#drinkingjapan

[takinga]

Quick stop over in LA on my way back from Japan included an excellent dinner @shibumidtla w @ksvenice @nedkiss1 @bret_insta in which I nearly fell asleep in my soup. Monday brought a very productive meeting with @ueno_toshio at Sake School of America (and a Mexican lunch you can see on his IG), a fun meeting with @nankaishochuofficial which was paired with Korean fried chicken and included picklebacks (don’t ask) followed by a quick meeting w @bret_insta & @miwaaiba, and get away charcoal grilled yakitori in Torrance before a red eye back to NYC. I’ll tell you more about @nankaishochuofficial #shochu later. Suffice to say it’s an easy drinking vacuum distilled kokuto (brown/black sugar) shochu from Amami. I think @shochujazzer and @elliott_hall are going to love it. #kanpai #kampai #laeats #dtlaeats #shibumi #koreanfriedchicken #shochu #dtla #nankaishochu #japandrinks #drinkingjapan #乾杯 #焼酎 #黒糖焼酎 #からあげ (at Seoul Sausage Company)

[takinga]

A Yamatozakura snack bar? It wouldn’t be out of place in Brooklyn. The “mama-san” is about 30 and clearly isn’t a traditional hostess. Just a bar really with amazing hospitality and drinks. #japanawaits #foodandwine #drinkingjapan #japandrinks #imbibe #bar #bars #japanesebar #snack #snackbar #fukuoka #kyushu #japan #スナック #スナックバー #福岡 #大和桜 #大和桜酒造 #焼酎 #芋焼酎 #いも焼酎 #さつま焼酎 #薩摩焼酎 #市来焼酎 ##乾杯 (at 日本號)

[takinga]

The airplane size bottles of booze have long left the American consciousness but you can still get these adorable 100ml bottles of shochu all over Japan. Business card and glasses for scale. It’s especially nice when your friend who just visited Okinawa brings Zuisen back for you. @__yugiha__ ありがとうございます！#japanawaits #japandrinks #drinkingjapan #awamori #zuisen #okinawa #minibottle #craftspirits #craftsman #craftsmanship #imbibe #foodandwine #distilled #spirits #泡盛 #沖縄 #乾杯 #瑞泉 #kanpai #kampai (at Canal City Hakata)

[takinga]

It was a real privilege to be on @heritage_radio talking #shochu (and a bit of #sake) w @akikok99nyc. We talked for over an hour and sampled some @yamatozakura with hot water (大和桜焼酎お湯割で). I promised to post a photo of the Kagoshima style hot shochu glass, a very distinct style unknown in most of Japan. #japandrinks #drinkingjapan #distilled #daydrinking #radio #sweetpotato #imbibe #foodandwine #japaneats #japanawaits ##芋焼酎 #焼酎 #乾杯 #いも焼酎 #さつま焼酎 #薩摩焼酎 #市来 #市来焼酎 (at Heritage Radio Network)

[takinga]

Tonight's Shochu'sday is 5:30-7:30 @teisuinyc on 28th Street. Food pairings with the happy hour shochu. Come on in. It's not even raining at the moment! #shochusday #shochu #happyhour #happyhr #foodie #foodandwine #foodpairing #yakitori #izakaya #pickles #imbibe #drinkingjapan #japandrinks #japaneats #eatingnyc #eatingjapan #craftspirits #distilled #焼酎 #居酒屋 #焼き鳥 #焼鳥 #漬物 (at TEISUI)

[takinga]

Day 22 (18 December 2017): after the shochu has aged sufficiently long, it's diluted to 25% alcohol using the same water source used in the distillery for all other parts of the process (washing rice/potatoes, steaming rice/potatoes, making 1st and 2nd fermentations), filtered, and bottled. This old bottling machine can handle 4 bottles at a time and is quite finicky. After each set their levels have to be compared to make sure all 4 nozzles are filling to the same level. This has to be adjusted depending on the size being bottled. @yamatozakura sells 1800ml, 900ml, 720ml, and 350ml sizes. #yamatozakura #craftsmanship #sweetpotato #craftspirits #shochu #kagoshima #cooljapan #japandrinks #drinkingjapan #市来焼酎 #市来 #いも焼酎 #芋焼酎 #大和桜 #薩摩焼酎 #焼酎 #鹿児島 #乾杯 #よか晩 (at 大和桜酒造)

[takinga]

Day 21 (17 December 2017): after distillation most shochu is stored in glass lined stainless tanks. While these tanks are inert, the shochu still needs to be cared for. Due to the single distillation, a lot of oils and fatty acids end up in the distillate. These congeal and float on the surface in these tanks and need to be removed before they turn rancid. This skimming uses heavy duty paper towels to grab the oils off the surface. #yamatozakura #craftsmanship #sweetpotato #craftspirits #cooljapan #shochu #drinkingjapan #japandrinks #distilled #imbibe #焼酎 #薩摩焼酎 #さつま焼酎 #原酒 #市来 #市来焼酎 #大和桜 #芋焼酎 #いも焼酎 (at 大和桜酒造)

[takinga]

Day 2 (27 November 2017): I usually come to @yamatozakura in late October or earlier November to help out. This year my schedule required me to start later than usual, which means I get to help make Yamatozakura Hikari, which is a special limited shochu. It's made at the peak of the sweet potato harvest with fresh local Kagoshima koshihikari rice. Our first task today was to wash the rice, which requires a different process than the staple rice used for most shochu. The work is quite a bit harder. Work day usually ends about 10pm for the main brand. Last night we worked until 1am and it will probably be a similar schedule tonight despite promises of an earlier finish. #drinkingjapan #cooljapan #japandrinks #shochu #craftspirits #handmade #rice #makingshochu #大和桜酒造 #大和桜 #焼酎 #芋焼酎 #薩摩焼酎 #さつま焼酎 #コシヒカリ # (at 大和桜酒造)