Shochu that goes with orgeat (almond syrup)
Sweeteners
These are bottles to mix orgeat (almond syrup) into. Some of them taste of it too, and where that is the reason a bottle is here, its line says so.
Almond syrup with a touch of orange blossom. The tiki sweetener, and kokuto shochu is a tiki spirit waiting to happen.
Best bottles for orgeat (almond 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.
Almond syrup on a nutty bottle
barley, sesame, grassy, chocolate
The bottle is already floral, and this puts more of that in the glass.
rice, floral, aged
barley, melon, banana, floral
Orgeat and cane spirit is a mai tai
kokuto, molasses, vanilla, spice
kokuto, vanilla, spice, cask
kokuto, rum-like, chocolate
Almond and sesame are neighbors
The bottle carries the grain and the mixer carries it roasted, so it is one ingredient reaching the glass two ways.
buckwheat, 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.
Mugi shochu
Almond syrup on a nutty bottle
The bottle is already floral, and this puts more of that in the glass.
Almond and sesame are neighbors
Orgeat and pineapple is tiki
barley, vanilla, chocolate, nutty
barley, vanilla, nutty, toast
Show the other 74 orgeat (almond syrup) matches
The bottle carries the grain and the mixer carries it roasted, so it is one ingredient reaching the glass two ways.
barley, chocolate, umami, smooth
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, soft, clean
barley, smooth, light-bodied, clean
barley, smoky, soft, cask
barley, smooth
barley, rich, clean
barley, umami, rich, sweet
barley, umami, rich, aged
barley, smooth, rich, aged
barley, soft, sweet
barley, smooth, rich, aged
barley, smooth, rich, whisky-like
barley, umami, rich, sharp
barley, chocolate, rich, full-bodied
barley, rich, full-bodied, cask
barley, light-bodied
barley, citrus, melon, white peach
barley, vanilla, spice, cask
barley, rice, umami
barley, rice, umami
barley, fruity, soft
barley, earthy, clean, bright
barley, honey, chocolate, spice
barley, roasted grain
barley, citrus, melon, banana
barley, smooth, mint, caramel
barley, toast, rich, light-bodied
barley, toast, spice, rich
barley, umami, aged
barley, banana, white peach, tea
barley, chocolate, coffee, rich
barley, umami, light-bodied
barley, smooth, dry
barley, white peach, cherry, soft
barley, soft, chocolate, toast
barley, banana, toast
barley, pear, banana, bread
barley, caramel, chocolate, smoky
barley, cask, aged
barley, jasmine, honey, vanilla
barley, vanilla, cask
barley, toast, light-bodied, sweet
barley, soft, silky, smooth
barley, rich, cask, aged
barley, toast, cereal, rich
barley, rich
barley, fruity, light-bodied
barley, sweet, clean
barley, silky, smooth
barley, clean, sharp
barley, banana, berry, bread
barley, dry, cask, aged
Soba shochu
Buckwheat's sweetness is dark rather than bright, so a dark syrup extends it and a pale one sits on top.
Almond syrup on a nutty bottle
The bottle carries the grain and the mixer carries it roasted, so it is one ingredient reaching the glass two ways.
buckwheat, smooth
buckwheat, soft
buckwheat, barley, rice
Show the other 4 orgeat (almond syrup) matches
buckwheat, sweet
buckwheat, cask, aged
buckwheat, umami
buckwheat, nutty, earthy, vanilla
Kome shochu
The bottle is already floral, and this puts more of that in the glass.
rice, floral, aged
rice, floral, ginjo-like, clean
rice, ginjo-like, floral, aged
rice, floral, smooth, soft
rice, floral, fruity, smooth
Show the other 15 orgeat (almond syrup) matches
The bottle carries the grain and the mixer carries it roasted, so it is one ingredient reaching the glass two ways.
rice, soft, umami, rich
rice, vanilla, smooth, fruity
rice, citrus, silky, light-bodied
rice, melon, vanilla, toast
rice, pear, jasmine, light-bodied
rice, smooth, light-bodied, sweet
rice, light-bodied, clean
Too rich for a crisp bottle
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.
Orgeat and cane spirit is a mai tai
kokuto, molasses, vanilla, spice
kokuto, vanilla, spice, cask
kokuto, rum-like, chocolate
Show the other 15 orgeat (almond syrup) matches
kokuto, cask, aged
kokuto, rich, long finish, aged
kokuto, smooth, smoky, cask
kokuto, smooth, cask, aged
dried fruit, chocolate, honey, kokuto
Almond syrup on a nutty bottle
Imo shochu
The bottle is already floral, and this puts more of that in the glass.
sweet potato, floral, full-bodied
sweet potato, lychee, floral, fruity
Orgeat and pineapple is tiki
Awamori
The bottle is already floral, and this puts more of that in the glass.
rice, floral, honey, caramel
The bottle carries the grain and the mixer carries it roasted, so it is one ingredient reaching the glass two ways.
Almond syrup on a nutty bottle
Kasutori, chestnut and other bases
The bottle is already floral, and this puts more of that in the glass.
floral, fruity, sweet, plum
chestnut, floral, roasted grain, sweet
Shiso, sesame, yuzu and other flavoured shochu
Almond syrup on a nutty bottle
The bottle is already floral, and this puts more of that in the glass.