Shōchū: Japanese distilled beverage often made from rice, barley, or sweet potatoes.

There are, currently, over 1,000 brands of sweet potato shochu produced in Kagoshima Prefecture. Production of shochu made from local varieties harvested in each area of the Kyushu District also began around this time. The equipment used for single distillation is called a pot still. As the shōchū is distilled just once it retains the character of the base ingredient, typically rice, barley, or sweet potato, with a strong taste and aroma. Small-to-medium size enterprises make most brands, with the island of Kyūshū famous as the center of production. Recently however larger corporations have been entering the market.

The various types of shochu possess characteristic flavours derived from their main fermentation substance.
A common characteristic of sake- and shochu-making may be the use of koji—a chemical created by culturing Aspergillus spp.

A Guide To Shochu And How Exactly To Drink It

It’s a distilled cousin of sake and–its fans would argue–just as versatile and enjoyable. Kou-rui, the repeatedly-distilled Shochu, can be mixed with a juice , or Oolong tea. It is used in mixed drinks such as “Chu-Hai” (meaning “”shōchū highball”); these are sold even canned out of vending machines. Koji mould (“aspergillus oryzae”) is used in the fermenting — either yellow koji, white koji or black koji. Barley is pearled first to get rid of the outer layer that would hinder the working of the koji on it.

On the southernmost tip of Kyushu, Kagoshima Prefecture attracts visitors with its thousand-year-old cedars, volcanic activity, and island getaways. The largest island, Amami Oshima, has many resort hotels and idyllic beaches. At the same time, the ancient forests of Yakushima are home to several unique species of plants and animals. Other attractions include traditional gardens, samurai districts, and Japan’s most active volcano. The big difference is purity, as no Shochu can have any additives and in the case of top shochu they can only be distilled once to show the purity of the distillate, designated as Honkaku. Shochu sits higher in alcohol than soju, usually between 25-35%.

As the mash boils, the resulting vapor will get collected and cooled.
The vapor condenses right into a liquid named unrefined or honkaku shochu—the alcohol content is near 40%.
The honkaku receives casked and aged for you to three months to stabilize the quality and circular out the flavor.
Before bottling and shipping and delivery, the brewers add drinking water to lessen the alcohol levels to between 20 and 30%.
While sake is actually a ‘rice wine’, soju is usually likened to vodka.
The style of both of these drinks differs, although they are drunk in similar ways, with drinkers sipping the beverage from the small glass.

• Furthermore, both types of distillation can be achieved at normal “atmospheric pressure” or “lowered strain” which lowers the temperature required to separate the alcohol.
• It is smooth and pairs with a variety of food, including sashimi, which we eat a lot of at home.
• Namihana is distilled only one time with the traditional wooden nevertheless called Kidaru.
• If you don’t know, soju is a distilled drink that is also made from grains or potatoes, and is the most popular liquor in Korea.
• Within the honkaku shochu designation, several regions have already been awarded geographical indications by the WTO.

(top-top quality shochu) at Japanese marketplaces and most Asian markets.
There is a cool sake and shochu store near Shinbashi station known as Oboro Saketen.
The owner, Jun Okuma-san, studied at University in Minnesota and speaks English.

wine as it was part of my work. Formerly it was often mislabeled honkaku shōchū, or had no indication of mixing or relative volumes. Starting in 2005 the industry regulated itself and created the blended shōchū mark, with subcategorization based upon the relative volumes used. Prior to April 1983, it was labeled otsurui shōchū, but is now properly called “Authentic Awamori”. Has origins going back to just 1973 when Unkai Brewery Co., of Gokase, Miyazaki Prefecture, developed it using soba from the local mountainous region as its base ingredient. Since then shōchū producers across Japan have produced it, sometimes as part of a shōchū blend. The taste of sweet potato shōchū is a bit smoky, evocative of some whiskeys.

Online Japanese Language And Culture Resource

Though some may also be common shochu components, corn or tapioca is rarely used to make shochu.
Most non-Japanese would point out that sake is the only traditional liquor of Japan.
But there are a lot of Japanese alcoholic refreshments to taste and explore.
Once the fermentation is comprehensive Shochu is distilled single pot still or column stills.
Furthermore, both types of distillation can be achieved at normal “atmospheric pressure” or “reduced pressure” which lowers the temperature required to separate the alcohol.
Reduced pressure distillation preserves floral flavours which are temperature sensitive and tends to be milder. [newline]The higher temperatures of atmospheric pressure distillation breaks down more delicate aromas and concentrate stronger bold flavors and has a richer body.

• Its plot centered on the Minagawa family of Miyazaki Prefecture, who were brewers of a sweet potato shōchū called imojōchū.
• Shochu is a clear, distilled Japanese beverage with an alcohol content of about 25 to 42%.
• It really is most predominately made in Japan’s southern regions of Okinawa and Kyushu, where it was first developed.
• Mix ice, soda water, shochu, and all of the ingredients in a tumbler and mix well.
• Studies show shochu offers beneficial results to the enzyme urokinaze, the same enzyme in burgandy or merlot wine that is thought to assist in preventing strokes and heart episodes.

Distillers make Kōrui shōchū by weakening the distilled alcohol. Of course, no good liquor is truly complete without good food. How you pair your nibbles with your shochu will depend on what the drink’s base is.

To create this mojito, it’s best to use ko-class shochu so it will mix nicely with other ingredients. Wheat, sweet potato, or brown sugar shochu is perfect for this recipe. Shochu is Japan’s traditional distilled spirit that is usually made from grains or Japanese sweet potato. Shochu has a clear looking appearance and a quite strong taste.