Shochu that goes with sweet vermouth (rosso)
Wine, liqueur and spirits
These are bottles to mix sweet vermouth (rosso) into. Some of them taste of it too, and where that is the reason a bottle is here, its line says so.
Carpano Antica or Cocchi. A quarter of the shochu's volume, stirred cold, makes a manhattan-style drink: on a 25 percent shochu that is about 23 before the ice gets to it, where a 40 percent rye starts nearer 35.
Best bottles for sweet vermouth (rosso)
The strongest matches in the catalogue, across every style. Everything below is the same ranking opened out by what the shochu is made from.
An aged bottle already has the caramel a manhattan wants; this brings the botanicals
rice, sweet, soft, smooth
rice, aged, cask, smooth
rice, ginjo-like, floral, aged
rich, full-bodied, aged, umami
Cask notes and vermouth's spice belong in the same stirred glass
aged, caramel, smooth, spice
rice, vanilla, smooth, cask
rice, vanilla, smooth, sweet
rice, rich, aged
rice, soft, rich, aged
rice, citrus, dried fruit, floral
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.
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.
An aged bottle already has the caramel a manhattan wants; this brings the botanicals
rice, aged, cask, smooth
rice, ginjo-like, floral, aged
rice, vanilla, smooth, cask
rice, vanilla, smooth, sweet
Show the other 60 sweet vermouth (rosso) matches
rice, soft, rich, aged
rice, citrus, dried fruit, floral
rice, banana, vanilla, chocolate
rice, umami, rich, aged
rice, vanilla, cask, aged
rice, smooth, aged, cask
rice, cask, aged
rice, cask, aged
rice, smooth, light-bodied, sweet
rice, smooth, aged
There is enough weight here to carry vermouth without being flattened
rice, floral, aged
rice, floral, smooth, soft
rice, soft, umami, rich
rice, soft, light-bodied, aged
Cask notes and vermouth's spice belong in the same stirred glass
rice, smooth, full-bodied, cask
rice, citrus, aged
rice, light-bodied, dry, aged
rice, steamed rice, citrus, pineapple
rice, smooth, crisp, aged
rice, rich, bright
rice, smooth, rich
rice, smooth, aged
rice, soft, smoky, creamy texture
rice, vanilla, caramel, chocolate
rice, umami, crisp, sweet
rice, ginjo-like
rice, vanilla, smooth, fruity
rice, citrus, silky, light-bodied
rice, floral, fruity, smooth
rice, melon, vanilla, toast
rice, chocolate, sweet
rice, citrus, apple, pineapple
rice, pear, jasmine, light-bodied
rice, smooth, sweet
A clean, light bottle disappears under it
rice, clean, aged
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.
An aged bottle already has the caramel a manhattan wants; this brings the botanicals
rich, full-bodied, aged, umami
Cask notes and vermouth's spice belong in the same stirred glass
aged, caramel, smooth, spice
rice, pear, caramel, rich
Show the other 99 sweet vermouth (rosso) matches
rice, whisky-like, cask, aged
rice, smooth, rich, sweet
rice, soft, smooth, rich
rice, smooth, rich, sweet
rice, soft, rich, sweet
rice, sweet, smooth, rich
rice, steamed rice, soft, caramel
rice, floral, honey, caramel
There is enough weight here to carry vermouth without being flattened
rice, smooth, savory, aged
rice, bright, aged
rice, citrus, cereal, aged
rice, soft, rich, sweet
rice, smooth, aged
rice, soft, aged
rice, smooth, rich, sweet
rice, smooth, soft, aged
rice, sweet, crisp, smooth
rice, roasted grain, aged
rice, citrus, roasted grain, sweet
rice, smooth, maple, umami
rice, sherry-like, aged
rice, citrus, vanilla, chocolate
rice, earthy, mushroom, rich
rice, smooth, sweet, aged
rice, smooth, aged
rice, smooth, crisp, aged
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, vanilla, funky, creamy texture
rice, citrus, tropical fruit, vanilla
rice, nutty, dry, aged
A clean, light bottle disappears under it
Carpano Antica or Cocchi. A quarter of the shochu's volume, stirred cold, makes a manhattan-style drink: on a 25 percent shochu that is about 23 before the ice gets to it, where a 40 percent rye starts nearer 35.
