Shochu Tasting
Origin: Japan / 25% / 25% / 25% / 31% / 35% / 41% / Price: 25-46€
Shochu is a spirit that absolutely fascinates me and I still know very little about. It can be made from over 53 ingredients, sometimes new ones are tried out, the green pimento shochu here, for example, is considered a project of quite an avant-gardist of the shochu scene. It is distilled - depending on the origin - usually only once, but in some regions / on some islands there are slightly different historical procedures. The product is then always fermented with koji, a mold that forms on rice. Again there is variation, there is white, black or even yellow koji and they all have different characteristics, making the result more fruity or smoother for example. It doesn't end here. Some shochus go directly into the bottle, some are kept "neutral" for a few months, e.g. in steel tanks, some in clay jugs, some even in barrels (although this is the exception). The "mainstream" Shochus, which one drinks in Japan in everyday life, have mostly 20%, maximally 25%, Craft Shochus are however in some cases even undiluted and go up to 45%. An extremely fascinating and diverse spirit, as hopefully some in our cocktail community have noticed from these notes and the bottle sharing leading to this tasting.
It would be wonderful to see Shochu cocktails in some bars that don't have a Japanese overall concept in particular. In addition, it is by its history and associated alcohol content of course a perfect way to commit to the current trend to low-ABV drinks.
Let's first get to my conclusions and comments regarding the possible cocktail usage for each of them, below that you will find the detailed notes on all 6 Shochus tested this time.
The Daiyame Shochu made from sweet potatoes has an absolutely brilliant aroma that will also do great in drinks, floral, fresh, almost perfumed in a positive sense. In taste, however, you will have to tune your cocktail well here, it still has this elderflower and other flowers + gooseberries, but also the subtle, sweet potato comes through (which is nice), you also have to think about the low ABV and not overpower it, exciting especially for drinks in the direction of the Martini family.
I would have loved to try the Beniotome Kuro Black Sesame Shochu even with just 5% more, this way now with 25% it is nice and elegant for neat enjoyment, but could definitely still be overpowered too quickly at least if used in something else than stirred drinks. With spirit focused, stirred cocktails though, this one could be an interesting substitute for some whiskey, tequila or the very gentle mezcals also, having a lot of umami-notes.
With the Piment Shochu it's a complicated story, as a friend of (macerated, etc.) liqueurs such as Ancho Reyes you are probably used to really spicy stuff, this one is not crazy peppery-spicy in that way. It's rather vegetal and piquant, but this is a high quality distilled and silky spirit. I can imagine it doing quite well in drinks, but definitely rather stirred, a great vegetable-natural-piquant note, in drinks where things like Ancho Reyes etc. would overpower the rest & does not have the necessary elegance. In the aroma he was still very intense, tasting the only 25% are great for trying it neat, but for drinks he would be a real dream with 35% or even more, then drinks with a noticeable amount of citrus would also be more of an option.
The Setsugoro Shochu is hard to describe, as if you had a slightly fruity Agricole decently diluted/mixed with an intense sake (by sake standards), can do great in Martini and Ti Punch type drinks where the still noticeable but elegant and bright notes shine through well.
The Kakuzou Shochu surprised me very positively, with other grain spirits, even my beloved whiskey, I'm just not too big a fan of the bottlings that focus too much on the grain notes in particular, but this one does this fantastic. Warming, subtly sweet and with perfect roasted notes, the popcoooorn, brilliant. Real craft spirit.
The Sato No Akebono Genshu Shochu is rather unsurprisingly probably the easiest cocktail recommendation, R(h)um in various forms can be substituted here, try to play in addition with Asian spices and fruits and you got yourself beautiful "Asian Rum drinks", great unique spirit, exciting flavor combinations on its own, some special spicyness.
Hamada Syuzou, Daiyame Shochu
(sweet potato / 25%):
Nose:
Fascinating, sweet potato and the Koji rice together result here suddenly in elderflower, lychee, even some young passion fruit, grapes, a slight hint of sweet potato, but mainly white, bright fruits with fine acid
Taste:
Grapes, sweet potato, elderflower, not quite as fruity-acidic as in the nose, more starch (in the truest sense) of potatos, fresh rice, some gooseberry in between.
