Aochu Densho
Sweet Potato Shochu Limited in Aogashima, Tokyo
Indeed, shochu (distilled liquor) can be a special product in the Kyushu area, Japan. But there is also amazing one in Tokyo, like “Aochu Densho,” sweet potato shochu brewed by Aogashima Shochu Brewery.
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Aochu Densho
Price: 3,240 JPN ( 700 ml )
Alcohol: 30
Atmospheric Distillation
Made from Sweet Potatoes,
Malted Wheat
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Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism says Japan totally includes 6,847 isolated islands except the main ones as Shikoku, Hokkaido and others. Aogashima Island is one of them, belonging to Tokyo and where about 170 people live in.
In that small island of Tokyo, shochu didn’t mean industry, but home alcohol drink that wives produce for their husbands. There are as many characters as there are the brewers. So they are originally unsuited for mass-producing.
“Aochu Densho” means folklore of Aogashima’s shochu in Japanese. It is also not mass-produced and then, called rare shochu. As the name tells us, it is completely made from only what is produced in the island. They put the malt and steamed potatoes into a tank together for fermentation. It was a popular way until Meiji era and is infrequent today.
The rare shochu strongly tastes and flavors its ingredients. As mentioned above, it is not mass-produced and then, I sincerely desire you to get a taste of the rareness by drinking neat or on the rocks. It may become a part of your precious memories visiting the island and having the “Aochu Densho” there.
・about Aogashima Shochu Brewery (Japanese)
Yayoi
Shochu by the Oldest Brewery in the Amami Island
Bakudan Hanatare
Potato Shochu of the Highest Purity