• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Kanpai

Find us on Facebook Find us on Twitter Find us on Instagram
  • Shochu
    • What is Shochu?
    • How to Drink Shochu
    • The Shochu Diet
    • Shochu Tasting Notes
      • Awamori
      • sweet potato shochu reviews
      • mugi (barley)
      • rice shochu reviews
      • Aromatic Shochu Reviews
  • Izakaya
    • What is an Izakaya?
    • Izakaya Cuisine
  • How to Izakaya
  • Events
  • About Us

Hakutake Shiro Kumajochu

October 10, 2012 by Stephen 5 Comments

Brand: Hakutake Shiro

Distillery: Takahashi Shuzo Co, Ltd.

Location: Hitoyoshi City, Kumamoto Prefecture, Kyushu Island, Japan

Grain: junmai kome (polished rice)

Koji: white (shiro)

Distillation: low pressure (genatsu)

Alcohol: 25% (50 proof)

Price: $$

 

Tasting Notes

There are not many junmai kuma-shochus available in the U.S. market. These are shochus made with polished Japanese rice, the same polishing process used in sake (nihon-shu) production. “Junmai” refers to rice that’s been polished at least 70% (30% of the outer grain removed). Hakutake Shiro is made with rice polished to 60%. Only kome shochus produced in the Kuma River Valley can be designated as “kuma-shochu” (sounds closer to kumajochu). The pure, clean river water and fertile valley provides ideal conditions for production of rice shochus. The Japanese government goes so far as to designate “kumajochu” as a geographic designation similar to “champagne” in France or “bourbon” in the U.S. This is the only area with a geographic designation for kome shochu.

That’s all great, but what is it like? Well, Hakutake Shiro has a very light, clean aroma. Not overpowering, not much alcohol note. It has a vaguely sake-like nose, though sake tends to have a stronger, more present aroma from the abundant fatty acids. Shiro has a lighter scent than that.

The taste begins semi-sweet with a smooth transition into a buttery, umami middle, then lingering into a fresh, dry finish. Hakutake Shiro proved to be particularly difficult to describe using English so I enlisted my friend and the NY Shochu Tasting Contest champion, Seikai Ishizuka, to help me with the description. True to his championship status, he sniffed the glass, took a sip, and said, “Rice. Steamed rice. Do you ever steam rice? At home?Japanese rice? This is what it smells like.  Tastes like after you steam and let it cool.” So there you have it. A kumajochu that tastes like steamed rice. It may seem like I’m poking fun of Seikai for his seemingly obvious description, but I was actually in awe, because the answer was so simple.

 

The Verdict: Highly Recommended

Hakutake Shiro is a lovely, balanced kumajochu in the best tradition of the style. While smooth enough to drink straight, on the rocks really smooths out the alcohol and makes this something to drink with any light meat or fish dish. Making mizuwari (blended with ice water) will lighten it further while Takahashi-san assures me that it is deliciously aromatic when made oyuwari (with hot water). I’ll be trying that come winter.

 

Kampai!

 

Filed Under: Shochu, Shochu Reviews Tagged With: Hakutake Shiro, Junmai, kome, kuma, Kumamoto, low pressure distillation, review, rice, shiro koji, shochu, Takahashi Shuzo, white koji

« Satsuma Bar – Kagoshima Shinkansen Station
Kappa No Sasoi Mizu »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. LaMonte Heflick

    April 6, 2016 at 5:23 pm

    This is Junmai 純米 (pure rice) shochu 焼酎. It smells like (steaming) rice. It tastes like (distilled) rice. It sounds like rice. Pour it over ice cubes. Jingle. Listen! Tinkle, tinkle. Smooth, crisp, clean. Oh, my word. This is good stuff. Low in calories. Hang over free. Pure relaxation producing. Fun with friends. What’s stopping you. Come on. Kampai. 乾杯
    LaMonte Heflick, ASP Certified Sake Professional Level II, Sake Education Council Feb 2014.

    Reply
  2. Mark C.

    August 19, 2017 at 8:27 pm

    A freind of mine from Japan brought me a bottle of this as Omiage a few years ago and I had it is a beverage frig for years. I am more of a sake person so I never opened. I opened recently and had probably most of the bottle now becuase it is so damn good. I LOVE it!

    Reply
    • Stephen

      August 22, 2017 at 9:33 am

      Glad you enjoyed it. Fortunately it’s available in the US – and you don’t need to refrigerate it!

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

Shochu Reviews

iichiko Saiten

After winning some awards on the international spirits circuit (including double-gold at the 2020 San Francisco World Spirits Competition), there's ample evidence that iichiko Saiten deserves serious consideration by bartenders everywhere.

Shochu Reviews

Tasting Notes: Nankai

Nankai Shochu
At first whiff, Nankai smells faintly grassy, which is common in kokuto shochu owing to how kokuto sugar is made from fresh cut cane and that fresh grassiness is a sign of well made kokuto sugar. Sugar cane is, after all, a tall perennial grass. It is still pretty wild that they can capture that after fermentation and distillation.

Tasting Notes: The SG Shochu MUGI

The SG Shochu MUGI Label
The SG Shochu MUGI wraps several barley shochu identities into one. It's lightly barrel-aged and carries the associated sweet notes. But there's also a graininess that is revealed when the temperature of the drink drops. It's a versatile barley shochu that can be enjoyed a variety of ways.

Tasting Notes: The SG Shochu IMO

The SG Shochu IMO is a clear invitation to create the classic imo cocktail. If you get it right, it will resonate and cascade around the world until you can't not have sweet potato shochu on your menu if you consider yourself a proper drinking establishment.

Shochu Reviews

Tasting Notes: Lento Shochu

Lento is the top selling kokuto shochu in Japan, and it is available internationally as well. Try it on the rocks or with sparkling water for a refreshing taste of the Amami Islands. Kanpai!

Tasting Notes: The SG Shochu KOME

Putting your nose in a glass of The SG Shochu Kome shows you just how complex a vacuum distilled rice shochu can be. Ginjo sake aromas from the yeast, pineapple, melon, and a faint hint of dairy-like lactic acidity are all present.

Mizu Lemongrass Shochu

Mizu Lemongrass Shochu may not be an authentic honkaku shochu due to the use of lemongrass, but this is a case where a beautiful spirit breaks the rules.

Copyright © 2023 · Foodie Pro & The Genesis Framework