(Courtesy NBC)

It's time to get red-faced, teary-eyed and laugh boisterously in unison while back-slapping businessmen singing karaoke: on Friday night exactly 326 varieties of sake "in peak condition" will be uncorked at the annual Joy of Sake tasting event. Presented by the Foreign Ministry of Japan at the Altman Building in Chelsea, this is the largest sake-tasting outside Japan, and this year 30% of ticket sales will go to brewery families who lost their homes in the Great East Japan Tsunami. The more you drink, the more virtuous you become.

Even better: 170 of these sakes aren't even available in the United States. The full spectrum of sake styles—from junmai to ginjo to daiginjo—will be presented, as well as appetizers from restaurants including 15 East, Bond Street, Momofuku Ssäm Bar, wd~50, Sakagura, Ma Peche, SushiSamba, and Bozu. The tasting runs from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. on this Friday, October 21st. Tickets cost $90, but who can put a price on unlimited Joy?