Last Updated: Jun 24, 2024

Authentic Kokushu

An In-depth Guide to Japanese Alcohol

This story was originally published on donnykimball.com and has been syndicated here on Medium.

Hail and well met travelers! Rather than take you on yet another adventure to some rural region, I’ll instead be looking to detail in this piece everything that you need to know to thoroughly enjoy Japanese alcohol. While I do realize that some of you grizzled veterans out there are well aware of Japan’s diverse array of boozy beverages, less seasoned explorers certainly aren’t as knowledgeable as my fellow connoisseurs. To ensure we’re all on the same page, let’s first begin by covering the different types of traditional intoxicants that are made in Japan.

When it comes to alcohol that is produced in Japan, these days Japanese whiskey is all the rage overseas. Alas, as anyone with some sense should already know, this distilled spirit is not native to the Japanese archipelago. The same can be said for other drinks like beer as well. In actuality, the Japan Sake and Shochu Makers Association identifies only a handful of alcohols as being kokushu. This term loosely means something like “national alcoholic beverage” or “official alcohol of Japan.” We’ll be using it a lot, so be sure to commit it to memory if you can.

Now, at the end of this piece, we’ll talk more about the JSS Mark and how to tell if something is authentic kokushu or…