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Seifuku Ryukyu Awamori Jikabi

Seifuku Shuzo · Okinawa · Awamori

  • black koji
  • honkaku

Pour this first

Ginger beer, tall over ice. Hyuganatsu with it.

The awamori highball is how Okinawa drinks through a summer, and it is the easiest introduction to the category.

One part shochu to three or four parts mixer, over plenty of ice. If it tastes thin, go two to three next time.

What it tastes like

Awamori from Seifuku Shuzo in Okinawa. Importer's tasting notes: earthy, mushroom, rich, light bodied. Nobody here has tasted this one, so the profile below is estimated from what its importer publishes rather than from the glass.

  • rice
  • earthy
  • mushroom
  • rich
  • light-bodied
  • bright
  • koji
Sweet
Body
Aroma
Fruit
Floral
Grain
Earth
Umami
Base
rice
Koji
black koji
Distillation
direct-fire boiler distillation (jikabi)
ABV
30%

What to mix with it

Tap a family to narrow it down. Every suggestion carries its reasoning, so if the reasoning does not convince you, ignore the suggestion.

Explore all 98 pairings

  • Hyuganatsu

    Strong match

    A Miyazaki citrus eaten with the white pith left on, which is sweet rather than bitter. Gentler and more floral than lemon, so it flavours a drink without taking it over.

    • Black koji leaves citric acid in the mash, so awamori already leans citrus before anything is added.
    • An earthy, heavy spirit flattens out without acid. This is the ingredient doing structural work, not decoration.
    • Softer acid than lemon, so the rice sweetness stays in the glass

  • Lemon

    Strong match

    Fresh juice, never bottled. It is the whole basis of the lemon sour, and the quickest way to put acid into a spirit that has almost none of its own.

    • Black koji leaves citric acid in the mash, so awamori already leans citrus before anything is added.
    • An earthy, heavy spirit flattens out without acid. This is the ingredient doing structural work, not decoration.
    • Rice sweetness wants acid, and lemon is the simplest acid there is

  • Sudachi

    Strong match

    A small green citrus from Tokushima, sharper and more herbal than lime. Sold frozen or as juice in Japanese markets.

    • Black koji leaves citric acid in the mash, so awamori already leans citrus before anything is added.
    • An earthy, heavy spirit flattens out without acid. This is the ingredient doing structural work, not decoration.
    • Squeezed over rice, it is the flavor of a Japanese autumn table

  • Yuzu

    Strong match

    The Japanese citrus that tastes like grapefruit, mandarin and lemon at once, with a floral peel. A little zest or juice goes a long way.

    • Black koji leaves citric acid in the mash, so awamori already leans citrus before anything is added.
    • An earthy, heavy spirit flattens out without acid. This is the ingredient doing structural work, not decoration.
    • The classic pair: rice sweetness under yuzu zest

  • Ginger beer

    Strong match

    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.

    • The awamori highball is how Okinawa drinks through a summer, and it is the easiest introduction to the category.
    • A shochu mule, and it is on menus
    • Ginger heat gives earthy bottles a pulse

  • Hot water (oyuwari)

    Strong match

    Hot water in the glass first, spirit poured on top so it mixes itself. Around 40C in the glass is the sweet spot. This is not the only way, it is one way.

    • Water and ice is how awamori is drunk in Okinawa, and with an aged kusu it is the serve that lets the age show instead of burying it under a mixer.
    • Heat pulls the earth and the sweetness out of a bottle
    • Rich bottles are built for warmth

  • Kurozu (Kagoshima black vinegar)

    Strong match

    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.

    • An earthy, heavy spirit flattens out without acid. This is the ingredient doing structural work, not decoration.
    • Black vinegar is rice fermented with koji and then soured, so it is the same mould arriving a second time
    • Acid with an amino depth behind it, which suits the koji side better than a lemon does

  • Blood orange

    Strong match

    Orange with a raspberry edge. Winter fruit; worth waiting for.

    • Black koji leaves citric acid in the mash, so awamori already leans citrus before anything is added.
    • An earthy, heavy spirit flattens out without acid. This is the ingredient doing structural work, not decoration.

  • Daidai (bitter orange)

    Strong match

    Bitter orange: sour and aromatic rather than sweet, the citrus that goes into ponzu. Bottled juice is sold for cooking and works straight in a glass. Use the peel too, it carries most of the smell.

    • Black koji leaves citric acid in the mash, so awamori already leans citrus before anything is added.
    • An earthy, heavy spirit flattens out without acid. This is the ingredient doing structural work, not decoration.

