Several flavored shochus have entered the US market over the past several years, but these brands have taken two very different approaches to the American consumer.
Sakaya, which means "sake shop" in Japanese, is a small, elegantly designed shop in New York City's East Village. It's just a few minutes walk from many of the popular izakayas and ramen shops in the neighborhood. The extensive selection of sake (nihon-shu) is curated by a husband and wife team - Hiroko Furukowa & Rick Smith. Their tastes are impeccable and their weekend sake tastings are a "must try" event when in the neighborhood on a Saturday afternoon.
Beniotome claims to be the only spirit in the world distilled from sesame seeds. This is probably true, because, of course, sesame seeds don't hold a lot of sugar. Fortunately for us, the seeds are not the primary distillate - barley and rice in the mash provide the sugars (and alcohol) while the roasted sesame seeds provide a completely unique drinking experience.