/p>\n<p>Here is a short film of the meal:<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><center><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/rZUsKFj8kzM\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"><\/iframe><\/center>The multi course menu we enjoyed was phenomenal, and included several new experiences for me (my first eel heart, my first fugu, and my first crayfish sashimi). It wasn&#8217;t just the food that was spectacular, but also the service and the calm ambience of the private dining room. With the food we enjoyed two very good Japanese natural wines. These are my notes:<\/p>\n<p><strong>Azuccae Azucco Quatro Canti White 2015 Aichi Prefecture, Japan<\/strong><br \/>\n11% alcohol. A blend of Malvasia, Viognier, Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay, naturally made. Slightly hazy. Initially this is very funky and reductive on the nose, but after a short while it straightens out with aromas of apples, lemons and fine spices, as well as some mineral reductive notes. Spicy, mineral palate with generous pear and citrus fruit. Detailed, complex and quite lovely. 93\/100<\/p>\n<p><strong>Azuccae Azucco Quatro Canti Red 2015 Aichi Prefecture, Japan<\/strong><br \/>\n11.5% alcohol. A blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Petit Verdot and Lambrusco. This has a refined gravelly nose and is sweetly fruited on the palate with bright cherry, raspberry and blackcurrant fruit. There&#8217;s a chalky, gravelly edge and a lovely supple, juicy quality to the fruit. It&#8217;s cool climate in style and quite Bordeaux-like, and very smashable. 91\/100<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-18882\" src=\"http:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171791-500x333.jpg\" alt=\"OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA\" width=\"500\" height=\"333\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171791-500x333.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171791-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171791-400x267.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171791.jpg 800w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-18866\" src=\"http:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171765-500x333.jpg\" alt=\"houraiken\" width=\"500\" height=\"333\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171765-500x333.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171765-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171765-400x267.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171765.jpg 800w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>First course: charcuterie and melon.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-18867\" src=\"http:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171770-500x333.jpg\" alt=\"OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA\" width=\"500\" height=\"333\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171770-500x333.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171770-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171770-400x267.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171770.jpg 800w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Second course: salmon roe and sticky potato. This was particularly good, with the salmon roe exploding in tiny balls of salty goodness.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-18868\" src=\"http:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171772-500x333.jpg\" alt=\"OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA\" width=\"500\" height=\"333\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171772-500x333.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171772-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171772-400x267.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171772.jpg 800w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Third course: fried eel heart. Quite tasty and not at all weird. A bit dry? Good for the libido, apparently.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-18869\" src=\"http:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171776-500x333.jpg\" alt=\"OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA\" width=\"500\" height=\"333\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171776-500x333.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171776-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171776-400x267.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171776.jpg 800w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-18871\" src=\"http:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171780-500x333.jpg\" alt=\"OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA\" width=\"500\" height=\"333\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171780-500x333.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171780-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171780-400x267.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171780.jpg 800w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Fourth course: Matsutake mushroom, in a broth, with shrimp, eel and chicken. You drink the broth, then eat the ingredients.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-18872\" src=\"http:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171782-500x333.jpg\" alt=\"OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA\" width=\"500\" height=\"333\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171782-500x333.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171782-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171782-400x267.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171782.jpg 800w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Fifth course: a spectacularly presented freshwater crayfish (isebi) sashimi, with a bit of beef sashimi too. Beautiful stuff.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-18874\" src=\"http:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171789-500x333.jpg\" alt=\"OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA\" width=\"500\" height=\"333\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171789-500x333.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171789-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171789-400x267.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171789.jpg 800w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-18875\" src=\"http:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171788-500x333.jpg\" alt=\"OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA\" width=\"500\" height=\"333\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171788-500x333.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171788-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171788-400x267.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171788.jpg 800w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Sixth course: eel (including the backbone, which is crunchy and tasty), with caviar. Very nice.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-18873\" src=\"http:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171794-500x333.jpg\" alt=\"OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA\" width=\"500\" height=\"333\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171794-500x333.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171794-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171794-400x267.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171794.jpg 800w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Seventh course: fugu (puffer fish). This is very dangerous and if it isn&#8217;t prepared properly, you die. It was lovely, but maybe not worth dying for.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-18876\" src=\"http:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171797-500x333.jpg\" alt=\"OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA\" width=\"500\" height=\"333\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171797-500x333.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171797-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171797-400x267.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171797.jpg 800w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-18877\" src=\"http:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171799-500x333.jpg\" alt=\"OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA\" width=\"500\" height=\"333\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171799-500x333.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171799-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171799-400x267.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171799.jpg 800w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Eighth course: crayfish heads in a miso soup. This is where the rest of our crayfish went.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-18878\" src=\"http:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171804-500x333.jpg\" alt=\"hitsumabushi eel\" width=\"500\" height=\"333\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171804-500x333.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171804-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171804-400x267.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171804.jpg 800w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Ninth course: the famous hitsumabushi eel, with rice and soup. You eat some eel (lovely!), then some of the rice under it, then you add condiments and soup and eat the rest. This is a remarkable dish.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-medium wp-image-18879\" src=\"http:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171809-500x333.jpg\" alt=\"OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA\" width=\"500\" height=\"333\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171809-500x333.jpg 500w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171809-150x100.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171809-400x267.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/PA171809.jpg 800w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Hot on the heels of one of the most memorable meals of my life a few days ago in Tokyo, I had a very special experience last night, dining at&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[140,74],"tags":[405,383,351],"class_list":["post-18865","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-japan","category-restaurants","tag-japan","tag-restaurants","tag-videos"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18865","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18865"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18865\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18883,"href":"https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18865\/revisions\/18883"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18865"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18865"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wineanorak.com:\/wineblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18865"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}