  • Grapefruit

    Strong match

    Bitter, bright and forgiving. Ruby or white both work; white is drier. The grapefruit sour is a real bar order in Japan, not a novelty.

    • Black koji leaves citric acid in the mash, so awamori already leans citrus before anything is added.
    • An earthy, heavy spirit flattens out without acid. This is the ingredient doing structural work, not decoration.

  • Kabosu

    Strong match

    Oita's citrus, softer than sudachi. Bartenders in Oita mix it with the local barley shochu and soda.

    • Black koji leaves citric acid in the mash, so awamori already leans citrus before anything is added.
    • An earthy, heavy spirit flattens out without acid. This is the ingredient doing structural work, not decoration.

  • Kiwi

    Strong match

    Muddled with the seeds. Green, sour and refreshing, and cheap year round.

    • Okinawa grows the pineapple, the passion fruit and the shikuwasa, and distils the spirit. The pairing is geography.
    • An earthy, heavy spirit flattens out without acid. This is the ingredient doing structural work, not decoration.

  • Passion fruit

    Good match

    The most useful tropical fruit for mixing: intensely aromatic and properly sour. Pulp with seeds, or a good puree.

    • Okinawa grows the pineapple, the passion fruit and the shikuwasa, and distils the spirit. The pairing is geography.
    • An earthy, heavy spirit flattens out without acid. This is the ingredient doing structural work, not decoration.

  • Ginger

    Good match

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

    • Star anise, chilli and ginger all read as native rather than imported on this base.
    • Ginger heat gives earthy bottles a pulse
    • Ginger and rice: think of the pickled ginger next to sushi

  • Ginger ale

    Good match

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

    • The awamori highball is how Okinawa drinks through a summer, and it is the easiest introduction to the category.
    • Gentler than ginger beer; right for a soft rice bottle

  • Hoppy (beer-taste mixer)

    Good match

    Hoppy Beverage Co. has made it in Tokyo since 1948; at 0.8 percent it is legally a soft drink, and it is hard to find outside Japan. Chill the bottle, the shochu and the mug and no ice is needed.

    • The awamori highball is how Okinawa drinks through a summer, and it is the easiest introduction to the category.
    • One part shochu to five parts Hoppy lands near 4 percent and drinks like a pint with none of beer's body

  • Kombucha

    Good match

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

    • The awamori highball is how Okinawa drinks through a summer, and it is the easiest introduction to the category.
    • Acid and bubbles on rice sweetness

  • Lemon soda (ramune, Sanpellegrino)

    Good match

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

    • The awamori highball is how Okinawa drinks through a summer, and it is the easiest introduction to the category.
    • Rice shochu and lemon soda

  • Mikan (satsuma)

    Good match

    Sweet, low-acid Japanese mandarin. Juice it or drop segments in a glass. It needs a squeeze of something sharper alongside.

    • Black koji leaves citric acid in the mash, so awamori already leans citrus before anything is added.
    • Mikan juice over rice sweetness is gentle and familiar

  • Soda water

    Good match

    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.

    • The awamori highball is how Okinawa drinks through a summer, and it is the easiest introduction to the category.
    • Shochu and soda over ice is the most ordinary drink in Japan

  • Sparkling wine (brut)

    Good match

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

    • The awamori highball is how Okinawa drinks through a summer, and it is the easiest introduction to the category.
    • Shochu and brut sparkling is a French 75 at lower proof; the acid is the point

  • Cold water (mizuwari)

    Good match

    Soft water, cold, over ice or not. One to one is normal. Mix a day ahead (maewari) and the edges round off.

    • Water and ice is how awamori is drunk in Okinawa, and with an aged kusu it is the serve that lets the age show instead of burying it under a mixer.
    • Rice shochu mizuwari is a dinner drink in Kumamoto

  • Tonic water

    Good match

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

    • The awamori highball is how Okinawa drinks through a summer, and it is the easiest introduction to the category.
    • Shochu tonic: bitter, sweet, low proof, and better than it sounds

  • Cranberry

    Good match

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

    • An earthy, heavy spirit flattens out without acid. This is the ingredient doing structural work, not decoration.
    • Tart cranberry gives soft rice sweetness structure

  • Hibiscus

    Good match

    Cold-brewed hibiscus tea: sour, cranberry-red and floral. Acid and color in one pour.

