MUJEN Original

Food-grade citric and malic powder from the canning aisle, 10 grams whisked into 100 grams of cold water; two parts citric to one malic is close to lime. Some bartenders find a drink with no juice in it thin, so it is worth trying both ways.

• Rice shochu stirred with vermouth is a martini at half the proof.

St. Elizabeth, in 375ml. A bar spoon is the whole dose: concentrated enough to flavour a low-proof drink without diluting it or raising it.

• Rice shochu stirred with vermouth is a martini at half the proof.

A bar spoon, not an ounce. It is very sweet, and its job here is the almond smell rather than the sugar.

• Rice shochu stirred with vermouth is a martini at half the proof.

Lustau or González Byass. Fino is salt and living flor; this is what is left after the flor dies, and at 18 percent an ounce lengthens the glass rather than strengthening it.

• Rice shochu stirred with vermouth is a martini at half the proof.

Cold-pressed juice or thin slices. Green apple is already in the aroma of a lot of rice shochu, so this amplifies what is there rather than adding something new.

• Rice shochu distilled with ginjo yeast carries apple and melon esters already, so orchard fruit is amplification.

Fresh in season, dried the rest of the year. Apricot and umeshu share a family, which is why they get along.

• Rice shochu distilled with ginjo yeast carries apple and melon esters already, so orchard fruit is amplification.

Rothman and Winter, or a Japanese anzu liqueur. Closer to umeshu than to a candy liqueur if you buy a good one.

• Rice shochu stirred with vermouth is a martini at half the proof.

Linie, around thirty-five dollars, rested in oloroso casks at sea so it brings a little wood as well. A quarter ounce as a split base.

• Rice shochu stirred with vermouth is a martini at half the proof.

D.O.M. Bénédictine, on most back bars. Rounder and much sweeter than the alpine liqueurs, so it suits bottles that already lean sweet rather than clean.

• Rice shochu stirred with vermouth is a martini at half the proof.

Dolin blanc or Lillet. Sweeter and more floral than dry; for the aromatic bottles.

• Rice shochu stirred with vermouth is a martini at half the proof.

The concentrate, diluted with soda. Yogurt-sweet and sour. The Calpis sour is a national drink in Japan.

• Calpis and rice shochu is a sweet-and-sour sour

Sweeter and muskier than honeydew. Prosciutto logic: it likes salt nearby.

• Melon and cucumber sit in the same aroma family as a ginjo-scented rice spirit.

Juiced, or a stalk as the stirrer. Savory, salty and cold.

• Melon and cucumber sit in the same aroma family as a ginjo-scented rice spirit.

Cold-brewed chamomile as a lengthener, or steeped in the spirit.

• The cleanest of the shochu bases, so a flower actually reads instead of being swallowed.

Fresh in early summer; morello or amarena in syrup otherwise. Dark cherry for aged bottles, bright cherry for sparkling.

• Rice shochu distilled with ginjo yeast carries apple and melon esters already, so orchard fruit is amplification.

Mr Black or a good Japanese one. Awamori and shochu makers bottle their own, so this is not a foreign idea imposed on the spirit.

• Rice shochu stirred with vermouth is a martini at half the proof.

Unsweetened juice. Sharp and a little tannic, useful for cutting sweetness.

• Tart cranberry gives soft rice sweetness structure

Tempus Fugit or Giffard. Clear, so the drink stays pale, and at about the shochu's own strength, so an ounce lengthens rather than fortifies.

• Rice shochu stirred with vermouth is a martini at half the proof.

Warm kombu-and-bonito stock, lightly seasoned, mixed with the spirit. It sounds strange and tastes like an oden counter.

• Warm junmai and warm dashi is a savory glass

One white, dry-shaken. Texture without flavor.

• Egg white on a rice spirit is a silky, low proof pisco sour

Cordial or the liqueur. Muscat, lychee and honey in one flower.

