Season 1. Episode 20. Do you know where to find the "Country of Beautiful Sake"? If you answered Japan's AKITA prefecture - you're right!  Akita is a rural and rice-proud prefecture in the far north of Japan.  This agricultural hub produces a lot of rice and a lot of sake.  Timothy explains his encounters with one of the most famous foods from this region - Iburigakko.  No Joke, this smoked, pickled daikon radish is one of the most perfect sake pairings you'll ever find.  From there, our hosts go on a deep dive into the culture and into two sakes from Akita - Akitabare Shunsetsu and Amanoto Tokubetsu Junmai.  It's fun to discuss how these sakes with similar stats come across differently on the palate. You can taste the pride in their rice and rural heritage. Although John and Timothy are missing Japan and bummed they can't travel there now, this won't stop them from planning their next trip.  Get out your JR Railpass as Akita is now high on the list.  Support the show