A Quick Guide To Great Shochu
Shochu has been an 'up-and-coming spirit' in North America for close to a decade. In 2010, The Washington Post declared shochu the Japanese vodka . Ten years ago, Forbes.com's Larry Olmsted called shochu one of the best spirits you've (probably) never tasted .
Shochu is still relatively unknown to the average American drinker, but it isn't entirely the spirits' fault. Up until December 2023, California state laws stated that shochu (a Japanese distilled alcoholic beverage) must be labeled Soju (a Korean distilled alcoholic beverage). Liquor laws in New York State have similarly hindered the growth of the category.
Things are changing. Shochu-focused importers like Honkaku Spirits and major brands like iichiko have invested heavily in their US presence, helping welcome new drinkers into the category.
It's an easy sell. As I've written before, shochu is flavorful, aromatic, and wildly reflective of terroir. There's the subtle sweetness of sweet potato (imo) shochu, and the earthiness of green tea shochu made in Southern Kagoshima, on the island of Kyushu. There are sugar-based shochu that are grassy and herbaceous, and rice-based shochu that offer up an oomph of umami that sake drinkers will recognize.
"There are many different kinds of shochu that allow you to be creative: barley, green tea, and shiso, to name a few," says Mamoru Tashiro, bartender at Hakubai , the Kaiseki restaurant within The Prince Kitano New York.
"They vary from low to high-proof (20-40% abv), and offer tons of flavor profiles depending on what ingredients the shochu is distilled from—barley, rice, sweet potato, green tea, etc," Ben Bozeman, the head bartender at Lucky Cheetah continues.
The Enduring Appeal Of The HighballStart your shochu journey with a highball. "People may think it's like having a vodka-soda or gin and tonic," says Juyong Kang , director of beverage development at Fontainebleau Las Vegas . "It's similar but much more delicate. It's almost so elegant, you may have to drink it pinky out."
"I prefer shochu highballs over whiskey highballs because shochu highballs are easier to drink — they have less alcohol content and less sugar," says Tashiro.
But don't start by pouring these bottles over any old ice. "Like most drinks, decent ice is a really important aspect," says Bozeman. "No crushed ice or tiny chips or your highball will become watered down extremely fast."
"Also, make sure your soda water is very well chilled and very well carbonated," he continues. "Don't use the big bottle of club soda on the door of your fridge that was opened a week ago. Aside from that, there's no huge secret, which is great because you can nail it at home regardless of your drink-mixing experience!'
Here are a few bottles to get you started.
Meet your shochu training wheels: a lovely, floral and fruity shochu made by blending two different distillates, one black koji and sweet potatoes grown in Miyazaki Prefecture, the other with white koji and sweet potatoes from Kagoshima Prefecture. It's silky, savory, and versatile in drinks.
Nikaido Oita Mugi ShochuNext up in your shochu lesson: barley shochu. The Nikaido family has been distilling in Oita Prefecture for eight generations, and offers an excellent easy entry into the category. The first-ever 100% barley shochu, it's slightly woody with a long finish — serve it over a big ice cube, with a touch of hot water, or in a herbal highball.
The move onto their aged expression, Nikaido Kitchom. It's aged for a year in steel tanks before it's bottled into hand-painted glazed clay bottles. That aged rounds out the brighter notes, bringing a rounder mouthfeel and a greater focus on the peppery notes. The bottle itself is an excellent statement piece on a bar cart.
Chiran Tea ChuA personal favorite, Chiran green tea shochu is made with long grain Thai rice, roasted purple sweet potatoes, and top-quality green tea. The earthy funk of the sweet potato and the elegance of astringency of green tea is a big punch of flavor, which only shines brighter with soda.
Iichiko silhouetteIichiko — pronounced EACH-ko — is one of the most recognizable brands of shochu in the country. Crafted in Oita Prefecture on Kyushu, the brand offers a couple different expressions, depending on what you like to drink. Saiten targets the home bartender — it's full flavor and higher in alcohol, allowing it to play well with other spirits. Special is aged in oak, and Silhouette is lighter and more elegant, designed to pair well with food.
Kenta Goto leans on iichiko Silhouette for highballs at Bar Goto . "We think it makes a delicious highball — consistent for every order," he says. "Because it is lower proof, we don't want ice to melt quickly and over-dilute the drink. We like to keep Iichiko Silhouette in the freezer until we use it."
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