Shochu that goes with madeira (dry, sercial or verdelho)
Wine, liqueur and spirits
These are bottles to mix madeira (dry, sercial or verdelho) into. Some of them taste of it too, and where that is the reason a bottle is here, its line says so.
Blandy's or Barbeito, ten year. It is the one fortified wine that brings real acid, so it can do the lemon's job on a bottle where fresh citrus reads harsh.
Best bottles for madeira (dry, sercial or verdelho)
The strongest matches in the catalogue, across every style. Everything below is the same ranking opened out by what the shochu is made from.
Barrel against barrel, except this one brings back the acid the cask took away
rice, smooth, light-bodied, sweet
Roast and oxidation are the same conversation from two directions
The estufagem heating leaves a baked note that meets toast instead of arguing with it
barley, vanilla, spice, cask
barley, caramel, rich, sweet
rice, melon, vanilla, toast
rice, steamed rice, soft, caramel
barley, soft, silky, smooth
rice, soft, umami, rich
rice, vanilla, caramel, chocolate
The bottle is already nutty, and this puts more of that in the glass.
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.
Mugi shochu
Barrel against barrel, except this one brings back the acid the cask took away
Roast and oxidation are the same conversation from two directions
barley, vanilla, spice, cask
barley, caramel, rich, sweet
barley, soft, silky, smooth
The bottle is already nutty, and this puts more of that in the glass.
Show the other 81 madeira (dry, sercial or verdelho) matches
barley, smoky, soft, cask
barley, smooth, rich, aged
barley, smooth, rich, whisky-like
barley, rich, full-bodied, cask
barley, citrus, melon, banana
barley, cask
The estufagem heating leaves a baked note that meets toast instead of arguing with it
barley, smooth, crisp, cask
barley, toast, spice, rich
barley, chocolate, coffee, rich
barley, soft, chocolate, toast
barley, banana, toast
barley, cask, aged
barley, vanilla, cask
barley, toast, light-bodied, sweet
barley, rich, cask, aged
barley, toast, cereal, rich
barley, dry, cask, aged
The bottle carries the grain and the mixer carries it roasted, so it is one ingredient reaching the glass two ways.
barley, sesame, caramel, chocolate
barley, chocolate, umami, smooth
barley, crisp, clean, aged
barley, smooth, crisp, aged
barley, crisp, clean
barley, chocolate, earthy, smooth
barley, tropical fruit, light-bodied
barley, soft, light-bodied, clean
barley, smooth, rich, light-bodied
barley, pear, soft, spice
barley, smooth, long finish, aged
barley, rich, crisp
barley, soft, clean
barley, smooth, light-bodied, clean
barley, smooth
barley, rich, clean
barley, umami, rich, sweet
barley, umami, rich, aged
barley, soft, sweet
barley, smooth, rich, aged
barley, umami, rich, sharp
barley, chocolate, rich, full-bodied
barley, light-bodied
barley, apple, pineapple, creamy texture
barley, umami
barley, rice, umami
barley, rice, umami
barley, fruity, soft
barley, earthy, clean, bright
barley, honey, chocolate, spice
barley, roasted grain
barley, smooth, mint, caramel
barley, rich, aged
barley, umami, aged
barley, melon, banana, floral
barley, umami, light-bodied
barley, smooth, dry
barley, aged
barley, pear, banana, bread
barley, caramel, chocolate, smoky
barley, jasmine, honey, vanilla
barley, crisp, light-bodied, fruity
barley, rich
barley, fruity, light-bodied
barley, sweet, clean
barley, silky, smooth
barley, clean, sharp
barley, banana, berry, bread
barley, toast, savory, rich
barley, soft, cask, aged
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.
Barrel against barrel, except this one brings back the acid the cask took away
The estufagem heating leaves a baked note that meets toast instead of arguing with it
rice, melon, vanilla, toast
rice, soft, umami, rich
rice, vanilla, caramel, chocolate
The bottle carries the grain and the mixer carries it roasted, so it is one ingredient reaching the glass two ways.
Show the other 64 madeira (dry, sercial or verdelho) matches
rice, smooth, aged
rice, floral, aged
rice, soft, umami, rich
rice, vanilla, smooth, fruity
rice, citrus, silky, light-bodied
rice, steamed rice, citrus, pineapple
rice, pear, jasmine, light-bodied
rice, light-bodied, clean
rice, clean
rice, aged, cask, smooth
rice, vanilla, smooth, cask
rice, vanilla, smooth, sweet
rice, light-bodied, cask
rice, smooth, full-bodied, cask
rice, banana, vanilla, chocolate
rice, vanilla, cask, aged
rice, smooth, aged, cask
rice, cask, aged
rice, cask, aged
Blandy's or Barbeito, ten year. It is the one fortified wine that brings real acid, so it can do the lemon's job on a bottle where fresh citrus reads harsh.
