Kanpai

oak barrels

Taiga no Itteki Shochu

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Daigano Ideki is our best guess for an English spelling of the name, which means "one drop in a big river." Finding information on this shochu is very much like one drop in a river. There's virtually nothing reliable out there. What we do know is that this barley shochu is aged in oak barrels stored in a cool dry place.

Tenpo: The Date Shochu

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By "the date shochu" we don't mean a shochu that's good to drink when you're on a date, though that may be true as well. We mean a shochu made from dates. In fact, Tenpo is the only shochu made from dates. That puts it pretty far afield from the usual shochu grains - sweet potato, barley, or rice. It's also one of the only genshu (undiluted) shochus available in the U.S. As expected, the 36% alcohol is much more present than with diluted shochus. Further complicating this already interesting shochu is the aging process.

Kakushigura Whiskey Shochu

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Oak barrel aging has become a popular process as shochu producers experiment with different aging techniques to give their shochus unique flavor profiles. Kannoko and Ginza no Suzume Kohaku have full flavored profiles thanks to this aging process and are popular mugi shochus, particularly among whiskey drinkers. Kakushigura uses this process as well, but with a slightly different approach.

Kou-itten: Oaked Imo

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Until I tasted Kou-Itten (Kohitten on the box) I thought I understood the range of shochu flavors and impressions. Nothing like trying a different style for the first time to turn your entire impressions of the spirit on its head. Koiden is an imo shochu aged in oak barrels a minimum of 500 days.

Enma Gift Pack

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We found a surprise in a Narita International Airport (NRT) Duty Free shop – an Enma gift pack from Oimatsu Shuzo Co Ltd. Three 300 ml bottles of mugi shochu in three different varieties. The 900 ml is almost ideal for maximizing your 1 litre limit for U.S. duty free, unlike the usual 720 ml bottles. It also gives you a chance to try three very special shochus (explained below).

Enma (閻魔).  Enma is the Buddhist King of the Underworld, so naturally Enma comes in a red bottle with black characters. “The Devil” is made with mugi (barley) and white koji and then aged 3 years in whiskey barrels, giving it a golden color.… Read More “Enma Gift Pack”