What to do with shochu? Just bought some...

[Cinnamon]

What great drinks do you make with this or do you sip it?

We like things like caipirinhas, Canton ginger cocktails, St. Germain Elderflower liqueur with champagne, rum swizzles, mai tais etc., but shochu is new for us.

[sku]

It's a low-proof neutral spirit. It's often drunk straight, but you can use it as you would use Vodka for somewhat lighter alcohol cocktails.

[JMF]

sku- I wouldn't call it a neutral spirit at all. Many shochu are very heavily flavored. It is usually distilled once, rather than the two or more times western spirits are.

[sku]

Thanks, I was thinking of soju, the Korean spirit.

[Silverjay]

From a very orthodox approach...

It depends on what type it is. There are two general categories, akin to "blended" and "single malt" in the Scotch world. If it is the blended type, you can mix or infuse as you would with vodka since they have very little character in these. They are made purely to be mixed. Just be aware that many are only a little more than half the ABV of vodka. In Japan, oolong tea and fresh squeezed fruit juice are the most popular mixers.

If it is the single malt type, it will have these kanji on the bottle- 本格. This is pronounced "hon-kaku" and means "genuine". These are then divided on what they are primarily made from- i.e. potato, wheat, rice, brown sugar, sesame, etc. Hon-kaku shochu is best on the rocks, neat, or with a splash of water as you can distinguish and savor the unique character they offer. If you were to mix inexpensive versions of these though, the wheat and the rice variants are probably best to do this with. However, in general, shochu has more character and subtlties than vodka and lends itself to sipping and drinking as you would a single malt Scotch or nice bourbon, whiskey, or rye.

[Cinnamon]

This is wonderful to know, thank you so much!

[JMF]

What type of Shochu? It can be made from any of 30 ingredients. Barley, rice, sweet potato, buckwheat, sesame, dates, brown sugar, carrots, etc. Sometimes a blend of two like rice and sweet potato. Each type has its own unique flavors that work well with different ingredients.

Shochu was thought of as low end hooch in Japan for many years. The stuff that the lower economic class drunk. Now, as of 2003, it has taken over as the most drunk alcoholic beverage in Japan.

Usually it is drunk on the rocks with lots of ice to water it down at least 50% or mixed 50/50 with hot water depending upon the season. It's a lower alcohol spirit than usual here in the west with an apx strength of 25% abv. / 50 proof. Lately, in the past five years, shochu cocktails have become very popular in Japan. This has boosted a lot of its consumption. Many unique cocktail recipes have been created. But, unless you can speak / read Japanese it is hard to find the recipes.

[Cinnamon]

Thanks. Ours is barley. Tastes nice! (Need to go look at the label.)

[barleywino]

mix with Calpis (Calpico) concentrate, about 1 to 1, chill, splash of soda if you like, garnish with yamamomo if you can find it (myrtle berry)

[Cinnamon]

I see another trip to Mitsuwa, the local Japanese market, coming on.

[barleywino]

from the sounds of it, i would guess that you got iichiko barley shochu? that drink i described is one of the original signature drinks at Nobu/Matsuhisa although readily available in other more downscale Japanese restaurants as well (without the yamamomo)

[Silverjay]

Shochu cocktails have been around for many, many years in Japan. They used to be called "shochu highballs" and are now just called "chu-hai". Every cheap izakaya has a standard menu of chu-hai, of which calpis-hai is one of the generic ones available. The canned chu-hai business accounts for a large portion of shochu consumption in Japan. You can buy canned calpis-hai, among many others, at most convenience stores. But I haven't seen any canned chu-hai in the U.S. at Mitsuwa nor any other Japanese markets. My favorite one was a grapefruit chu-hai made by Mercian, more known as a wine maker. But it has since been discontinued, no doubt muscled out by Kirin and Suntory's nasty, overly sweet versions.

Iichiko (one of the dozens of barley shochu available) is better straight or with hot water (o-yu-wari).

[Cinnamon]

Yokaichi Mugi is the name, 25% alcohol.

I happened to be at a Mexican market today so picked up some coconut water. It's a really nice combination with the shochu - added a tiny bit of demerera syrup but probably not necessary.

Here is what the bottle looks like:
http://www.takarasake.com/products/productsbottles/Shochu/yokaichi_mugi.jpg

From:
http://www.takarasake.com/products/sh...

The effect is really reminiscent of unfiltered sake to me, but without a wine tang. I did it over crushed ice.

Need to go to Nobu, never been.

Upon further experimentation, adding a little fresh orange juice, a ginger slice and kaffir lime leaf is interesting too. But the coconut water/shochu/demerera feels more pure.

[Silverjay]

Actually, it's Yokaichi. And it's "mugi", not "mugu". Means "barley". (There is also Yokaichi kome (rice). ) I just bought two bottles at Mitsuwa today myself. I sometimes buy it by the case. It's a couple dollars cheaper than Iichiko, but is basically a comparable spirit. When I eat home meals in Japan, we usually treat the Iichiko and Yokaichi of the world kind of like table wines. We keep a bottle nearby and mix up big glasses on the rocks with some mineral water. Shochu is such a great mild, clean alcoholic compliment to Japanese food. Unfortunately, it's so expensive here in the U.S. Like $18.50 for a 750ml bottle at Mitsuwa vs. $8 for a 900ml bottle at any convenience store in Tokyo.

[Cinnamon]

Thanks ... sorry about the misspelling... was going from kitchen to computer in other room and not so familiar with Japanese word roots. I do know I like it.

[JMF]

I have a bottle of that same shochu sitting with a dozen others on my bar. Maybe I'll do some cocktailing tonight and play with them.

[JMF]

The barley shochu are reminiscent of a mild whiskey and work well with variations on whiskey cocktail recipes. I find that you have to go lighter on the other ingredients so they don't overwhelm the shochu.

[Silverjay]

Just came across a list, including photos, of very specific shochu cocktails. The list is provided by NY Mutual Trading, a shochu importer. There are even a couple listed for Yokaichi mugi.... I really can't imagine any of my male Japanese friends drinking these beyond the simple novelty. Have to admit that the one with the mushroom broth sounds intriguing...

http://www.nymtc.com/pl_shochu/cockta...

[Cinnamon]

Oh wow, that's the motherlode. Thank you!