• The cleanest of the shochu bases, so a flower actually reads instead of being swallowed.

John D. Taylor's Velvet Falernum, about twenty dollars. At 11 percent it behaves like a syrup, so it sweetens and thickens without raising the drink.

• Rice shochu stirred with vermouth is a martini at half the proof.

Fresh figs muddled, or fig jam. For the aged and the brown-sugar bottles only.

• Rice shochu distilled with ginjo yeast carries apple and melon esters already, so orchard fruit is amplification.

Bols Genever, around thirty-five dollars. The split base for a grain shochu, in a way plain gin is not.

• Rice shochu stirred with vermouth is a martini at half the proof.

Fresh juice, a syrup, or a good ginger beer. The spice that makes a low-proof drink feel like it has a backbone.

• Ginger and rice: think of the pickled ginger next to sushi

The gentle ginger. For bottles that a ginger beer would bully.

• Gentler than ginger beer; right for a soft rice bottle

A spicy one, not a sweet one. The mule format works for every dark shochu, and it is the most forgiving way to serve one.

• A shochu mule, and it is on menus

Domaine de Canton or similar. The mule flavour without the sugar load of a ginger beer, and it works hot as well as cold.

• Rice shochu stirred with vermouth is a martini at half the proof.

Two slices from any Asian grocery, seeds out. The bitterness is water soluble, so at 25 percent it steeps in minutes and stops there, where a 40 percent spirit pulls it medicinal within the hour.

• Melon and cucumber sit in the same aroma family as a ginjo-scented rice spirit.

Mikawa Mirin from Sumiya Bunjiro Shoten, made from glutinous rice, koji and shochu since 1911 with no added sugar. Not the sweetened seasoning sold as mirin-fu chomiryo, which is a different product.

• Rice shochu stirred with vermouth is a martini at half the proof.

Ripe honeydew, juiced or in cubes. If a bottle says melon on the label, this is the proof.

• Melon and cucumber sit in the same aroma family as a ginjo-scented rice spirit.

A syrup or a few dried blossoms steeped. See jasmine tea for the long drink.

• The cleanest of the shochu bases, so a flower actually reads instead of being swallowed.

Ayagiku's, on a shochu base, or Kikusui's. Raw quince is inedible and gives up its scent only in alcohol, so the liqueur is the only practical form; it opens up in hot water.

• Rice shochu stirred with vermouth is a martini at half the proof.

Young sansho leaves, clapped between the palms and floated. Hard to find outside Japanese markets in spring, worth the hunt.

• The classic spring garnish for rice dishes; it belongs on rice wine too

A small piece steeped in the bottle overnight. Savory depth without salt.

• Steeping kombu in alcohol is a real preparation in a Japanese kitchen

A plain or ginger kombucha. Acid, bubbles and a little funk, none of which survive a still.

• Acid and bubbles on rice sweetness

Zuiyo's Kuririn, from Japanese chestnuts at 11 percent, or Dover's wa-shu kuri, which is on a rum base. A dessert direction, and not the same thing as kuri shochu, which is a base spirit.

• Rice shochu stirred with vermouth is a martini at half the proof.

Sakamoto's, fermented outdoors in earthenware jars in Fukuyama and aged at least a year; Toiro and Japanese Taste ship it in the US. A teaspoon in a mizuwari is the whole intervention, and a second one is usually a mistake.

• Black vinegar is rice fermented with koji and then soured, so it is the same mould arriving a second time

The shortcut to a sour when there is no fresh lemon. Less sweet is better.

• Rice shochu and lemon soda

Kwai Feh or Dita. Perfumed and quite sweet, so treat it as the aroma and let the shochu stay the drink.

• Rice shochu stirred with vermouth is a martini at half the proof.

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 shochu stirred with vermouth is a martini at half the proof.

Hana Makgeolli is brewed in Greenpoint, Brooklyn; Makku sells a canned one. Strength varies widely across the category, from around 6 percent in a can to the mid teens for an unfiltered takju, so read the label before deciding how much to pour.

