Shochu that goes with lime
Citrus
These are bottles to mix lime into. Some of them taste of it too, and where that is the reason a bottle is here, its line says so.
Sharper and greener than lemon. The citrus for anything built on brown sugar or tropical fruit.
Best bottles for lime
The strongest matches in the catalogue, across every style. Everything below is the same ranking opened out by what the shochu is made from.
Adds snap without adding much flavor of its own
The bottle already smells of citrus, and this puts more of it in the glass.
sweet potato, crisp, bitter
Lime frames tropical fruit so it does not go flat
sweet potato, rich, crisp, soft
sweet potato, crisp, sweet
sweet potato, tropical fruit, spice, light-bodied
An earthy, heavy spirit flattens out without acid. This is the ingredient doing structural work, not decoration.
sweet potato, pineapple, tropical fruit, fruity
sweet potato, lychee, white peach, tropical fruit
Cane sugar spirit and lime is the daiquiri, and kokuto shochu is a cane spirit at two thirds the proof.
kokuto, tropical fruit, vanilla, sweet
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.
Imo shochu
Citrus acid cuts sweet potato's weight. That's why Kagoshima bars reach for grapefruit and yuzu before anything else.
Adds snap without adding much flavor of its own
The bottle already smells of citrus, and this puts more of it in the glass.
sweet potato, crisp, bitter
Lime frames tropical fruit so it does not go flat
sweet potato, rich, crisp, soft
sweet potato, crisp, sweet
Show the other 155 lime matches
sweet potato, tropical fruit, spice, light-bodied
An earthy, heavy spirit flattens out without acid. This is the ingredient doing structural work, not decoration.
sweet potato, pineapple, tropical fruit, fruity
sweet potato, lychee, white peach, tropical fruit
sweet potato, citrus, floral, sweet
sweet potato, fruity, soft, sweet
sweet potato, smooth, sweet
sweet potato, sweet, soft, light-bodied
sweet potato, berry, soft, sweet
sweet potato, roasted grain
sweet potato, light-bodied, clean, sweet
sweet potato, shiso, smooth, tea
sweet potato, umami, smooth
sweet potato, floral, fruity, clean
sweet potato, funky
sweet potato, roasted sweet potato, rich, clean
sweet potato, smooth, clean, aged
sweet potato, rich, full-bodied
sweet potato, roasted sweet potato, roasted grain, sweet
sweet potato, vanilla, creamy texture, bright
sweet potato, roasted sweet potato, sweet
sweet potato, citrus, floral, caramel
sweet potato, tea, vanilla, mushroom
sweet potato, rich, soft, aged
sweet potato, soft, sweet
sweet potato, smooth, soft, clean
sweet potato, full-bodied, sweet
sweet potato, smooth, nutty, umami
sweet potato, soft, smooth, aged
sweet potato, vanilla, toast, spice
sweet potato, roasted sweet potato, aged
sweet potato, sweet, rich, full-bodied
vanilla, cask, rich, crisp
sweet potato, earthy, crisp, aged
muscat, citrus, floral, sweet potato
citrus, pear, sweet potato, clean
sweet potato, soft, crisp, clean
Lime's own green edge meets the bottle's instead of sitting on top of it
sweet potato, tropical fruit, floral, caramel
sweet potato, tropical fruit, floral, caramel
sweet potato, tropical fruit, pepper, sweet
The sweetness here is aroma rather than sugar, because sugar does not come over a still. Acid is what keeps the impression from turning cloying.
