It’s a little known fact that it was Norway that introduced raw salmon to the Japanese as late as the 1970s, and ever since the two nations have had a very close culinary relationship. Practically every piece of salmon eaten in Japan is imported from Norway, and it has completely changed the cuisine of the country in as little as fifty years. It’s just a very happy coincidence that the savoury, acidic and fruity flavours of sake – Japan’s national drink – marry perfectly with the fatty richness of the fish.

Sake no Hana is one of the best Japanese restaurants in the UK, and head chef Hideki Hiwatashi has been working with salmon his entire career, even spending time with the fishermen to understand how they are caught. If anyone was able to showcase the versatility of Norwegian salmon in Japanese cooking, it was him – which is why we invited selected journalists and bloggers to a masterclass hosted by Hideki and Oliver Hilton-Johnson, a sake expert and founder of Tengu Sake.

The first sake we had was Tatenokawa 50 ‘Stream’, made in the junmai daiginjo style (where the rice is polished down to around fifty percent of its original size and no extra alcohol is added) specifically for people who like white wine. The perfect sake for beginners, it had plenty of fresh, fruity notes of melon and pears, with a refreshing crisp finish. Served with a salmon and avocado maki and a torched piece of salmon (aburi) with yuba (the skin formed when making tofu), it cut through the rich, fresh flavour of the raw fish beautifully.