Sake & shochu glossary

A glossary of the 90 words you meet most on sake, shochu and awamori labels and menus, in 7 groups (grades, styles, making, taste, sake rice, shochu and serving), each explained in a sentence.

Grades9 terms

Junmai daiginjo純米大吟醸（じゅんまいだいぎんじょう）: Rice, koji and water only, polished to 50% or less and brewed the ginjo way. The most fragrant and delicate grade.More Guide: Types of sake
Daiginjo大吟醸（だいぎんじょう）: Polished to 50% or less, ginjo-brewed with a little brewer's alcohol. Very aromatic and light.More Guide: Types of sake
Junmai ginjo純米吟醸（じゅんまいぎんじょう）: Rice, koji and water only, polished to 60% or less, ginjo-brewed. A balance of aroma and rice flavour.More Guide: Types of sake
Ginjo吟醸（ぎんじょう）: Polished to 60% or less and fermented slowly at low temperature. Fruity aroma (ginjo-ka).More Guide: Types of sake
Tokubetsu junmai特別純米（とくべつじゅんまい）: Junmai sake polished to 60% or less, or made with a special method stated on the label.More Guide: Types of sake
Junmai純米（じゅんまい）: Made only from rice, koji and water. Full rice flavour and body; often great warm.More Guide: Types of sake
Tokubetsu honjozo特別本醸造（とくべつほんじょうぞう）: Honjozo polished to 60% or less, or made with a special method; a little brewer's alcohol added.More Guide: Types of sake
Honjozo本醸造（ほんじょうぞう）: Polished to 70% or less with a little brewer's alcohol. Light and crisp, good warm too.More Guide: Types of sake
Futsushu普通酒（ふつうしゅ）: Sake outside the premium grades: affordable everyday sake.More Guide: Types of sake

Styles14 terms

Namazake生酒（なまざけ）: Never pasteurised. Fresh and lively, so keep it refrigerated.More Guide: Types of sake
Nama-zume生詰（なまづめ）: Pasteurised once before storage, not before shipping. Autumn hiyaoroshi is this type.More Guide: Types of sake
Nama-chozo生貯蔵酒（なまちょぞうしゅ）: Stored unpasteurised and pasteurised once before shipping. Light and fresh.More Guide: Types of sake
Genshu原酒（げんしゅ）: Not diluted after pressing. Rich, around 17–20%.More Guide: Types of sake
Muroka無濾過（むろか）: Not charcoal-filtered, so colour and flavour stay in.More Guide: Types of sake
Nigoriにごり（にごり）: Coarsely filtered, cloudy with rice sediment. Creamy and soft.More Guide: Types of sake
Sparkling発泡（はっぽう）: Sparkling sake, often from a second fermentation in the bottle.More Guide: Types of sake
Aged sake (koshu)古酒・熟成（こしゅ）: Sake aged for years: amber colour, caramel and nutty notes.More Guide: Types of sake
Taruzake樽酒（たるざけ）: Sake that has rested in cedar casks, giving it a fresh woody aroma.More Guide: Types of sake
Kijoshu貴醸酒（きじょうしゅ）: Brewed with sake instead of water. Sweet and rich, a dessert sake.More Guide: Types of sake
Hiyaoroshiひやおろし（ひやおろし）: Brewed in winter, rested over summer, released in autumn without a second pasteurisation. Mellow.More Guide: Sake through the seasons
Shiboritateしぼりたて（しぼりたて）: Freshly pressed new sake. Lively and young, a winter treat.More Guide: Sake through the seasons
Kassei nigori活性にごり（かっせいにごり）: Cloudy sake still fermenting in the bottle, lightly sparkling. Open it slowly, as it can foam over.More Guide: Types of sake
Kiippon生一本（きいっぽん）: A label term for junmai sake made entirely at a single brewery.More Guide: How to read a sake label

