Kuro Isanishki has the unmistakable earthy nose of an imo shochu. This yields to a buttery soft mouthfeel. Surprisingly supple given what's in store otherwise. An extremely light sweetness yields to a very dry, tight finish. The dryness would overwhelm except the soft mouth provides enough mellowness to create an interesting contrast.

Sweet Potato, or imo, shochus are perhaps the most common in Japan, though they don’t receive quite as much love in the United States. Rice & barley shochus tend to be smoother and easier to drink and since there is no equivalent Americn spirit distilled with sweet potato, imo shochus tend to have stronger flavors than we’re accustomed to from a clear spirit.

Part of what's fascinating about exploring shochu is that each distiller has their own approach to reaching flavor. The general rule is that if you want a smooth, mellow shochu you look for a shochu made with low pressure distillation and white koji. That combination is going to give you a very mellow shochu no matter what base grain is used. Conversely, a black koji and atmospheric distillation shochu is going to maximize flavors, create all sorts of complexity that many drinkers either love or hate. Where things start to get very interesting are in the middle.

Like most "kuro koji" versions of white (shiro) koji shochus, the black koji really opens up the flavor profile. While Ginza No Suzume, which we haven't yet profiled, has a nice light neutral mugi flavor, this Ginza Kuro is much bigger. A dirty, earthy, fatty nose opens up the promise of a large taste and unexpectedly for a non-barrel aged mugi shochu it delivers.

This odd label includes a sketch of a Japanese man. It would be easy enough to mistake his rough, jowly visage for that of a sumo wrestler, but it is, in fact, the last samurai, Saigo Takamori. He wasn't truly the last samurai, but he was the leader of the Satsuma Rebellion, which was the last stand of the samurai class against the modern Japanese imperial army in 1877.