Umeshu (Plum Wine)

A Japanese distilled spirit made from rice, barley, sweet potato, brown sugar, or other ingredients, saccharified with koji mold before distillation. Typically 25-35% ABV.

Traditional Japanese preserved food made by salt-pickling plums, sun-drying them, and re-pickling with red shiso leaves. Known for intense sourness from citric acid, a staple in onigiri and bento.

Japan's iconic rice wine brewed through 'parallel multiple fermentation,' where koji mold saccharifies rice starch while yeast simultaneously performs alcoholic fermentation.

A Japanese distilled spirit made from rice, barley, sweet potato, brown sugar, or other ingredients, saccharified with koji mold before distillation. Typically 25-35% ABV.

A sweet alcoholic condiment (about 14% ABV) made from glutinous rice, rice koji, and shochu/distilled alcohol, saccharified and aged for about 60 days. Widely used as a seasoning in Japanese cuisine.

Japan's oldest distilled spirit, made in Okinawa. Brewed using Thai rice and black koji mold through all-koji fermentation, then pot-distilled. Aged 3+ years, it is called 'kusu' (aged awamori).

An unrefined, milky-white rice brew made without the pressing (filtration) step. Unlike clear sake, the entire mash (moromi) is consumed as-is.

Japanese craft beer spread nationwide following the 1994 liquor tax law revision that lowered minimum brewing volume requirements. Many unique brands use distinctively Japanese adjuncts such as yuzu, sansho pepper, and wasabi.