Shochu that goes with ginger liqueur
Wine, liqueur and spirits
These are bottles to mix ginger liqueur into. Some of them taste of it too, and where that is the reason a bottle is here, its line says so.
Barrow's Intense, made in Brooklyn, or Domaine de Canton, which is the easier one to find. Ginger and sugar arrive together either way, and both work hot as well as cold. Being spirits themselves they add alcohol along with the volume, which a juice or a syrup does not.
Best bottles for ginger liqueur
The strongest matches in the catalogue, across every style. Everything below is the same ranking opened out by what the shochu is made from.
Brown sugar and ginger is the oldest warm drink there is
kokuto, vanilla, spice, cask
Warm spice against caramel, without the sugar a ginger beer brings
rice, banana, vanilla, chocolate
Ginger and sweet potato is a winter kitchen pairing before it is a bar one
sweet potato, tropical fruit, spice, light-bodied
kokuto, molasses, roasted grain, dry
rice, aged, cask, smooth
rich, full-bodied, aged, umami
rice, aged
rice, soft, umami, rich
sweet potato, aged
Grouped by what the shochu is made from, because that is the level the reasoning works at: what this does to an imo shochu is a fact about imo shochu rather than about one bottle. Within each style the strongest matches come first, and bottles we pour are marked rather than promoted. The scores are the same engine that recommends a mixer from a bottle, run the other way round, but the labels are not: a bottle page badges at most twelve strong matches and at most three per family, so that the twelve describe that bottle rather than the same citrus and soda every time. Here there is no cap, so a pairing badged strong on this page can read as a good match on the bottle's own.
Kokuto shochu
Brown sugar and ginger is the oldest warm drink there is
kokuto, vanilla, spice, cask
kokuto, molasses, roasted grain, dry
Warm spice against caramel, without the sugar a ginger beer brings
kokuto, cask, aged
Show the other 16 ginger liqueur matches
kokuto, rich, long finish, aged
kokuto, smooth, smoky, cask
kokuto, rum-like, chocolate
kokuto, smooth, cask, aged
dried fruit, chocolate, honey, kokuto
kokuto, tropical fruit, vanilla, sweet
Awamori
Awamori has enough character to be the base of a cocktail, not the neutral part of one. So an orange liqueur or a mezcal sits beside it instead of covering it.
Warm spice against caramel, without the sugar a ginger beer brings
rich, full-bodied, aged, umami
rice, pear, caramel, rich
Show the other 97 ginger liqueur matches
rice, cask, aged
rice, whisky-like, cask, aged
rice, smooth, savory, aged
rice, bright, aged
rice, citrus, cereal, aged
rice, smooth, rich, sweet
rice, soft, smooth, rich
rice, smooth, rich, sweet
rice, smooth, aged
rice, soft, rich, sweet
rice, soft, aged
rice, sweet, smooth, rich
rice, smooth, soft, aged
rice, sweet, crisp, smooth
rice, roasted grain, aged
rice, citrus, roasted grain, sweet
rice, smooth, maple, umami
rice, sherry-like, aged
rice, citrus, vanilla, chocolate
rice, steamed rice, soft, caramel
rice, sweet, soft, smooth
rice, smooth, sweet, aged
rice, smooth, crisp, aged
rice, smooth, sweet, oily
rice, chocolate, sweet, aged
rice, smooth, sweet, aged
rice, cherry, vanilla, caramel
rice, vanilla, funky, creamy texture
rice, citrus, tropical fruit, vanilla
rice, nutty, dry, aged
Barrow's Intense, made in Brooklyn, or Domaine de Canton, which is the easier one to find. Ginger and sugar arrive together either way, and both work hot as well as cold. Being spirits themselves they add alcohol along with the volume, which a juice or a syrup does not.
umami, rich, full-bodied, cask
rice, smooth, cereal, sweet
rice, cherry, vanilla, chocolate
rice, soft, rich, sweet
rice, smooth, sweet
rice, smooth, rich, sweet
rice, light-bodied, sweet
rice, caramel, chocolate, crisp
rice, smooth, sweet
rice, smooth, sweet
rice, soft, smooth
rice, earthy, mushroom, rich
rice, sweet, rich, full-bodied
Sugar and heat on a bottle whose whole quality is that it is clean
rice, umami, clean, light-bodied
rice, clean, bright, aged
rice, soft, clean, aged
Ginger heat walks over a delicate bottle
rice, smooth, soft, clean
Kome shochu
Rice shochu stirred with vermouth is a martini with koji where the juniper was. The strength depends on the bottle, not on the swap. Most shochu is 25 and lands well under a gin martini. The 40 percent bottles land beside one.
Warm spice against caramel, without the sugar a ginger beer brings
rice, aged, cask, smooth
rice, soft, umami, rich
rice, vanilla, smooth, cask
rice, vanilla, smooth, sweet
Show the other 58 ginger liqueur matches
rice, soft, rich, aged
rice, soft, light-bodied, aged
rice, light-bodied, dry, aged
rice, vanilla, cask, aged
rice, steamed rice, citrus, pineapple
rice, smooth, aged, cask
rice, smooth, crisp, aged
rice, cask, aged
rice, smooth, aged
rice, smooth, light-bodied, sweet
rice, soft, smoky, creamy texture
It joins the pepper already in the glass rather than arguing with it
Barrow's Intense, made in Brooklyn, or Domaine de Canton, which is the easier one to find. Ginger and sugar arrive together either way, and both work hot as well as cold. Being spirits themselves they add alcohol along with the volume, which a juice or a syrup does not.
