Kame no O is a sake rice that has recently become popular with a number of brewers around the country. While it may not lead to the elegant, refined and lively fragrances and flavors derived from that most hallowed (yawn) of sake rices, Yamada Nishiki, Kame no O lends sake a definite character and solid, definable quality. Anyone who thinks rice is rice, and that sake rice lacks the romance, history and culture of wine grapes should have been at the Kame no O Summit last month in Amarume, Yamagata Prefecture.

Yes, that's right, a summit for rice -- but then Kame no O is a particularly interesting rice for several reasons. One of the few pure strains left in Japan (most are crossbreeds), it was discovered on the spot in Amarune about a century ago, where it had not been grown commercially for decades as it is delicate and tall, and must be cultivated entirely by hand.

When I arrived, I wasn't sure what to expect, though it all began predictably enough with the usual parade of onstage greetings. Then the lights dimmed and from the back arose a loud din: Strolling down the aisles came two men dressed in nomadic clothing and straw sandals, honking loudly on conch shells. Their funky garb indicated they were yamabushi, mountain warrior-ascetics. They slowly honked their way up to the stage and approached a display of rice stalks. Here, they commenced an eerie but pleasant chant that was interesting for the first five minutes. After some 15 minutes, however, I was praying for them to stop.