Shochu that goes with japanese craft bitters (yuzu, shiso, umami)
Bitter and aperitivo
The Japanese Bitters, five 100ml expressions, sold at Astor Wines in New York. Angostura at nearly 45 percent is a small spike in a 25 percent drink in a way these are not.
Best bottles for japanese craft bitters (yuzu, shiso, umami)
The strongest matches in the catalogue, across every style. Everything below is the same ranking opened out by what the shochu is made from.
Japanese craft bitters (yuzu, shiso, umami): Aged kusu is intense enough to meet amaro without either one winning.
Japanese craft bitters (yuzu, shiso, umami): Amaro and gentian answer the earth with more earth, which is why a split-base imo drink reads as intentional rather than odd.
rich, full-bodied, aged, umami
umami, rich, full-bodied, cask
sweet potato, umami, rich, sweet
sweet potato, shiso, rice, tea
rice, citrus, cereal, aged
sweet potato, rice, umami, rich
rice, citrus, vanilla, aged
rice, umami, smooth, soft
Japanese craft bitters (yuzu, shiso, umami): The Umami expression is kelp, shiitake and bonito, aimed straight at the glutamate koji already put there
Japanese craft bitters (yuzu, shiso, umami): Tokushima yuzu at 27 percent, which is the shochu's own strength, so a dropper moves flavour and not proof
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 and anything poured at our bar come first. The ranking is the same engine that recommends a mixer from a bottle, run the other way round.
Awamori
Aged kusu is intense enough to meet amaro without either one winning.
19 more, all of them in Awamori
Imo shochu
Amaro and gentian answer the earth with more earth, which is why a split-base imo drink reads as intentional rather than odd.
53 more, all of them in Imo shochu
Kome shochu
A light rice spirit can be bullied by amaro. Keep the bitter under a quarter ounce or pick a heavier bottle.
21 more, all of them in Kome shochu
Kokuto shochu
Brown sugar carries bitterness the way a boulevardier carries whiskey. Amaro and red bitter both land.
7 more, all of them in Kokuto shochu
Shiso, sesame, tea and other single-botanical shochu
A strong bitter will argue with the botanical rather than support it. Keep it to a dash.
5 more, all of them in Shiso, sesame, tea and other single-botanical shochu