Shochu is a Japanese distilled spirit.
Distilled spirits are created from brewages fermented from cereals and sugars. They are heated and distilled in a pot still and made into a different kind of beverage.
Most of the traditional distilled spirits use the pot still. The method brings out the most of the raw materials because the ingredients are heated and distilled only once. Derived alcohol and steam are cooled and concentrated to make spirits that have a great flavor.
Honkaku Shochu is one of the two categories of shochu and is defined as having a 45% alcohol by volume or less and distilled in a pot still. It belongs in the same family as whiskey, brandy and vodka which are very popular at bars and parties everywhere, and I'm sure people from all over the world will enjoy it as well as we do.
Shochu has a wide variety of tastes and flavours because it is made from various materials including rice, barley, potato, buckwheat, chestnut, sesame, perilla, and black sugar. It can be enjoyed in many different styles.
Rather than to begin with rice and barley which are popularly used in making sake and whiskey, let me start with imo, or potato. Potatoes are popular in Europe. Just as rice is to Japanese people, potatoes are essential food to people of Britain. In Europe, potatoes were grown historically to make maximum use of
poor soil. Sweet potatoes were cultivated in the southwestern isle of Kyushu for the same reason. And they were used in making shochu to substitute expensive rice.
I hope you enjoy the drinks along with the delicious snack creations.