rice, ginjo-like, floral, aged
rice, rich, aged
rice, ginjo-like
rice, soft, rich, aged
rice, floral, smooth, soft
rice, rich, clean, bright
rice, soft, light-bodied, aged
rice, fruity
rice, citrus, aged
rice, light-bodied, dry, aged
rice, umami, rich
rice, clean, aged
rice, clean, aged
rice, floral, fruity, smooth
rice, umami, rich, aged
rice, sweet, clean, smooth
rice, chocolate, sweet
rice, citrus, apple, pineapple
rice, smooth, crisp, aged
rice, rich, bright
rice, smooth, rich
rice, smooth, aged
rice, smooth, sweet
rice, soft, smoky, creamy texture
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.
Barrel against barrel, except this one brings back the acid the cask took away
The bottle is already nutty, and this puts more of that in the glass.
umami, rich, full-bodied, cask
rice, cask, aged
rice, whisky-like, cask, aged
The estufagem heating leaves a baked note that meets toast instead of arguing with it
Show the other 102 madeira (dry, sercial or verdelho) matches
Oxidative on oxidative, except this one arrives with acid
rice, sweet, soft, smooth
Blandy's or Barbeito, ten year. It is the one fortified wine that brings real acid, so it can do the lemon's job on a bottle where fresh citrus reads harsh.
rich, smooth, clean, soft
floral, clean, sharp, aged
rich, full-bodied, aged, umami
clean, off-dry, soft, light-bodied
aged, caramel, smooth, spice
rice, clean, smooth, aged
rice, pear, caramel, rich
rice, smooth, savory, aged
rice, smooth, cereal, sweet
rice, cherry, vanilla, chocolate
rice, aged
rice, umami, clean, light-bodied
rice, bright, aged
rice, clean, bright, aged
rice, citrus, cereal, aged
rice, smooth, rich, sweet
rice, soft, rich, sweet
rice, soft, smooth, rich
rice, smooth, rich, sweet
rice, smooth, aged
rice, soft, rich, sweet
rice, clean, sweet
rice, smooth, sweet
rice, clean, smooth
rice, soft, aged
rice, smooth, rich, sweet
rice, light-bodied, sweet
rice, caramel, chocolate, crisp
rice, sweet, smooth, rich
rice, smooth, soft, aged
rice, soft, clean, aged
rice, sweet, crisp, smooth
rice, roasted grain, aged
rice, smooth, sweet
rice, smooth, sweet
rice, citrus, roasted grain, sweet
rice, smooth, maple, umami
rice, aged
rice, soft, smooth
rice, citrus, vanilla, chocolate
rice, earthy, mushroom, rich
rice, smooth, sweet, aged
rice, smooth, aged
rice, smooth, crisp, aged
rice, citrus
rice, citrus, umami, soft
rice, smooth, sweet, oily
rice, chocolate, sweet, aged
rice, smooth, sweet, aged
rice, sweet, rich, full-bodied
rice, cherry, vanilla, caramel
rice, floral, honey, caramel
rice, clean, sharp, aged
rice, vanilla, funky, creamy texture
rice, citrus, tropical fruit, vanilla
Soba shochu
The bottle is already nutty, and this puts more of that in the glass.
Barrel against barrel, except this one brings back the acid the cask took away
buckwheat, nutty, earthy, vanilla
The bottle carries the grain and the mixer carries it roasted, so it is one ingredient reaching the glass two ways.
buckwheat, smooth
Show the other 4 madeira (dry, sercial or verdelho) matches
buckwheat, barley, rice
buckwheat, sweet
Imo shochu
Barrel against barrel, except this one brings back the acid the cask took away
sweet potato, floral, fruity, umami
sweet potato, vanilla, toast, spice
sweet potato, chocolate, sherry-like, cask
The bottle is already nutty, and this puts more of that in the glass.
Show the other 3 madeira (dry, sercial or verdelho) matches
sweet potato, smooth, rich, sweet
The estufagem heating leaves a baked note that meets toast instead of arguing with it
sweet potato, whisky-like, cask
Kokuto shochu
Barrel against barrel, except this one brings back the acid the cask took away
dried fruit, chocolate, honey, kokuto
kokuto, vanilla, spice, cask
kokuto, cask, aged
kokuto, smooth, smoky, cask
Kasutori, chestnut and other bases
Barrel against barrel, except this one brings back the acid the cask took away
barley, smooth, honey, vanilla
smooth, rich, full-bodied, sweet
Shiso, sesame, yuzu and other flavoured shochu
The estufagem heating leaves a baked note that meets toast instead of arguing with it