    • An earthy, heavy spirit flattens out without acid. This is the ingredient doing structural work, not decoration.
    • Its acid is what rice bottles need

  • Raspberry

    Good match

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

    • An earthy, heavy spirit flattens out without acid. This is the ingredient doing structural work, not decoration.
    • Its acidity is what soft rice bottles need

  • Ume (Japanese plum)

    Good match

    Umeboshi (salt-pickled), ume syrup, or the fruit's own liqueur. Sour, salty and savory at once.

    • An earthy, heavy spirit flattens out without acid. This is the ingredient doing structural work, not decoration.
    • Ume sour: the second most ordered shochu drink in Japan after lemon

  • Umezu (ume plum vinegar)

    Good match

    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.

    • An earthy, heavy spirit flattens out without acid. This is the ingredient doing structural work, not decoration.
    • Salt and lactic acid land on the sweetness koji leaves behind

  • Red aperitivo bitter (Campari-style)

    Good match

    Campari, Aperol, or a Japanese bitter like Kina. Shochu is low enough in proof to make an aperitivo you can actually have two of.

    • Aged kusu is intense enough to meet amaro without either one winning.
    • A negroni built on shochu is a real drink on real menus

  • Black pepper

    Good match

    A few grinds over the top. Aroma more than heat.

    • Star anise, chilli and ginger all read as native rather than imported on this base.
    • Pepper and earth

  • Carciofo amaro (Cynar-style)

    Good match

    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.

    • Aged kusu is intense enough to meet amaro without either one winning.
    • Vegetal bitterness against earth, which is a closer match than a caramel amaro makes

  • Celery bitters

    Good match

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

    • Aged kusu is intense enough to meet amaro without either one winning.
    • It makes a savoury bottle taste more savoury rather than covering it

  • Dry vermouth

    Good match

    Dolin dry or Noilly Prat. A quarter of the shochu's volume, stirred cold.

    • Rice shochu and dry vermouth, stirred, is the martini bars actually serve at this proof
    • Rice shochu, dry vermouth, a lemon twist

  • Genmaicha

    Good match

    Green tea with popped, toasted rice. Cold-brew it.

    • Oolong and jasmine both belong to the same Chinese-adjacent kitchen awamori grew up in.
    • Toasted rice tea and a rice spirit are the same grain twice

  • Gentian (Suze-style)

    Good match

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

    • Aged kusu is intense enough to meet amaro without either one winning.
    • Gentian is earth in a bottle; earthy shochu meets it

  • Green tea (sencha)

    Good match

    Cold-brewed sencha, unsweetened. The green tea highball is one of the most common ways shochu is actually drunk in Japan.

    • Oolong and jasmine both belong to the same Chinese-adjacent kitchen awamori grew up in.
    • Ryokucha-hai: rice shochu with green tea is an ordinary Kyushu order

  • Matcha

    Good match

    Whisked into a slurry first, never dumped in dry. Bitter, umami and creamy at once.

    • Oolong and jasmine both belong to the same Chinese-adjacent kitchen awamori grew up in.
    • Rice and matcha agree, which is why the pairing turns up on menus at all

  • Oolong tea

    Good match

    Unsweetened, cold. One part shochu to three or four parts tea, over ice.

    • Oolong and jasmine both belong to the same Chinese-adjacent kitchen awamori grew up in.
    • Rice shochu and oolong is a Kyushu dinner drink

  • Sake (in a shochu drink)

    Good match

    A dry junmai as the lengthener for rice shochu, one to two. Low proof, all rice.

    • Rice shochu lengthened with a junmai: the same grain, fermented and distilled, in one glass
    • Koji meets koji

  • Sansho pepper

    Good match

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

    • Star anise, chilli and ginger all read as native rather than imported on this base.
    • Sansho and rice is a Kyoto kitchen

  • Shiitake

    Good match

    A dried shiitake steeped in the spirit for a day. Savory and strange in the best way.

    • Bottles that taste of mushroom meet the mushroom
    • Earth on earth

  • Wasabi

    Good match

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

    • Star anise, chilli and ginger all read as native rather than imported on this base.
    • Wasabi and rice is sushi

  • Banana

    Good match

    Ripe banana, muddled or as a syrup. Isoamyl acetate, the ester behind a ginjo aroma, is the same compound that makes a banana smell of banana.

    • Okinawa grows the pineapple, the passion fruit and the shikuwasa, and distils the spirit. The pairing is geography.

  • Coconut

    Good match

    Coconut water for lengthening, coconut milk or cream for weight.

    • Okinawa grows the pineapple, the passion fruit and the shikuwasa, and distils the spirit. The pairing is geography.