rice, soft, umami, rich
rice, light-bodied, cask
rice, vanilla, smooth, fruity
rice, citrus, silky, light-bodied
rice, melon, vanilla, toast
rice, chocolate, sweet
rice, citrus, apple, pineapple
rice, rich, bright
rice, pear, jasmine, light-bodied
rice, smooth, rich
Ginger heat walks over a delicate bottle
rice, citrus, dried fruit, floral
rice, floral, smooth, soft
Sugar and heat on a bottle whose whole quality is that it is clean
Imo shochu
Ginger and sweet potato is a winter kitchen pairing before it is a bar one
sweet potato, tropical fruit, spice, light-bodied
sweet potato, tropical fruit, bright, aged
sweet potato, smooth, aged
Show the other 83 ginger liqueur matches
sweet potato, milky, soft, aged
sweet potato, aged
sweet potato, light-bodied, dry, aged
sweet potato, umami, rich, aged
sweet potato, fruity, earthy, mineral
sweet potato, earthy, crisp, aged
sweet potato, whisky-like, aged
sweet potato, umami, rich, aged
sweet potato, lychee, chocolate, bright
sweet potato, soft, smooth, rich
sweet potato, lychee, white peach, tropical fruit
Sugar and heat on a bottle whose whole quality is that it is clean
sweet potato, smooth, rich, sweet
sweet potato, umami, rich, sweet
sweet potato, fruity, silky, smooth
sweet potato, sweet, sherry-like, cask
sweet potato, spice, sweet
sweet potato, shiso, smooth, tea
sweet potato, sweet, smooth, aged
sweet potato, soft, light-bodied, sweet
sweet potato, rich, soft, aged
sweet potato, rich, full-bodied, sweet
sweet potato, smooth, nutty, umami
sweet potato, soft, smooth, aged
sweet potato, roasted sweet potato, aged
sweet potato, tropical fruit, pepper, sweet
lychee, grape, jasmine, rich
vanilla, cask, rich, crisp
sweet potato, roasted sweet potato, umami, silky
sweet potato, sweet, rich, full-bodied
sweet potato, pineapple, tropical fruit, fruity
sweet potato, soft, tea
sweet potato, umami
sweet potato, light-bodied, long finish
sweet potato, lychee, grape, muscat
sweet potato, soft, dry, sweet
sweet potato, fruity, soft
sweet potato, umami
sweet potato, soft, dry, sweet
sweet potato, tea, rich
sweet potato, smooth, toast
sweet potato, rich, smooth, umami
sweet potato, smooth, umami, light-bodied
sweet potato, earthy
sweet potato, rich, full-bodied
sweet potato, coffee, earthy, pepper
sweet potato, whisky-like, cask
sweet potato, umami, rich
sweet potato, rich, full-bodied
sweet potato, smooth, rich
sweet potato, fruity
sweet potato, smooth, fruity, bright
sweet potato, fruity, umami, rich
sweet potato, pear, grassy, light-bodied
sweet potato, bright
sweet potato, bright
sweet potato, rich, purple sweet potato
sweet potato, crisp
Barrow's Intense, made in Brooklyn, or Domaine de Canton, which is the easier one to find. Ginger and sugar arrive together either way, and both work hot as well as cold. Being spirits themselves they add alcohol along with the volume, which a juice or a syrup does not.
sweet potato, bright
sweet potato, bright
sweet potato, smooth
sweet potato, smoky, rich, long finish
sweet potato, umami, soft, full-bodied
sweet potato, umami, soft, clean
Ginger heat walks over a delicate bottle
sweet potato, clean, aged
sweet potato, light-bodied, clean, dry
Mugi shochu
Warm spice against caramel, without the sugar a ginger beer brings
barley, toast, spice, rich
barley, chocolate, coffee, rich
barley, sesame, caramel, chocolate
barley, chocolate, umami, smooth
Show the other 33 ginger liqueur matches
barley, smooth, crisp, aged
barley, chocolate, earthy, smooth
It joins the pepper already in the glass rather than arguing with it
barley, smooth, long finish, aged
barley, smoky, soft, cask
barley, umami, rich, sweet
barley, umami, rich, aged
barley, smooth, rich, aged
barley, smooth, rich, aged
barley, smooth, rich, whisky-like
barley, rich, full-bodied, cask
barley, honey, chocolate, spice
Roasted barley and ginger is a winter drink that does not need heating
barley, smooth, mint, caramel
barley, vanilla, chocolate, nutty
barley, toast, savory, rich
barley, smooth, crisp, cask
barley, pear, banana, bread
barley, caramel, chocolate, smoky
barley, cask, aged
barley, jasmine, honey, vanilla
barley, soft, silky, smooth
barley, soft, cask, aged
barley, smooth, crisp, aged
barley, rich, cask, aged
barley, toast, cereal, rich
barley, vanilla, nutty, toast
barley, cask, aged
Kasutori, chestnut and other bases
Ginger is in this bottle itself, not just on its nose, so this adds more of the same rather than a second flavour.
Warm spice against caramel, without the sugar a ginger beer brings
barley, smooth, honey, vanilla
Ginger and sweet potato is a winter kitchen pairing before it is a bar one
Show the other 4 ginger liqueur matches
smooth, rich, full-bodied, sweet
smooth, rich, cask, aged
Soba shochu
Warm spice against caramel, without the sugar a ginger beer brings