Japanese Alcohol
Beer
Beer is the most popular alcoholic drink in Japan and it can be a bit shocking as to how much “head” Japanese people enjoy their beer with.
The most popular brands are Asahi, Kirin, Sapporo and Suntory and in my opinion taste much better than any Australian or American product.
Sake
The word sake in Japanese actually means alcohol, not the specific name of the rice wine you have more than likely come to believe. The correct term is seishu but is commonly referred to as nihonshu instead. Sake is served hot or cold according to your liking, served in a tokkuri (sake flask) and drank from a small cylindrical cup known as an ochoko.
Personally I prefer to drink sake cold which is the case for most foreigners and even many Japanese, but by all means try it hot and traditional. Kanpaiii…!
Shochu
Shochu is a clear, distilled spirit similar to vodka which is really cheap, gets you hammered easily and when mixed with apple juice, the alcoholic taste almost disappears completely - a sure recipe for disaster if you don’t know your limits. The alcoholic content is typically around 25% so unless you pour in an excessive amount, you should find the taste of alcohol won’t feel overpowering like a lot of other spirits.
Shochu is enjoyed in a variety of ways, often mixed with hot water and ume-boshi (a salty plum) known as ume-shu, or with oolong tea (oolong-hai) and fruit juices (chu-hai). Cans of chu-hai are sold literally everywhere across Japan, including vending machines and come in a variety of flavours such as grapefruit, lemon, lime, strawberry, lychee and plum to name a few.
It’s worth noting that for 200 yen you can purchase small plastic, X ml bottles from convenience stores which conveniently slide into your trouser pockets, perfect for a karaoke session as many places prohibit bringing in your own.
Japanese Whiskey
Japanese whiskey is commonly drunk by middle aged men and is quite potent like all whiskies in my opinion. It’s very common to see enormous 4 litre bottles of whiskey in liquor stores priced very cheaply considering their sheer volume - around 2,000 to 5,000 yen (around $20 - $30 AUD).
If you are a whiskey drinker though and want something not quite as nasty, Japan has a good range and most of their stock is very cheap compared to other countries.
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Filed Under: Japanese Food and Drink
