Shochu that goes with mezcal
Wine, liqueur and spirits
These are bottles to mix mezcal into. Some of them taste of it too, and where that is the reason a bottle is here, its line says so.
A quarter ounce as a rinse or a split base. Smoke for the earthy bottles.
Best bottles for mezcal
The strongest matches in the catalogue, across every style. Everything below is the same ranking opened out by what the shochu is made from.
Smoke and earth: a split-base drink with imo shochu is a real bar idea
sweet potato, roasted sweet potato, umami, silky
rice, earthy, mushroom, rich
The bottle already smells of tropical fruit, and this puts more of it in the glass.
A quarter ounce as a rinse or a split base. Smoke for the earthy bottles.
Roasted agave and roasted sweet potato are one flavor
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.
umami, rich, full-bodied, cask
aged, caramel, smooth, spice
rice, clean, smooth, aged
rice, aged
barley, earthy, mineral, pepper
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
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.
Smoke and earth: a split-base drink with imo shochu is a real bar idea
rice, earthy, mushroom, rich
rich, full-bodied, aged, umami
umami, rich, full-bodied, cask
aged, caramel, smooth, spice
rice, clean, smooth, aged
Show the other 93 mezcal matches
rice, pear, caramel, rich
rice, smooth, savory, aged
rice, smooth, cereal, sweet
rice, cherry, vanilla, chocolate
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, soft, rich, sweet
rice, smooth, sweet
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, sherry-like, aged
rice, aged
rice, soft, smooth
rice, steamed rice, soft, caramel
rice, sweet, soft, smooth
rice, smooth, sweet, aged
rice, smooth, crisp, aged
rice, vanilla, funky, creamy texture
rice, smooth, soft, clean
rice, nutty, dry, aged
This bottle's aroma is the reason to own it, and a roasted or smoky mixer covers exactly that.
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.
A quarter ounce as a rinse or a split base. Smoke for the earthy bottles.
rice, umami, crisp, sweet
rice, rich, aged
rice, soft, rich, aged
Show the other 31 mezcal matches
rice, rich, clean, bright
rice, smooth, crisp, aged
rice, rich, bright
rice, smooth, rich
Imo shochu
Smoke and earth: a split-base drink with imo shochu is a real bar idea
Roasted agave and roasted sweet potato are one flavor
This bottle's aroma is the reason to own it, and a roasted or smoky mixer covers exactly that.
sweet potato, tropical fruit, bright, aged
sweet potato, tropical fruit, spice, light-bodied
sweet potato, lychee, white peach, tropical fruit
Show the other 1 mezcal matches
sweet potato, tropical fruit, pepper, sweet
Mugi shochu
The bottle already smells of tropical fruit, and this puts more of it in the glass.
Smoke and earth: a split-base drink with imo shochu is a real bar idea
barley, chocolate, earthy, smooth