sweet potato, white peach, grape, berry
sweet potato, roasted sweet potato, umami, silky
sweet potato, sweet, rich, full-bodied
sweet potato, coffee, earthy, pepper
sweet potato, fruity, earthy, mineral
sweet potato, smooth, rich, sweet
sweet potato, sweet, clean, soft
sweet potato, umami, rich, sweet
sweet potato, umami, rich, sweet
sweet potato, pineapple, maple, mineral
sweet potato, soft, sweet
sweet potato, rich, clean, sweet
sweet potato, rich, sweet
sweet potato, umami, sweet, rich
sweet potato, fruity, silky, smooth
sweet potato, sweet, sherry-like, cask
sweet potato, apple, soft, rich
sweet potato, soft, rich, full-bodied
sweet potato, smooth, rich, light-bodied
sweet potato, spice, sweet
sweet potato, smooth, rich, sweet
sweet potato, smooth, rich, sweet
sweet potato, rich, sweet
sweet potato, sweet, clean, rich
sweet potato, soft, light-bodied, sweet
sweet potato, sweet, clean, fruity
sweet potato, floral, fruity, umami
sweet potato, soft, sweet
sweet potato, smooth, sweet
sweet potato, sweet, smooth, aged
sweet potato, yogurt, creamy texture
sweet potato, soft, light-bodied, sweet
sweet potato, rich, full-bodied, sweet
sweet potato, floral, soft, maple
sweet potato, sweet, soft, rich
sweet potato, smooth, sweet, long finish
sweet potato, chocolate, sherry-like, cask
sweet potato, tropical fruit, bright, aged
sweet potato, pear, grassy, light-bodied
sweet potato, crisp
Fruit without acid goes flat fast. A squeeze of something sour is what keeps a fruity bottle tasting fresh instead of sweet.
sweet potato, lychee, grape, muscat
sweet potato, lychee, floral, fruity
Sharper and greener than lemon. The citrus for anything built on brown sugar or tropical fruit.
sweet potato, banana, vanilla, clean
sweet potato, floral, full-bodied
sweet potato, soft, tea
sweet potato, light-bodied, long finish
sweet potato, soft, dry, sweet
sweet potato, smooth, aged
sweet potato, fruity, soft
sweet potato, umami
sweet potato, soft, dry, sweet
sweet potato, tea, rich
sweet potato, milky, soft, aged
sweet potato, smooth, toast
sweet potato, rich, smooth, umami
sweet potato, smooth, umami, light-bodied
sweet potato, aged
sweet potato, umami, soft, full-bodied
sweet potato, rich, full-bodied
sweet potato, spice, clean, sharp
sweet potato, whisky-like, cask
sweet potato, light-bodied, dry, aged
sweet potato, umami, rich
sweet potato, rich, full-bodied
sweet potato, umami, rich, aged
sweet potato, fruity
sweet potato, umami, soft, clean
sweet potato, smooth, fruity, bright
sweet potato, fruity, umami, rich
sweet potato, bright
sweet potato, bright
sweet potato, rich, purple sweet potato
sweet potato, whisky-like, aged
sweet potato, umami, rich, aged
sweet potato, clean, aged
sweet potato, bright
sweet potato, bright
sweet potato, smooth
sweet potato, light-bodied, clean, dry
sweet potato, lychee, chocolate, bright
sweet potato, soft, smooth, rich
sweet potato, smoky, rich, long finish
Kokuto shochu
Cane sugar spirit and lime is the daiquiri, and kokuto shochu is a cane spirit at two thirds the proof.
dried fruit, chocolate, honey, kokuto
kokuto, tropical fruit, vanilla, sweet
kokuto, molasses, roasted grain, dry
kokuto, molasses, vanilla, spice
kokuto, sweet, clean, rich
kokuto, chocolate, nutty, sweet
Show the other 21 lime matches
kokuto, soft, light-bodied, sweet
kokuto, light-bodied, clean, aged
kokuto, vanilla, spice, cask
kokuto, rum-like, chocolate
kokuto, rich, long finish, aged
kokuto, smooth, smoky, cask
kokuto, smooth, cask, aged
Mugi shochu
A clean mugi does under citrus what a neutral shochu does, with a little more grain left behind it.