• Rice shochu stirred with vermouth is a martini at half the proof.

Luxardo. Dry rather than sweet despite the name, and a bar spoon changes a stirred drink completely.

• Rice shochu stirred with vermouth is a martini at half the proof.

A quarter ounce as a rinse or a split base. Smoke for the earthy bottles.

• Rice shochu stirred with vermouth is a martini at half the proof.

White miso whisked into a syrup, a small spoon per drink. Salty, sweet and savory at once.

• Miso is koji too; the bottle and the paste share a mold

Green muscat grapes, halved or juiced. Shine Muscat if you can find it.

• Rice shochu distilled with ginjo yeast carries apple and melon esters already, so orchard fruit is amplification.

A bar spoon, no more. Salt, and the savory note that comes with it.

• Dirty, on a rice base: the sweetness and the brine argue in a good way

Cointreau or a dry curaçao. The sweet-and-citrus half of any sour.

• Rice shochu stirred with vermouth is a martini at half the proof.

Dried osmanthus flowers steeped, or the syrup. Apricot and honey, and the smell of October in Japan.

• The cleanest of the shochu bases, so a flower actually reads instead of being swallowed.

A good one (Giffard, Merlet). A shortcut to the bellini when peaches are out of season.

• Rice shochu stirred with vermouth is a martini at half the proof.

Ripe pear, muddled or as nectar. Delicate, so it belongs with delicate bottles.

• Rice shochu distilled with ginjo yeast carries apple and melon esters already, so orchard fruit is amplification.

Lustau San Emilio. Effectively a raisin syrup that happens to be wine, so a bar spoon sweetens and adds body where sugar syrup would only add sugar.

• Rice shochu stirred with vermouth is a martini at half the proof.

A spoon of the brine, and a slice as garnish. Sweet, sour and hot at once.

• Gari sits next to sushi rice; it sits next to a rice spirit for the same reason

Sour enough to be useful. Muddle a handful, or use a good puree.

• Its acidity is what soft rice bottles need

A drop of rose water, or a rose syrup. A drop; it takes over.

• The cleanest of the shochu bases, so a flower actually reads instead of being swallowed.

A pinch of ground sansho over the top, or a few peppercorns steeped. Numbing, citrusy, green.

• Sansho and rice is a Kyoto kitchen

Buy the drinking grade from a shop with a liquor licence, not the salted cooking bottle, which will wreck the drink. A bar spoon is enough.

• Rice shochu stirred with vermouth is a martini at half the proof.

Green shiso leaves, slapped or muddled gently. Red shiso as a syrup. Japan already makes shiso shochu, which tells you it works.

• Shiso and rice is an onigiri flavour, and rice shochu is rice

Cold, and fizzy enough to matter. One part shochu to three or four parts soda; if it tastes thin, go one to two next time.

• Shochu and soda over ice is the most ordinary drink in Japan

A drop. Think of it as salt with depth, for the savory glass only.

• Soy and rice

Dry cava or crémant. Acid and bubbles in one pour, which is exactly what a distilled spirit has none of.

• Shochu and brut sparkling is a French 75 at lower proof; the acid is the point

Dewazakura's from Yamagata plums, or Machida Shuzo's on Amami kokuto shochu. It does umeshu's job and leaves the glass drier, which matters when the bottle is already sweet.

• Rice shochu stirred with vermouth is a martini at half the proof.

Carpano Antica or Cocchi. A quarter of the shochu's volume, stirred cold, is a manhattan at well under half the usual proof.

• Rice shochu stirred with vermouth is a martini at half the proof.

A dry tonic (Fever-Tree, Q). One part spirit, three parts tonic, a citrus wedge.

• Shochu tonic: bitter, sweet, low proof, and better than it sounds

One salted plum, crushed with a spoon in the glass. Salty, sour, savory.