rice, cherry, vanilla, chocolate
rice, toast, sweet
rice, smooth, sweet
rice, light-bodied, sweet
rice, caramel, chocolate, crisp
rice, smooth, sweet
rice, smooth, sweet
rice, soft, smooth
rich, smooth, clean, soft
rice, clean, smooth, aged
rice, umami, clean, light-bodied
rice, clean, bright, aged
rice, soft, clean, aged
rice, clean, sharp, aged
rice, smooth, soft, clean
Mugi shochu
An aged bottle already has the caramel a manhattan wants; this brings the botanicals
barley, smooth, rich, whisky-like
barley, rich, full-bodied, cask
barley, rich, cask, aged
barley, caramel, rich, sweet
barley, chocolate, umami, smooth
Show the other 40 sweet vermouth (rosso) matches
barley, chocolate, earthy, smooth
barley, smoky, soft, cask
barley, umami, rich, sweet
barley, umami, rich, aged
barley, smooth, rich, aged
barley, vanilla, spice, cask
barley, toast, savory, rich
barley, smooth, crisp, cask
barley, toast, spice, rich
barley, chocolate, coffee, rich
barley, cask, aged
barley, soft, silky, smooth
barley, soft, cask, aged
barley, toast, cereal, rich
barley, vanilla, nutty, toast
barley, cask, aged
barley, dry, cask, aged
barley, sesame, caramel, chocolate
barley, smooth, crisp, aged
There is enough weight here to carry vermouth without being flattened
barley, smooth, long finish, aged
barley, rich, crisp
barley, umami, rich, sharp
barley, chocolate, rich, full-bodied
barley, citrus, melon, white peach
Cask notes and vermouth's spice belong in the same stirred glass
barley, toast, rich, light-bodied
barley, umami, aged
barley, banana, white peach, tea
barley, pear, banana, bread
barley, caramel, chocolate, smoky
barley, jasmine, honey, vanilla
barley, vanilla, cask
barley, smooth, crisp, aged
barley, rich
Kokuto shochu
An aged bottle already has the caramel a manhattan wants; this brings the botanicals
kokuto, rich, long finish, aged
kokuto, smooth, smoky, cask
kokuto, smooth, cask, aged
Cask notes and vermouth's spice belong in the same stirred glass
kokuto, chocolate, nutty, sweet
Show the other 17 sweet vermouth (rosso) matches
kokuto, vanilla, spice, cask
Brown sugar and sweet vermouth read as one long caramel note
kokuto, tropical fruit, vanilla, sweet
kokuto, molasses, roasted grain, dry
kokuto, molasses, vanilla, spice
Kasutori, chestnut and other bases
An aged bottle already has the caramel a manhattan wants; this brings the botanicals
smooth, rich, cask, aged
smooth, rich, aged
barley, smooth, honey, vanilla
There is enough weight here to carry vermouth without being flattened
Show the other 10 sweet vermouth (rosso) matches
floral, smooth, aged
chestnut, barley, fruity, rich
chestnut, floral, roasted grain, sweet
Imo shochu
An aged bottle already has the caramel a manhattan wants; this brings the botanicals
sweet potato, floral, fruity, umami
Cask notes and vermouth's spice belong in the same stirred glass
sweet potato, umami, rich, aged
sweet potato, umami, rich, aged
sweet potato, soft, smooth, rich
Show the other 35 sweet vermouth (rosso) matches
sweet potato, umami, rich, sweet
sweet potato, fruity, silky, smooth
sweet potato, sweet, sherry-like, cask
sweet potato, shiso, smooth, tea
sweet potato, soft, light-bodied, sweet
sweet potato, rich, soft, aged
sweet potato, rich, full-bodied, sweet
sweet potato, smooth, nutty, umami
sweet potato, vanilla, toast, spice
There is enough weight here to carry vermouth without being flattened
sweet potato, roasted sweet potato, umami, silky
sweet potato, sweet, rich, full-bodied
sweet potato, aged
sweet potato, aged
sweet potato, tropical fruit, bright, aged
sweet potato, smooth, aged
sweet potato, tea, rich
sweet potato, milky, soft, aged
sweet potato, rich, smooth, umami
sweet potato, aged
sweet potato, rich, full-bodied
sweet potato, whisky-like, cask
sweet potato, light-bodied, dry, aged
sweet potato, umami, rich
sweet potato, rich, full-bodied
sweet potato, smooth, rich
sweet potato, fruity, earthy, mineral
sweet potato, fruity, umami, rich
sweet potato, earthy, crisp, aged
sweet potato, rich, purple sweet potato
sweet potato, whisky-like, aged
sweet potato, aged
sweet potato, lychee, chocolate, bright
sweet potato, smoky, rich, long finish
sweet potato, lychee, white peach, tropical fruit
Soba shochu
An aged bottle already has the caramel a manhattan wants; this brings the botanicals
Shiso, sesame, yuzu and other flavoured shochu
There is enough weight here to carry vermouth without being flattened