Green Tea Shochu

How is Green Tea Shochu made?

Green tea shochu starts with the traditional single-distillation process using a base of rice, sweet potato, or barley, but gets its distinctive character when green tea leaves are added during fermentation or distillation. The tea leaves infuse their grassy, vegetal notes and subtle tannins into the spirit, creating a unique flavor profile that bridges the gap between traditional shochu and tea culture. Some distilleries steep the tea directly in the mash, while others add it during the distillation process itself, allowing the steam to carry those delicate tea aromatics into the final product.

How do you drink Green Tea Shochu?

Green tea shochu shines when served neat at room temperature or gently warmed, allowing its delicate tea aromatics to bloom naturally. You can also enjoy it on the rocks with a single large ice cube, which opens up the flavors without overwhelming the subtle green tea character. In cocktails, it works beautifully in light, refreshing drinks like highballs with soda water and a citrus twist, or in tea-inspired martini variations that complement rather than mask its unique botanical profile.

How do I choose good Green Tea Shochu?

Look for shochu that lists the specific tea variety used – gyokuro and sencha bases tend to offer more refined, grassy notes while hojicha versions bring roasted, nutty characteristics. For sipping neat or on the rocks, opt for higher-quality expressions with clear tea varietal labeling, but if you're mixing cocktails, a straightforward green tea shochu works perfectly since other ingredients will complement the base tea flavors. The alcohol content matters too – stick with traditional 25% ABV versions for cocktails, as they blend better without overpowering delicate mixers like citrus or botanical spirits.

Nutritional Information

Typical Calorie Range per Ounce: 20-25 calories

Typical Carbohydrate Range per Ounce: 0-0.5 grams

Typical Sugar Range per Ounce: 0-0.3 grams

Typically Gluten Free: Yes

Green tea shochu is distilled from ingredients like sweet potato, rice, or barley, and the distillation process typically removes gluten proteins. The addition of green tea doesn't introduce gluten either. Still, production methods can vary between distilleries, so always check the specific product label and manufacturer information to confirm gluten-free status if you have celiac disease or gluten sensitivity.

Scrolled this far? Your reward? Green Tea Shochu Trivia!

1. Green tea shochu doesn't actually contain any green tea leaves during distillation – instead, it's made by fermenting and distilling green tea that's already been brewed into liquid form. This means the shochu captures the essence of properly steeped tea rather than the raw plant material, creating a completely different flavor profile than you'd expect from leaf-based spirits.
2. The best green tea shochu producers use tea that's been aged for months or even years before brewing, similar to how wine makers age grapes. This aging process concentrates the tea's natural umami compounds, which survive the distillation process and give the finished shochu an almost brothy, savory quality that pairs beautifully with seafood.
3. Green tea shochu was originally created by accident in the 1970s when a Japanese distiller's regular rice koji became contaminated with tea leaves that had blown into the fermentation tanks during a storm. Instead of discarding the batch, the curious distiller completed the process and discovered the tea had created an entirely new category of shochu with unprecedented smoothness.
4. Unlike most shochus that are diluted down to 25% alcohol, premium green tea shochu is often bottled at its natural post-distillation strength of around 35-40% because the tea's natural tannins act as a buffer, preventing the higher alcohol content from feeling harsh on the palate. This makes it one of the few shochus that actually tastes smoother at higher proof.
5. The catechins in green tea that survive distillation act as natural preservatives, which means opened bottles of green tea shochu can last up to five years without significant flavor degradation – far longer than most other shochus. Some collectors intentionally age opened bottles for years, claiming the spirit develops wine-like secondary flavors over time.