Bob Mountain

Map of Cape Anne, great mountain biking, beaches, and sake

Rockport Massachusetts is on the tip of Cape Anne, a rocky peninsula 30 miles northeast of Boston. Cape Anne was settled in 1624 and was the 3rd colony in New England, just after Plymouth and Nantasket. Just west of Rockport on Cape Anne is the fishing town of Gloucester. The movie The Perfect Storm was filmed there and the real life Andrea Gail sailed from Gloucester into the storm that sank her.

The center of Cape Anne is protected as preservation land and is known as Dogtown. It’s was settled in 1632 as a way for the colonists to avoid pirates, hostile natives, and for a while, shelling by British warships. When these threats subsided the occupants moved back to the coast and the interior became a place where sailors’ widows settled. When the widows themselves died their dogs roamed the woods in packs, hence the name Dogtown or Dogtown Commons as it is also known.

Today Dogtown has some of the best mountain biking trails in Eastern Massachusetts. Old quarry and fire roads make for excellent and incredibly challenging paths for bikers at a close proximity to Boston. I’ve been vacationing in Cape Anne for the past several years and have a knack for getting completely lost on my bike in Dogtown. Which is one good reason to bike in the morning. At least if you get too lost you can generally get out before dark. Last year I went out later in the day and eventually found myself in a section I had never even seen before. I was out so long that my iPhone battery died so I had no GPS to help me find my way out. The trail got so rough that I had to carry my bike over long stretches of trail over car sized boulders. I ran out of water and sweated off all my insect repellent so I was thirsty and getting eaten alive by bugs. It was getting dark and I heard thunder in the background. Images of the Blair Witch Project were flashing through my mind. Fortunately after wandering for a while I heard a car in the distance and followed a path that led in that direction which thankfully brought me to a road back to Rockport Center. I arrived back at the cottage exhausted, covered in blood, sweat, and mosquito bites, and relieved that I didn’t have to spend the night in the woods.

After a challenging morning biking in Dogtown, the beaches of Cape Anne are a great way to unwind. While on vacation there last week, as I have for the last several years, I would bike all morning and then head to the beaches in the afternoon for some cigars and sake. I brought five bottles with me for the week and but one was particularly well suited for the beach.

The “Bride of the Fox” is brewed by Kaetsu Shuzo of Nigata Japan. I’ve had some excellent sakes from this prefecture and this one is no exception. The name comes from local legends of mysterious lights on Mount Kirin which are paper lanterns carried in the fox-bride procession. Nigata celebrates this event every year.

This sake has a wonderful aroma of nuts with a hint of chocolate. The taste is crisp, rich and smooth, showing off the Gohyakumangoku rice that is used to make the sake. There is a subtle trace of sweetness that balances off an incredible experience. This is indeed one of the nicer sakes that I have enjoyed recently and I’d strongly recommend it on the beach, or off!

Bride of the Fox Junmai Ginjo
Brewer: Kaetsu Shuzo
Prefecture: Nigata
Alcohol: 16.5%
300ML
$16.99 retail

From Left to Right, Bill Sweetman, Bob Mountain, and Pete Lamson.

The last place I expected to get good sake was on the Danforth in Toronto. More commonly known as “Greektown”, this stretch of midtown Toronto has the highest density of Greek restaurants in North America. After an amazing dinner on a warm summer evening with my colleague Pete and two clients, we stopped at an unassuming Japanese restaurant called Katsu for an after-dinner sake. Katsu has several sidewalk tables and loads of pedestrian traffic so it’s a wonderful place to people watch while you enjoy your sake. The wait staff was courteous, friendly, and attentive.

The sake menu is limited but they carry Hakutsuru’s junmai ginjo. Hakutsuru is one of the largest sake producers in Japan. They brew sake year round and while it’s considered “mass produced”, it has a clean crisp flavor and is an excellent value. All three of us (we lost one of our dinner party to a long commute home) enjoyed it. We could have let it chill a bit longer, I tend to like my sake very cold, but no harm done. We were all stuffed from dinner so didn’t try their sushi but the tables around us seemed to be enjoying it so I’d have to give it a thumbs up.

So if you’re on the Danforth in Toronto and hankering for a sake, fear not, there’s an oasis nearby!

Hakutsuru’s Junmai Ginjo
Cost: $26 (Canadian)
300 ml
Alcohol 14.5%
Sake Meter Value +3

Katsu Japanese Restaurant

572 Danforth Avenue
Toronto, ON M4K 1R1, Canada
(416) 466-3388

A bit rundown but Cigar Heaven inside

As I was driving to my next meeting in Toronto I stopped at my favorite cigar place in the entire world. For cigar fans Frank Correnti Cigars on King St is the place. I discovered them while living in Toronto in 2000 (I don’t know where Sam the shoe shine man from the Westin is these days but thank you Sam for that recommendation!) Correnti imports their tobbaco and wrap from Cuba and rolls them in their warehouse in Toronto. When you walk in, you know you’re in cigar heaven. The place is permeated by the rich smell of tobacco and cigar paraphernalia covers the walls. Correnti cigars are every bit as good as any Cuban I’ve ever had and they’re a fraction of the price. Having them shipped to the US can be a problem so whenever I’m in Toronto I usually stop by to stock up. I ordered a mixed batch of cigars, some Churchill’s and Robustos and left happy.

The trip home was a bit of an ordeal, flights from Boston to Toronto are insanely priced right now so I flew in and out of Buffalo and took a rental car to/from Toronto. Saved a small fortune but traffic on the QEW back to Buffalo was the usual nightmare so I was in dire need of some libation when I finally made it home.

Naturally I needed some sake to go with those excellent cigars. I’ve always found that you need a special sake the stands up to a cigar. Correnti’s tend to be on the mild side but you still need a sake with some body to go with them. The lighter sakes tend to get overwhelmed so my choice was a Diamond from Momokawa, a nice Junmai Ginjo produced in the Hokkaido region of Japan. Diamond is off-dry and has a deep rich flavor that stays long on the tongue. The bottle mentions melon, tropical fruit, and spices but these were extremely subtle and made for a nice experience. This sake would also go very well with anything on the grill. To top it off, Diamond is an exceptional value, $13.99 at my local package store and as low as $11.99 on-line.

Sitting on my terrace with Sibelius’ Finlandia playing in the background and a well balanced cigar and sake in each hand was an excellent way to wrap up a successful business trip!

Momokawa Diamond Junmai Gingo Sake
Region: Hokkaido
Sake Meter Value: +4
Alcohol: 14.8%
Price: $13.99 at Fresh Pond Liquors, Cambridge MA; $11.99 at www.drinkupny.com

Frank Correnti Cigars
606 King St West
Toronto, ON
416-504-4108
www.correnticigars.com