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Miyazaki

Nakanaka – a pleasant surprise

January 15, 2017 by Stephen 1 Comment

Nakanaka – a pleasant surpriseNakanaka is the main brand of barley shochu from the very well respected Kuroki Honten in Miyzaki, which makes a wide range of delicious shochu across two different distilleries, but under the same ownership. Their premium barley shochu, Hyakunen no Kodoku, a 40% ABV barrel aged barley shochu, is arguably the most famous barley shochu in Japan. Nakanaka takes a more straightforward approach with atmospheric distillation and 100% barley.

Filed Under: Shochu, Shochu Reviews Tagged With: atmospheric distillation, barley, barley koji, black koji, joatsu, kuro koji, Miyazaki, Miyazaki Coffee, mugi, nakanaka, review, shochu

Soba Shochu: Kagura No Mai

November 21, 2013 by Stephen Leave a Comment

Soba Shochu: Kagura No MaiKagura no Mai, with its plain black and white label with abstract drawings of village life, doesn't shout from you off the shelf. Nor does is grab you out of the glass. It's light and clean with the forward aromas of sake yeast. This leads me to believe it's a low pressure distillate and that the distillery has chosen to use a traditional sake yeast rather than one of the more neutral shochu yeasts.

Filed Under: Shochu, Shochu Reviews Tagged With: genatsu, Kagura no Mai, low pressure distillation, Miyazaki, review, shiro koji, shochu, soba, white koji

Day 11: Free Day in Miyazaki

October 16, 2013 by Stephen 2 Comments

Day 11: Free Day in MiyazakiOn my wander I discovered a tiny chicken nanban restaurant, Ogura, that's apparently quite famous. There was a line around the block. Nothing to do, I joined the queue and an hour I later was eating the best chicken nanban I've ever had prepared and served by sweet old Japanese who don't speak a word of English.

Filed Under: Kyushu 2013, Shochu Tagged With: chicken nanban, chicken sashimi, late night ramen, Miyazaki, Ogura, one cup shochu, Shiro Kirishima, tori sashi, whale sashimi

Day 10: Kyoya Shuzo, Miyazaki

October 16, 2013 by Stephen 2 Comments

Day 10: Kyoya Shuzo, MiyazakiThe drive was stunning along a rocky coastline on the Pacific Ocean. The distillery itself is tucked into a little town – they bottle off-site in order not to disturb the neighbors. As we pulled into the parking lot we were greeted by old ladies peeling potatoes calling out a sing song "Ohayo gozaimas!" (good morning!).

Filed Under: Kyushu 2013, Shochu Tagged With: Heihachiro, Kame Shizuku, Kappa No Sasoimizu, Kyoya Shuzo, lobster sashimi, Miyazaki

Day 9: Fukuoka to Arita to Miyazaki to Bliss

October 14, 2013 by Stephen 2 Comments

Day 9: Fukuoka to Arita to Miyazaki to BlissDespite the late night out with friends in Fukuoka the night before, I was up and out of the hotel by 8am to catch an 8:30 train to Arita, traditional home of Japanese porcelain, was was actually the model for Chinese and European “china” as early as the 17th century. Arita is also the home of Munemasa Shuzo, which makes both Nonnoko Kuro and Mizunomai, two very nice barely shochus available in the US.

Filed Under: Kyushu 2013, Shochu Tagged With: Arita, Arita ware bento, Kame Shizuku, Kyoya Shuzo, Miyazaki, Mizunomai, Munemasa Shuzo, Nonnoko Kuro, Saga

Towari: a 100% Buckwheat Shochu from Miyazaki

September 21, 2013 by Stephen 3 Comments

Towari: a 100% Buckwheat Shochu from MiyazakiIf you've tried other soba shochus, you're probably used to their lightly nutty aromas and flavors while still finding them light and easy drinking. Towari takes this in a completely different direction by using 100% soba. Most other soba shochus blend rice and even barley during the fermentation processes in order to smooth out the rich flavors of the buckwheat.

Filed Under: Shochu, Shochu Reviews Tagged With: atmospheric distillation, buckwheat, joatsu, Miyazaki, review, roasted, shochu, soba, soba koji, Towari

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Shochu Reviews

iichiko Saiten

After winning some awards on the international spirits circuit (including double-gold at the 2020 San Francisco World Spirits Competition), there's ample evidence that iichiko Saiten deserves serious consideration by bartenders everywhere.

Shochu Reviews

Tasting Notes: The SG Shochu KOME

Putting your nose in a glass of The SG Shochu Kome shows you just how complex a vacuum distilled rice shochu can be. Ginjo sake aromas from the yeast, pineapple, melon, and a faint hint of dairy-like lactic acidity are all present.

The SG Shochu Cocktail Recipes

Bartender Shingo Gokan mixes a cocktail.
The SG Shochu brand manager, Joshin Atone, talks with Kanpai.us about shochu's versatility and potential in the cocktail. He also shares three recipes for bartenders to try.

Tasting Notes: The SG Shochu MUGI

The SG Shochu MUGI Label
The SG Shochu MUGI wraps several barley shochu identities into one. It's lightly barrel-aged and carries the associated sweet notes. But there's also a graininess that is revealed when the temperature of the drink drops. It's a versatile barley shochu that can be enjoyed a variety of ways.

Shochu Reviews

Tasting Notes: Nankai

Nankai Shochu
At first whiff, Nankai smells faintly grassy, which is common in kokuto shochu owing to how kokuto sugar is made from fresh cut cane and that fresh grassiness is a sign of well made kokuto sugar. Sugar cane is, after all, a tall perennial grass. It is still pretty wild that they can capture that after fermentation and distillation.

Tasting Notes: Lento Shochu

Lento is the top selling kokuto shochu in Japan, and it is available internationally as well. Try it on the rocks or with sparkling water for a refreshing taste of the Amami Islands. Kanpai!

Tasting Notes: The SG Shochu IMO

The SG Shochu IMO is a clear invitation to create the classic imo cocktail. If you get it right, it will resonate and cascade around the world until you can't not have sweet potato shochu on your menu if you consider yourself a proper drinking establishment.

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