barley, citrus, melon, white peach
barley, citrus, melon, banana
barley, caramel, rich, sweet
barley, crisp, clean, aged
barley, smooth, crisp, aged
Show the other 92 lime matches
barley, tropical fruit, light-bodied
barley, rich, crisp
barley, sesame, grassy, chocolate
barley, smooth, crisp, cask
barley, smooth, crisp, aged
barley, crisp, light-bodied, fruity
barley, clean, off-dry, smooth
barley, bright, clean, light-bodied
barley, earthy, mineral, pepper
barley, sesame, caramel, chocolate
barley, chocolate, umami, smooth
barley, chocolate, earthy, smooth
barley, smooth, rich, light-bodied
barley, smooth, long finish, aged
barley, soft, clean
barley, smooth, light-bodied, clean
barley, smoky, soft, cask
barley, umami, rich, aged
barley, smooth, rich, whisky-like
barley, umami, rich, sharp
barley, rich, full-bodied, cask
barley, apple, pineapple, creamy texture
barley, vanilla, spice, cask
barley, honey, chocolate, spice
barley, roasted grain
barley, smooth, mint, caramel
barley, vanilla, chocolate, nutty
barley, toast, savory, rich
barley, toast, rich, light-bodied
barley, toast, spice, rich
barley, banana, white peach, tea
barley, melon, banana, floral
barley, chocolate, coffee, rich
barley, smooth, dry
barley, white peach, cherry, soft
barley, banana, toast
barley, pear, banana, bread
barley, caramel, chocolate, smoky
barley, cask, aged
barley, jasmine, honey, vanilla
barley, toast, light-bodied, sweet
barley, soft, silky, smooth
barley, toast, cereal, rich
barley, fruity, light-bodied
barley, vanilla, nutty, toast
barley, cask, aged
barley, banana, berry, bread
barley, dry, cask, aged
Awamori
Awamori carries citrus and tropical aromatics of its own, out of an all-koji ferment rather than out of anything added. Citrus meets what is already there instead of introducing it.
caramel, smoky, rich, earthy
rich, full-bodied, aged, umami
umami, rich, full-bodied, cask
rice, citrus, tropical fruit, vanilla
rich, smooth, clean, soft
floral, clean, sharp, aged
Show the other 14 lime matches
clean, off-dry, soft, light-bodied
aged, caramel, smooth, spice
rice, citrus, roasted grain, sweet
rice, citrus, vanilla, chocolate
rice, earthy, mushroom, rich
rice, nutty, dry, aged
rice, sweet, crisp, smooth
rice, smooth, crisp, aged
Korui, the continuous-still shochu
Neutral by design, so the citrus does all of the flavour and the shochu does the length and the proof. This is the base a lemon sour is built on.
Adds snap without adding much flavor of its own
barley, soft, crisp, clean
Sharper and greener than lemon. The citrus for anything built on brown sugar or tropical fruit.
Lime's green edge can read metallic against soft rice sweetness
Shiso, sesame, yuzu and other flavoured shochu
Acid frames a single strong flavour and keeps it from turning syrupy.
Citrus is in this bottle, not just on its nose, so this doubles it rather than introducing it.
There is real sugar in this bottle already, and acid is what keeps it from reading as syrup.
Lime frames tropical fruit so it does not go flat
rice, citrus, crisp
sesame, nutty, toast, off-dry
Show the other 4 lime matches
shiso, red shiso, herbal, floral
Kome shochu
Rice sweetness wants acid, and citrus is the most direct way to give it some.
rice, citrus, apple, pineapple
rice, steamed rice, citrus, pineapple
rice, citrus, dried fruit, floral
rice, citrus, silky, light-bodied
rice, vanilla, caramel, chocolate
Show the other 2 lime matches
rice, umami, crisp, sweet
rice, smooth, crisp, aged
Soba shochu
Buckwheat is nutty and low in acid, so citrus is doing structural work rather than adding a flavour.
An earthy, heavy spirit flattens out without acid. This is the ingredient doing structural work, not decoration.
buckwheat, smooth, aged
Show the other 4 lime matches
buckwheat, cask, aged
buckwheat, nutty, earthy, vanilla
Lime's green edge can read metallic against soft rice sweetness
Kasutori, chestnut and other bases
Adds snap without adding much flavor of its own
The bottle already smells of citrus, and this puts more of it in the glass.
Citrus is in this bottle, not just on its nose, so this doubles it rather than introducing it.