  • Kumquat

    Good match

    Eaten whole, peel and all. Muddle a few in a glass; the peel gives bitterness, the flesh gives tartness.

    • Black koji leaves citric acid in the mash, so awamori already leans citrus before anything is added.

  • Lychee

    Good match

    Fresh in early summer, canned in syrup the rest of the year (drain it). The signature aroma of a whole school of imo shochu.

    • Okinawa grows the pineapple, the passion fruit and the shikuwasa, and distils the spirit. The pairing is geography.

  • Mango

    Good match

    Ripe mango puree. Needs lime beside it or it goes flat.

    • Okinawa grows the pineapple, the passion fruit and the shikuwasa, and distils the spirit. The pairing is geography.

  • Lime

    Good match

    Sharper and greener than lemon. The citrus for anything built on brown sugar or tropical fruit.

    • Black koji leaves citric acid in the mash, so awamori already leans citrus before anything is added.
    • Lime's green edge can read metallic against soft rice sweetness
    • An earthy, heavy spirit flattens out without acid. This is the ingredient doing structural work, not decoration.

  • Pineapple

    Good match

    Fresh juice, or grilled wedges for a smokier drink. The awamori fruit.

    • Okinawa grows the pineapple, the passion fruit and the shikuwasa, and distils the spirit. The pairing is geography.
    • Pineapple's acid and sugar overwhelm a soft rice bottle
    • An earthy, heavy spirit flattens out without acid. This is the ingredient doing structural work, not decoration.

  • Shikuwasa

    Good match

    Okinawa's own citrus, picked green and sharp, more bitter than lime and more floral than sudachi. Squeezed over awamori and soda it is what the islands actually drink.

    • Black koji leaves citric acid in the mash, so awamori already leans citrus before anything is added.
    • A heavy earthy bottle swallows it, and the fruit is too good to waste that way
    • An earthy, heavy spirit flattens out without acid. This is the ingredient doing structural work, not decoration.

  • Pu-erh tea

    Good match

    Loose or bagged, brewed weak: at full strength it takes the glass over. Takara's own guide to tea-wari lists it alongside mugicha and sobacha.

    • Dark fermented tea dulls a bright bottle
    • Oolong and jasmine both belong to the same Chinese-adjacent kitchen awamori grew up in.
    • Fermented and dark where oolong is astringent and light, so it meets earth instead of covering it
    • The mushroom note in the cup and the one in the glass are the same note

  • Allspice dram

    Worth trying

    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.

    • Clove and cinnamon give an earthy bottle the warmth hot water usually provides, in a cold glass

  • Alpine amaro (Braulio-style)

    Worth trying

    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.

    • Aged kusu is intense enough to meet amaro without either one winning.

  • Amaro

    Worth trying

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

    • Aged kusu is intense enough to meet amaro without either one winning.

  • Aromatic bitters

    Worth trying

    Angostura or a Japanese aromatic. Two dashes.

    • Aged kusu is intense enough to meet amaro without either one winning.

  • Black tea (Earl Grey)

    Worth trying

    Cold-brewed Earl Grey brings bergamot; plain black tea brings tannin. For the aged and brown-sugar bottles.

    • Oolong and jasmine both belong to the same Chinese-adjacent kitchen awamori grew up in.

  • Cardamom

    Worth trying

    A few crushed pods, or a syrup. Floral, citrusy and warm at once; it bridges fruit and spice.

    • Star anise, chilli and ginger all read as native rather than imported on this base.

  • Cinnamon

    Worth trying

    A stick in hot water with the spirit, or a light syrup. Winter.

    • Star anise, chilli and ginger all read as native rather than imported on this base.

  • Coffee (cold brew)

    Worth trying

    Cold brew, unsweetened. For barley, brown-sugar, cask-aged and awamori bottles; it will bury a daiginjo.

    • Oolong and jasmine both belong to the same Chinese-adjacent kitchen awamori grew up in.

  • Cucumber

    Worth trying

    Ribbons or muddled slices. Cucumber is what turns a serious glass into something you drink outside without thinking about it.

    • Cucumber and rice is the flavor of a Japanese summer lunch

  • Dashi

    Worth trying

    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

  • Elderflower liqueur

    Worth trying

    St-Germain or similar. A half ounce is enough.

    • Shochu, elderflower liqueur, lemon: a sour that tastes like spring

  • Fernet

    Worth trying

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

    • Aged kusu is intense enough to meet amaro without either one winning.

