Ito Shoten Tamari

The process to make miso, a Japanese fermented soybean paste, also creates a liquid. That liquid is tamari. Tamari looks and tastes a lot like "regular" soy sauce, but it's a bit thicker in texture, and often has a greater depth of flavor.

This tamari comes from eleventh-generation firm Ito Shoten, where they’ve been making miso for more than 200 years. Each batch is made with only water, soybeans, salt, koji—the mold used to kickstart the fermentation of both miso and soy sauce, sort of like the cultures used to turn milk into cheese. Making a batch requires three years of aging in cedar barrels that have been in use for over 160 years.

After all that time spent aging, the flavor is complex, very salty, with an umami note like fish sauce or nori, and a long-lasting finish with a fruity quality that reminds me of raisin. It's very special stuff. Try it as a dipping sauce, or brush it on roasted meats, fish, or potatoes.

Finally, a note about the name. In the US, tamari is often thought of as gluten free soy sauce. While tamari is generally made with less wheat than other soy sauces, it is not necessarily wheat free. In the case of this particular tamari, though, since there's no wheat involved it is indeed gluten free.

Gluten free