I delved into the world of soy sauce a few years back and id say if your looking to go beyond kikkoman, or god forbid that swill they call la choy, go for kimlan. super special, I-Jen (for something a little different), light, or aged..pearl river bridge isn't too bad either just watch out for brands with a bunch of added chemicals in the ingredients
So is it like tamari? Seems to be made from fermented soybean paste, which is how tamari is made too (byproduct of miso paste).<p>Most of the soy sauce you encounter in the US has wheat, while in Japan (and seemingly South Korea) there's no wheat added.<p>Personally once I switched to tamari I never went back to "regular" soy sauce, the flavor is quite a bit richer and more versatile in cooking, in my opinion.
Lots of good recommendations here, but I'll add mine which is Zhongba 1 year fermented light soy sauce. The long fermentation time and the addition of a specific white mushroom (口蘑 (kǒumó)) gives it a somewhat unique deep flavour without too much saltiness.<p>Great for dishes where the primary taste is from the soy sauce.
Ohsawa Nama Shoyu has been my go-to for decades<p><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Gold-Mine-Natural-Food-Co/dp/B0019LA78E/ref=asc_df_B0019LA78E?mcid=2a09e65409253bff8ec60e39a43e500a&hvocijid=6563241179898736564-B0019LA78E-&hvexpln=73&tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=721245378154&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=6563241179898736564&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=1027070&hvtargid=pla-2281435178818&psc=1" rel="nofollow">https://www.amazon.com/Gold-Mine-Natural-Food-Co/dp/B0019LA7...</a>
For over a decade I used Yamasa exclusively. It's pretty typical soy sauce, but it's 1) brewed in Japan, 2) has no preservatives other than alcohol.<p>I know there are superior versions, but one should never be sorely disappointed with Yamasa.<p>In this new economy, I've adjusted my standards so that I still have something to put the soy sauce on, and have been giving Marca Pina (Philippines) a go. Not bad, but contains preservatives.<p>I've never had true artisan soy sauce and suspect I never will. But used skillfully, amazing work can be done with Yamasa.<p>Treacherous Joe's, a decade or so ago, had a pure Japanese soy sauce, but at some point cheapened it with vinegar, albeit a negligible amount.<p>Open to suggestions that don't require being involved in the black budget.
It's interesting they mention charcoal purification, there is this plant that Japanese people eat (like wild green tubes with leaves) and they soak it in water with wood ash from a fire.
<a href="https://www.seriouseats.com/do-you-know-your-soy-sauces-japanese-chinese-indonesian-differences" rel="nofollow">https://www.seriouseats.com/do-you-know-your-soy-sauces-japa...</a><p>There are lots of different types of soy sauce catering to different uses.
So let me take a detour that I promise will get back to the soy sauce.<p>Recently New York Magazine came out with an article about so-called "West Village girls" [1]. For anyone unfamiliar, the West Village (and Greenwich Village more broadly) is a part of Manhattan below 14th street that had huge cultural significance int eh 20th century. Many musicians, artists and luminaries lived there for a time. It was the home of the Stonewall riots [2] and is otherwise important to LGTBQ culture.<p>The West Village girl is pretty much the opposite of all those things. Basic, typically white, posts on IG that "I can't live without my Starbuck's", dresses generically, is chasing her Sex and the City dream, is likely supported by her parents in her 20s after graduating college (if not outright having a trust fund) and probably has hobbies like "travel" and "eating out".<p>There is a long history of a certain kind of (typically white) people who are devoid of "culture" and move to a place and make it worse by not respecting that culture, like moving above a Mexican restaurant or a bar that's been there for 40 years and geting it shut down for noise. That sort of thing.<p>This segment is typically obsessed with finding "the best", seeing and being seen at the "best" or just the "hippest" places and so on.<p>I saw a thing recently about people who travel for an hour plus to find the "best" New York slice. The particular creator explained that these chasers just don't get the point. The point is that you can get good slices pretty much anywhere in NYC. It's ubiquitous. You just don't need to line up for 2 hours at some hole-in-the-wall in Queens or whatever.<p>And now I'll bring it back to soy sauce.<p>This seems to fit this obsession of finding or having "the best". For me, the difference between "good" and "the best" for pretty much anything is so marginal that it's never worth paying a huge premium, going terribly out of your way and/or waiting for a long time. That goes for restaurants, food items, wine and pretty much anything.<p>But every time I see people who obsess over "the best" it always strikes me as so sad, like these chasers just have to have the external validation of being "in the club". I particularly see this with people who are obsessed with Japan, like they look for the absolute best sushi, omikase or whatever but again, I think the point of Japan is you can find good of anything Japanese everywhere, because it's Japan.<p>I'm happy there are craftsmen who take pride in their craft and their output, be they Japanese teapot makers, calligraphy brush makers or soy sauce producers. And if you get a chance to try such things and appreciate their craft, great. But chasing it always seems so empty.<p>[1]: <a href="https://www.thecut.com/article/nyc-west-village-neighborhood-new-generation-women-girls.html" rel="nofollow">https://www.thecut.com/article/nyc-west-village-neighborhood...</a><p>[2]: <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stonewall_riots" rel="nofollow">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stonewall_riots</a>
Food isn't just about taste... it's memory, tradition, and identity all wrapped up in something you can smell and hold. What Ki Soon-do's doing isn't just making soy sauce, it's carrying centuries of Korean culture in every jar. It's the kind of craft that comes from generations of hands, instincts, and care, and not something you can automate or rush.