  • Fino sherry

    Worth trying

    Fino or manzanilla. Savory, salty, bone dry.

    • Rice shochu and fino, stirred: a bamboo variation

  • Goya (bitter melon)

    Worth trying

    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.

    • Bitterness that answers earth without adding any sweetness to it

  • Green tea liqueur

    Worth trying

    Sweeter and rounder than brewing your own matcha, and it dissolves properly, which matcha powder in a cold drink does not.

    • Rice and green tea is an ordinary Japanese meal, not a novelty

  • Gum syrup (gomme)

    Worth trying

    Small Hand Foods', or sugar, water and gum arabic from the baking aisle at home. Worth knowing that most Japanese gum syrup on a shelf today has no arabic gum in it at all.

    • A 25 percent spirit brings far less viscosity than a 40 percent one, so a shaken sour goes thin

  • Hojicha

    Worth trying

    Cold-brewed or hot. Roasted green tea, low in bitterness, high in toast. The oyuwari of teas.

    • Oolong and jasmine both belong to the same Chinese-adjacent kitchen awamori grew up in.

  • Japanese craft bitters (yuzu, shiso, umami)

    Worth trying

    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.

    • Aged kusu is intense enough to meet amaro without either one winning.

  • Jasmine tea

    Worth trying

    Cold-brewed. Floral without sugar. The jasmine highball is a real menu item in Japan.

    • Oolong and jasmine both belong to the same Chinese-adjacent kitchen awamori grew up in.

  • Kinome (sansho leaf)

    Worth trying

    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

  • Kombu

    Worth trying

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

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

  • Makgeolli

    Worth trying

    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.

    • The yeasty haze gives back the body distillation took out

  • Mezcal

    Worth trying

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

    • Smoke and earth: a split-base drink with imo shochu is a real bar idea

  • Miso

    Worth trying

    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

  • Mugicha (barley tea)

    Worth trying

    Cold, unsweetened barley tea. Every Japanese fridge has a pitcher in summer. Mix one to three over ice.

    • Oolong and jasmine both belong to the same Chinese-adjacent kitchen awamori grew up in.

  • Olive brine

    Worth trying

    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

  • Pickled ginger (gari)

    Worth trying

    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

  • Quinquina aperitif (Cocchi Americano-style)

    Worth trying

    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.

    • Aged kusu is intense enough to meet amaro without either one winning.

  • Rabarbaro amaro (rhubarb root)

    Worth trying

    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.

    • Aged kusu is intense enough to meet amaro without either one winning.

  • Rosemary

    Worth trying

    A sprig, lightly toasted with a lighter, as garnish or stirred. Strong; a little.

    • Resinous herb against earthy depth

  • Shiso

    Worth trying

    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

  • Shiso liqueur

    Worth trying

    Usually red shiso, so it comes out pink. Sharper and more herbal than it looks, and a little goes a long way.

    • Shiso and rice is an onigiri flavour

  • Sobacha (roasted buckwheat tea)

    Worth trying

    Roasted buckwheat, in any Japanese grocery, hot or cold. In a soba restaurant the same serve is made with soba-yu, the starchy water the noodles were boiled in, which is thicker and cannot be bought.

    • Oolong and jasmine both belong to the same Chinese-adjacent kitchen awamori grew up in.

  • Soy sauce

    Worth trying

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

    • Soy and rice

  • Star anise

    Worth trying

    One star, steeped, for the dark bottles.

    • Star anise, chilli and ginger all read as native rather than imported on this base.

  • Sumomo (Japanese plum) liqueur

    Worth trying

    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.

    • Acid and colour at once, and the drink stays drier than it would with umeshu

  • Sweet vermouth (rosso)

    Worth trying

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

    • There is enough weight here to carry vermouth without being flattened

  • Togarashi (chili)

    Worth trying

    A rim of shichimi, or a slice of fresh chili. Heat on fruit, not on rice.

    • Star anise, chilli and ginger all read as native rather than imported on this base.

  • Tomato

    Worth trying

    Good tomato juice, or a ripe tomato muddled and strained. The savour koji leaves behind and the savour in a tomato are the same glutamate.

    • Tomato juice and a savory junmai is a Japanese bloody mary

  • Tonic syrup (cinchona concentrate)

    Worth trying

    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.

    • Aged kusu is intense enough to meet amaro without either one winning.

  • Umeboshi

    Worth trying

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

    • Ume and rice is a rice ball

  • Umeshu

    Worth trying

    Sweet, sour, almondy. A splash does the work of both syrup and citrus.

