We are so lucky to have this special bottle available, as so little is made at the distillery in Kagoshima. Yamatozakura's premium brand uses local Kagoshima beni imo (purple sweet potatoes) to impart bright fruity notes and luxurious texture to this shochu. Get notes of blackberry, maple, and secret purple fruits while enjoying this on the rocks or oyuwari. Current shop fave is to drink this 1:1 with club soda and ice (sodawari). It tastes like dang grape soda! Contrast the complex sweetness of this shochu with cuts of your favorite sashimi. 

Those of us who have enjoyed shochu in Japan (or those of us who commit hours of time checking out bars and liquor stores in Kyushu on Instagram) will no doubt recognize the iconic branding of Yamatozakura. Master Distiller Tekkan-san runs one of the smallest distilleries in Kagoshima, specializing in white koji and clay-pot fermentations which ultimately lead to very drinkable, high-quality shochus that are affordable and great with all types of food.

Read about Ian's visit to Yamatozakura here! 

Tekkan-san has a small team of local obaasan and ojiisan (grandmas and grandpas) who deftly cut and clean the sweet potatoes by hand and assist in steaming, bottling, and labeling the shochu. Follow their Instagram here for a glimpse into their Kagoshima shochu-stylings. You may also get to catch the occasional live-stream of their shochu-making process come distilling season! We hope you enjoy these shochus as we celebrate their American debut.

Bonus photo of us with Tekkan Wakamatsu, toji and owner of Yamatozakura Brewery and his wife Ranko at the Kagoshima airport in 2017!

Photo of Wakamatsu at the distillery courtesy of Wakamatsu. 

Features

• Distilled in Kagoshima, Japan by Yamatozakura Shuzo
• Distilled from Beni Satsuma imo (red sweet potato) and kome koji (rice koji)
• ABV 24% / Koji: white (rice) / Distillation: atmospheric
• Kame (clay pot) fermented and matured
  
• 25.4 oz (750 ml)