Perhaps this post should be titled “Why I love drinking” but no… shochu is a totally different animal.
Obviously there’s the Japanese connection which my friends will tell you isn’t incidental. but more than that, it’s exciting and untapped, especially in Asia (ex-Japan obviously). It’s so underappreciated and misunderstood, I think it’s a huge space for a drink that has peaked back at home.
Imagine if you will for a moment, a beverage that’s made under exacting standards, with quite unique ingredients and standards. Further, imagine a distilled alcohol which is made with far higher standards than its immediate rivals, yet is priced at least 50% below them (at least in HK). Finally, imagine that it brings a flavor and versatility that doesn’t exist in any other alcohol. Then, you have shochu.
One more facet that doesn’t get much attention is that compared to other distilled alcohols, shochu is one of the few that relies almost purely on its base ingredient for flavor. Most shochus aren’t aged so each distiller’s fermentation and distillation processes provide the bulk of each brand’s character. Of course, there are shochus that do get aged, which is another fascinating level of complexity to explore. Vodka and Gin aren’t aged either, but Vodka is miserable and gin relies on infused botanicals for its flavor, which shochu would never stoop to.
Given the thousands of varieties and their general affordability, sampling shochu is exciting and easy. Further, most are at least drinkable (depending on your taste of course) so there’s no need to rely on 3rd party reviews or worry that you’re wasting (much) money, a problem I often encounter with wine.
As I mentioned in the beginning, domestic shochu consumption peaked in the 2000s and has been slowly declining ever since. It has often fought with a reputation as being an old-man drink, and for sure, if you see it being drank in izakaya/bars, it’s often by businessmen from a kept bottle. However, while that’s inescapable, it does not have any preexisting reputation outside of Japan – i.e. it can be marketed as anything you want.
Artisanal, historical, traditional, made by a long-line of craftsmen, only the finest local raw ingredients used, family-owned and operated; the way brands and the entire category can be marketed goes on and on. It’s an exciting space, and I hope we can help it grow.