Japan's famous sake joins UNESCO's cultural heritage list, a boost to brewers and enthusiasts
Hindustan TimesLUQUE, Paraguay — Sake is perhaps more Japanese than the world-famous sushi. Japan's famous sake joins UNESCO's cultural heritage list, a boost to brewers and enthusiasts The smooth rice wine that plays a crucial role in Japan's culinary traditions was enshrined on Wednesday by UNESCO on its list of the “intangible cultural heritage of humanity." At a meeting in Luque, Paraguay, members of UNESCO’s committee for safeguarding humanity's cultural heritage voted to recognize 45 cultural practices and products around the world, including Brazilian white cheese, Caribbean cassava bread and Palestinian olive oil soap. “Sake is considered a divine gift and is essential for social and cultural events in Japan,” Kano Takehiro, the Japanese ambassador to UNESCO, told The Associated Press. It also honored a tradition dating back some 1,000 years — sake makes a cameo in Japan’s famous 11th century novel, “The Tale of Genji,” as the drink of choice in the refined Heian court.
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