Full Moon (At The Temple)

Notes: fragrant white rice, shiso leaf, bitter yuzu zest, hinoki wood, green tea, and lakewater “Real things in the darkness seem no realer than dreams.” - Lady Murasaki, The Tale of Genji Lady Murasaki, writing at Japan’s Imperial Court during its classical period, ostensibly wrote The Tale of Genji to entertain the Empress. However, her clever sketch of court life became instantly popular and a thousand years later, many consider her to be the first modern novelist. According to legend, when the Empress asked her to write a new tale, Lady Murasaki went on pilgrimage to Ishayama-dera temple, a day’s journey east of court in Kyoto. There at the temple, she saw the full August moon shining in the waters of Lake Biwa and was inspired to begin her tale of Genji, a courtly lover who has been unjustly exiled. During the refined culture of the Heian period, the love poem was a staple of court life. In Full Moon (at the Temple), the substance of Murasaki’s work is represented by another equally glorious staple of life; fragrant white rice. Our popular rice note is paired with pungent shiso leaf and finished with a curl of yuzu zest. Hints of citrusy hinoki wood softly accents a forgotten cup of green tea as our author begins her masterpiece, while crystal lakewater calms and cools the mind.