Shochu that goes with maple syrup
Sweeteners
These are bottles to mix maple syrup into. Some of them taste of it too, and where that is the reason a bottle is here, its line says so.
Dark, in small amounts, for the cask and sweet-potato bottles.
Best bottles for maple syrup
The strongest matches in the catalogue, across every style. Everything below is the same ranking opened out by what the shochu is made from.
Maple and oak are a bourbon idea
buckwheat, cask, aged
Maple and aged, caramel notes
barley, sesame, caramel, chocolate
rice, pear, caramel, rich
barley, caramel, chocolate, smoky
rice, cherry, vanilla, caramel
rice, floral, honey, caramel
kokuto, cask, aged
kokuto, smooth, smoky, cask
kokuto, smooth, cask, aged
rice, aged, cask, smooth
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.
Awamori
Maple and oak are a bourbon idea
Maple and aged, caramel notes
rice, pear, caramel, rich
Show the other 52 maple syrup matches
rice, sweet, soft, smooth
The bottle already smells of caramel, and this puts more of it in the glass.
floral, clean, sharp, aged
rich, full-bodied, aged, umami
umami, rich, full-bodied, cask
rice, clean, smooth, aged
rice, smooth, savory, aged
rice, umami, clean, light-bodied
rice, bright, aged
rice, clean, 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, soft, clean, aged
rice, roasted grain, aged
rice, citrus, roasted grain, sweet
rice, sherry-like, aged
rice, aged
rice, citrus, vanilla, chocolate
rice, smooth, sweet, aged
rice, smooth, sweet, oily
rice, smooth, sweet, aged
rice, vanilla, funky, creamy texture
rice, citrus, tropical fruit, vanilla
rice, smooth, soft, clean
Soba shochu
Buckwheat's sweetness is dark rather than bright, so a dark syrup extends it and a pale one sits on top.
Maple and oak are a bourbon idea
Maple and aged, caramel notes
buckwheat, savory, nutty, earthy
buckwheat, nutty, earthy, vanilla
Show the other 4 maple syrup matches
buckwheat, barley, rice
Imo shochu
sweet potato, tropical fruit, bright, aged
sweet potato, smooth, aged
sweet potato, milky, soft, aged
Show the other 95 maple syrup matches
sweet potato, umami, soft, full-bodied
sweet potato, spice, clean, sharp
Maple and oak are a bourbon idea
sweet potato, light-bodied, dry, aged
sweet potato, umami, rich, aged
sweet potato, fruity, earthy, mineral
sweet potato, umami, soft, clean
sweet potato, tropical fruit, floral, smooth
sweet potato, tropical fruit, floral, caramel
sweet potato, citrus, floral, caramel
sweet potato, whisky-like, aged
sweet potato, umami, rich, aged
sweet potato, clean, aged
sweet potato, light-bodied, clean, dry
sweet potato, lychee, chocolate, bright
sweet potato, soft, smooth, rich
sweet potato, tropical fruit, floral, caramel
sweet potato, lychee, white peach, tropical fruit
sweet potato, smooth, rich, sweet
sweet potato, sweet, sherry-like, cask
sweet potato, floral, fruity, umami
sweet potato, vanilla, toast, spice
lychee, grape, jasmine, rich
muscat, citrus, floral, sweet potato
sweet potato, roasted sweet potato, umami, silky
sweet potato, sweet, rich, full-bodied
citrus, pear, sweet potato, clean
sweet potato, pineapple, tropical fruit, fruity
sweet potato, banana, vanilla, clean
sweet potato, floral, full-bodied
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, 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, lychee, floral, fruity
sweet potato, bright
sweet potato, bright
sweet potato, rich, purple sweet potato
sweet potato, bright
sweet potato, bright
sweet potato, smooth
sweet potato, smoky, rich, long finish
sweet potato, umami, rich, sweet
sweet potato, citrus, floral, sweet
sweet potato, fruity, silky, smooth
sweet potato, shiso, smooth, tea
sweet potato, roasted sweet potato, rich, clean
sweet potato, smooth, clean, aged
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, chocolate, sherry-like, cask
sweet potato, tropical fruit, spice, light-bodied
sweet potato, roasted sweet potato, aged
sweet potato, tropical fruit, pepper, sweet
Too heavy for a crisp bottle
sweet potato, earthy, crisp, aged
Mugi shochu
Maple and aged, caramel notes
barley, caramel, chocolate, smoky
Maple and oak are a bourbon idea
barley, smooth, rich, aged
barley, smooth, rich, whisky-like
Show the other 33 maple syrup matches
barley, vanilla, spice, cask
barley, caramel, rich, sweet
barley, cask, aged
barley, soft, silky, smooth
barley, soft, cask, aged
barley, rich, cask, aged
barley, vanilla, nutty, toast
barley, cask, aged
barley, dry, cask, aged
The bottle already smells of caramel, and this puts more of it in the glass.
barley, chocolate, umami, smooth
barley, chocolate, earthy, smooth
barley, soft, light-bodied, clean
barley, smooth, long finish, aged
barley, smooth, light-bodied, clean
barley, umami, rich, sweet
barley, umami, rich, aged
barley, smooth, rich, aged
barley, citrus, melon, banana
barley, toast, savory, rich
barley, toast, spice, rich
barley, chocolate, coffee, rich
barley, pear, banana, bread
barley, jasmine, honey, vanilla
barley, toast, cereal, rich
Too heavy for a crisp bottle
Kome shochu
Maple and oak are a bourbon idea
rice, soft, umami, rich
rice, vanilla, smooth, cask
rice, vanilla, smooth, sweet
rice, banana, vanilla, chocolate
rice, vanilla, cask, aged
Show the other 25 maple syrup matches
rice, smooth, aged, cask
rice, cask, aged
rice, smooth, light-bodied, sweet
Maple and aged, caramel notes
rice, rich, aged
rice, soft, rich, aged
rice, citrus, dried fruit, floral
rice, floral, smooth, soft
rice, soft, light-bodied, aged
rice, light-bodied, cask
rice, light-bodied, dry, aged
rice, vanilla, caramel, chocolate
rice, soft, smoky, creamy texture
Kokuto shochu
It reads sweet without carrying any sugar, so added sweetness is easy to overdo. Put it in only to balance a sharp acid.
Maple and oak are a bourbon idea
kokuto, smooth, smoky, cask
kokuto, smooth, cask, aged
kokuto, vanilla, spice, cask
Maple and aged, caramel notes
Show the other 13 maple syrup matches
kokuto, rich, long finish, aged
kokuto, molasses, roasted grain, dry
kokuto, molasses, vanilla, spice
kokuto, rum-like, chocolate
Kasutori, chestnut and other bases
barley, smooth, honey, vanilla
smooth, rich, full-bodied, sweet
Maple and aged, caramel notes