    • Umeshu is usually built on shochu in the first place, so adding it back is coherent

  • Vanilla

    Worth trying

    A split bean in a syrup, or a good extract, in small amounts.

    • Star anise, chilli and ginger all read as native rather than imported on this base.

  • Watermelon

    Worth trying

    Fresh juice, strained. Add a pinch of salt.

    • Rice shochu and watermelon juice is a Kumamoto summer

  • Yellow peach

    Worth trying

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

    • A richer peach for a richer bottle

  • Yuzu kosho

    Worth trying

    The Kyushu condiment, in a tube in any Japanese grocer: fermented yuzu peel, green chili and salt. A quarter teaspoon stirred into an oyuwari, which is the serve Asahi publishes.

    • Star anise, chilli and ginger all read as native rather than imported on this base.

  • Yuzu marmalade (yuja-cha)

    Worth trying

    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

Ways to serve it

  • On the rocks
  • Mizuwari (with water)

Awamori is older than mainland shochu, and what defines it is black koji and an all-koji mash rather than the Thai rice nearly every distillery happens to use. The black koji leaves citric acid behind, which is why it wants citrus and tropical fruit and why it will split milk.

Cocktails other people made

Nobody has published a cocktail written for this exact bottle. These were written for other bottles, so each one says which, and what changes if you pour this instead.

Show 8 more

  • Just One Cookbook

    Japanese Yuzu Cocktail (Yuzu Chuhai)

    Written for shochu generally

    • ½ cup club soda (soda water)
    • ¼ cup shochu (any brand or type)
    • 1 tbsp homemade simple syrup
    • 1 tsp yuzu juice (extract)
    • ice cubes
    • 1, 2 tsp korean citron tea (yuja cha) (optional)
    • lime (optional; can use lemon)

    Built in the glass, topped with soda.

    Full method at Just One Cookbook →

  • Pickled Plum

    Umeboshi Sour (Pickled Plum Cocktail)

    Written for shochu generally

    • ice cubes
    • 1/4 cup shōchū (such as iichiko)
    • 3/4 cup sparkling water
    • 1 1/2 tablespoon umezu (plum vinegar)
    • 1/2 teaspoon plain rice vinegar
    • 1/2 teaspoon honey (optional)
    • 1 large soft umeboshi (japanese pickled plum)
    • 1 shiso leaf, whole or shredded, for garnish (optional)

    Built in the glass.

    Full method at Pickled Plum →

  • punchdrink.com · Brian Evans and George Padilla, Brooklyn, New York

    The Rule of Thirds Chu-Hai

    Written for shochu generally

    • 1 1/2 ounces shochu
    • 1 1/4 ounce grapefruit juice
    • 3/4 ounce sweetened hojicha tea (see editor's note)
    • club soda, to top

    Built in the glass, topped with soda.

    Full method at punchdrink.com →

  • Pickled Plum

    Lemon Sour (Japanese)

    Written for shochu generally

    • juice of 1/2 lemon
    • 1/4 cup shōchū (or soju)
    • 1/2 cup soda water
    • 1 tablespoon simple syrup (1 tablespoon sugar mixed with 1 tablespoon water)
    • ice cubes

    Built in the glass, topped with soda.

    Full method at Pickled Plum →

  • punchdrink.com · Tokyo Record Bar, New York

    Miso Dark 'n' Stormy

    Written for shochu generally

    • 2 ounces shochu
    • 1 ounce miso syrup (see editor's note)
    • 3/4 ounce yuzu juice
    • cynar, to top
    • soda, to top

    Built in the glass, topped with soda.

    Full method at punchdrink.com →

  • liquor.com

    Koji-San

    Written for shochu generally

    • 1 ounce 5 teaspoons shochu
    • 1 teaspoon mezcal
    • 3/4 ounce lime juice, freshly squeezed
    • 4/5 ounce cane syrup
    • 1/4 ounce celery juice

    Shaken.

    Full method at liquor.com →

  • Tokyo Weekender

    Ryukyu & Coke

    Written for Danryu Koshu

    We hold no record for that bottle, so treat this as a starting point rather than a match.

    • danryu koshu (awamori) 40ml
    • homemade cola syrup 10ml
    • carbonated water as needed
    • lemon wedge one wedge
    • salt water one spray

    Built in the glass.

    Full method at Tokyo Weekender →

Bottles like this one

Closest on the flavour profile within the same style family, so the mixers above tend to carry across.

Sources and verification

Filed under awamori.