• Ume and rice is a rice ball

Eden Foods sells it as Ume Plum Vinegar in most US supermarkets, and it is one of the cheapest things on this list. A bar spoon, and unlike a crushed umeboshi it can go into a shaken drink.

• Salt and lactic acid land on the sweetness koji leaves behind

A rice-grain amount, dissolved. For the savory, cucumber glass, not the fruit one.

• Wasabi and rice is sushi

The bellini fruit. Nectar from a Japanese market, or a ripe peach muddled through a strainer.

• Rice shochu distilled with ginjo yeast carries apple and melon esters already, so orchard fruit is amplification.

Bolder than white peach, closer to apricot. For bottles with more weight.

• Rice shochu distilled with ginjo yeast carries apple and melon esters already, so orchard fruit is amplification.

The Korean-style yuzu preserve sold in jars. A spoon in hot water with shochu, or shaken cold.

• Hot water, rice shochu, a spoon of yuzu tea

Sweet yuzu liqueur, usually on a sake or shochu base. A shortcut to yuzu when the fruit is out of season.

• Rice shochu stirred with vermouth is a martini at half the proof.

Braulio, made in Bormio from gentian, juniper, peppermint and yarrow, around forty-five dollars. A summer drink on shochu and a winter one on whisky, which is one bottle behaving two ways.

• A light rice spirit can be bullied by amaro. Keep the bitter under a quarter ounce or pick a heavier bottle.

Montenegro, Nonino, Averna. Equal parts with a dark shochu over ice is a whole drink.

• A light rice spirit can be bullied by amaro. Keep the bitter under a quarter ounce or pick a heavier bottle.

Angostura or a Japanese aromatic. Two dashes.

• A light rice spirit can be bullied by amaro. Keep the bitter under a quarter ounce or pick a heavier bottle.

Cynar, 16.5 percent, which is weaker than the shochu itself, so equal parts lands near 20 percent and the drink stays long. Soda or a grapefruit soda over the top is the producer's own serve.

• A light rice spirit can be bullied by amaro. Keep the bitter under a quarter ounce or pick a heavier bottle.

Scrappy's leads with the seed, Fee Brothers has garlic and ginger behind it, The Bitter Truth reads more astringent than bitter. Two dashes.

• A light rice spirit can be bullied by amaro. Keep the bitter under a quarter ounce or pick a heavier bottle.

A quarter ounce. Menthol and bitterness, for the darkest bottles.

• A light rice spirit can be bullied by amaro. Keep the bitter under a quarter ounce or pick a heavier bottle.

Suze or Salers. Bitter root, bright yellow. A little in a highball changes everything.

• A light rice spirit can be bullied by amaro. Keep the bitter under a quarter ounce or pick a heavier bottle.

The Japanese Bitters, five 100ml expressions, sold at Astor Wines in New York. Angostura at nearly 45 percent is a small spike in a 25 percent drink in a way these are not.

• A light rice spirit can be bullied by amaro. Keep the bitter under a quarter ounce or pick a heavier bottle.

Cocchi Americano: moscato steeped with cinchona bark, gentian and bitter orange. Lillet dropped its quinine in 1985, so only the Americano side of the category still tastes of the bark, and equal parts with a shochu is about 21 percent.

• A light rice spirit can be bullied by amaro. Keep the bitter under a quarter ounce or pick a heavier bottle.

Cappelletti Sfumato, where sfumato means smoked and the smoke is the point, or the sweeter Zucca. At 20 percent it can take a third of the glass and still leave the drink under 22.

• A light rice spirit can be bullied by amaro. Keep the bitter under a quarter ounce or pick a heavier bottle.

Jack Rudy's Extra Bitter, made with real cinchona bark, or Small Hand Foods'. Half a teaspoon and soda, set to the bottle in front of you rather than to a tonic maker's idea of a spirit.

• A light rice spirit can be bullied by amaro. Keep the bitter under a quarter ounce or pick a heavier bottle.