Imo (Sweet Potato) Shochu

Sweet Potato Shochu (or Imo shochu 芋焼酎) is  the one of the most popular style of shochu in Japan accounting for more than 50% of the total consumption. With a very wide variety of Sweet Potatoes that can be used for Shochu production, this category offers the most choices of flavours combined with a variety of Koji and distillation methods.

However, it is important to keep in mind that the usual sweet potatoes consumed as food are typically not used for Shochu production. Instead, varieties such as Kogane Sengan and Joy White (some of the most popular ones for Shochu) have been developed to deliver a high starch content, and high crop yields for shochu production while resulting in a richer & fuller aroma with a variety of fruity flavours on the palate.