Finish:
The lychee again, grapes, some sugar cane and fresh rice, pineapple chips, overall mild but present.
Beniotome Shuzo, Kuro Sesam Shochu
(black sesam / 25%):
Nose:
VERY unique nose, extremely interesting, a friend said it smelled "like blood", haha! If you know about the black sesame, it becomes a little more obvious, a very characteristic umami note, somewhere between fermented berries and sour dough, poppy seeds, licorice and dried blackberries, lightly roasted barley
Taste:
Sesame and poppy, the toasted note becomes more noticeable here, but it is more elegantly compared to Islay and Mezcal of course, roasted rice and barley, licorice and some sour dough, dried goji berries and something reminding me of seaweed chips
Finish:
Seaweed chips, anise, goji berries and sesame seeds, gentle, the light roast remains in the finish but becomes even rounder
Ochiai Szuzojyo, Piment Shochu
(green peppers / 25%):
Nose:
The most obvious of all, you just pour it or open the bottle and from a 60cm distance immediately the thought of green peppers, crazy... There isn't too much else going on, vegetables, some zucchini and celery hints in between, the spicy notes of the peppers come across really naturally
Taste:
In the mouth then more discreet, after the nose you are afraid to get something in the direction of Ancho Reyes Verde, but it remains a fine and somewhat delicate distillate, almost creamy body, the green bell pepper is present but elegant and silky while being the one main note
Finish:
The finish remains the same, the peppers, elegant yet long lasting, medium length
Kikusui Brewery, Setsugoro Shochu
(sake yeast / 35%):
Nose:
Very aromatic, elegant nose, intense sake scent, great coconut aromas, both fresh coconut meat, but also sweetened pastries with thick coconut shavings on top, plus banana jellies, vanilla, almond tart, also some currants and tart notes that are not exactly attributable, cantaloupe
Taste:
Coconut and rice cakes, nice intensity, the % does VERY well here compared to sake, to really give an impression, cantaloup, grapes, vanilla, marzipan, some corn and gooseberry, pistachio and some eucalyptus, guava
Finish:
Lime zest, gooseberry, shredded coconut, the tart berries stay nice and long with the coconut, guava, lemongrass
Omoya Shuzo, Kakuzou Shochu
(barley / 41%):
Nose:
Nice, intense, warm and sweet grain aroma, the 41% does a lot of good here, seems extremely high quality on the nose, salty popcorn and corn, fresh cookie dough and some celery, candied ginger, fresh toast with some quince jelly and the salt again, a hint of roasted notes in the distance but sweet as from fresh popcorn still in the machine
Taste:
Wow, very nice, grains & cereals everywhere, but wonderfully warm, sweet, intense and yet virtually zero burning, very different from many other grain brandies of the classic type, brilliant popcorn note, salted and then again lightly over-roasted, toasted almonds, malt, roasted potatoes, ginger, the quince now also rather dried as chips, salt, a touch of allspice almost, freshly toasted handmade bread
Finish:
More popcorn and almonds, some macadamia comes in, also lightly toasted, warm, intense, long, though not very complex per se on the finish
Machida Shuzo, Sato No Akebono Genshu Shochu
(brown sugar / 43%):
Nose:
Very interesting, very rum-y and then again not, very own unique note, lamp oil, toffee, popcorn, flaxseed, cardamom, honey and brown sugar, unripe bananas, some honeydew melon, star fruit
Taste:
Nice sweetness with the necessary freshness in it, similar to the nose, you can see a kinship with rum (rather even Agricole), but also immediately notice that there are some things different here, cardamom, camphor, linseed, honeydew melon and cantaloup, fresh ginger juice, sugar cane juice, some kiwi and dragon fruit, coconut chips, lamp oil, linen cloth
Finish:
Turmeric and cardamom, popcorn, salty, light honey, cantaloup, star fruit, intense but zero burn, high quality, round but long finish