Making11 terms

Polishing ratio精米歩合（せいまいぶあい）: How much of the rice grain is left after milling. 60% means 40% was milled away; lower tends to mean lighter and more fragrant.More Guide: How sake is made
Koji麹（こうじ）: Steamed rice (or barley) grown with koji mould. Its enzymes turn starch into sugar, the heart of brewing.More Guide: How sake is made
Yeast starter (shubo)酒母（しゅぼ）: The starter culture where a large, healthy yeast population is grown. Also called moto.More Guide: How sake is made
Kimoto生酛（きもと）: A traditional starter using natural lactic bacteria and hand-poled rice. Tangy with deep umami.More Guide: Types of sake
Yamahai山廃（やまはい）: Kimoto without the hand-poling step. Bold and rich.More Guide: Types of sake
Sokujo速醸酛（そくじょうもと）: The modern starter: lactic acid is added, so it is quick and gives clean sake.More Guide: How sake is made
Hi-ire (pasteurising)火入れ（ひいれ）: Heating sake to about 65 °C to stop enzymes and microbes, usually twice.More Guide: How sake is made
Toji杜氏（とうじ）: The head brewer. Guilds include Nanbu, Echigo, Noto and Tajima.More Guide: Sake regions and breweries
Brewing water仕込み水（しこみみず）: The water used for brewing. Hard water tends to give crisp, dry sake (Nada's "masculine sake"), soft water gentler sake (Fushimi's "feminine sake").More Guide: Sake regions and breweries
Fukuro-tsuri (drip pressing)袋吊り（ふくろづり）: The mash hangs in cloth bags and only the drops that fall on their own are collected. Very clean; common for competition sake.More Guide: How sake is made
Hiochi火落ち（ひおち）: Spoilage of sake by lactic bacteria (hiochi bacteria): it turns cloudy and smells sour. Pasteurisation (hi-ire) is there to prevent it.More Guide: How long sake keeps and how to store it

Taste & numbers8 terms

Sake meter value (SMV)日本酒度（にほんしゅど）: A rough sweet/dry guide: positive is drier, negative sweeter. Best read together with acidity.More Guide: Types of sake
Acidity酸度（さんど）: How much acid the sake has. Higher feels bolder and crisper, lower softer.More Guide: Types of sake
Alcohol by volume (ABV)アルコール度数（あるこーるどすう）: How much of the drink is alcohol. Sake is usually 15–16% (genshu 17–20%), honkaku shochu mostly 25%, awamori around 30% and some aged kusu over 40%.More Guide: Types of sake
Ginjo-ka吟醸香（ぎんじょうか）: The fruity aroma of ginjo sake: apple, melon, banana.More Guide: Types of sake
Tanrei karakuchi淡麗辛口（たんれいからくち）: Light and dry with a clean finish: the Niigata style.More Guide: Sake regions and breweries
Amakuchi / karakuchi (sweet / dry)甘口・辛口（あまくち・からくち）: Sweet or dry on the palate. Sake meter value and acidity are a guide, but aroma and temperature change the impression too.More Guide: Types of sake
Amino acid levelアミノ酸度（あみのさんど）: How much amino acid, the source of umami, a sake has. Higher tends to mean fuller and savoury, lower lighter and cleaner.More Guide: Sweet or dry? Reading SMV and acidity
Hineka老香（ひねか）: A caramel or soy-sauce aroma that appears when sake gets old or is kept warm. In aged sake it can be part of the charm.More Guide: How long sake keeps and how to store it

Sake rice5 terms

Sake rice酒造好適米（しゅぞうこうてきまい）: Rice bred for brewing: large grains with a starchy heart. Yamada Nishiki, Gohyakumangoku, Omachi …More Guide: Sake regions and breweries
Yamada Nishiki山田錦（やまだにしき）: The "king of sake rice", grown mainly in Hyōgo. Elegant, fragrant sake.More Guide: Sake regions and breweries
Gohyakumangoku五百万石（ごひゃくまんごく）: Sake rice grown widely in Niigata and beyond. Clean, light sake.More Guide: Sake regions and breweries
Omachi雄町（おまち）: An heirloom sake rice from Okayama. Rich and complex sake.More Guide: Sake regions and breweries
Miyama Nishiki美山錦（みやまにしき）: A cold-hardy sake rice from Nagano, popular in Tōhoku and Shinshū. Crisp sake.More Guide: Sake regions and breweries

Shochu & awamori29 terms

Kusu古酒（クース）（くーす）: Awamori aged three years or more. Round, with a sweet aroma.More Guide: Kusu (aged awamori) and shitsugi
Honkaku shochu本格焼酎（ほんかくしょうちゅう）: Shochu distilled once in a pot still, so the ingredient's character stays.More Guide: Types of shochu and awamori
Imo shochu芋焼酎（いもじょうちゅう）: Made from sweet potato: sweet aroma, rich flavour. Mainly Kagoshima and Miyazaki.More Guide: Types of shochu and awamori
Mugi shochu麦焼酎（むぎじょうちゅう）: Made from barley: toasty and light. Ōita and Iki are famous.More Guide: Types of shochu and awamori
Kome shochu米焼酎（こめじょうちゅう）: Made from rice: soft, gently sweet. Kuma shochu from Kumamoto is the classic.More Guide: Types of shochu and awamori
Kokutō shochu黒糖焼酎（こくとうじょうちゅう）: Brown sugar with rice koji, with a rum-like sweetness. Only made in the Amami islands.More Guide: Types of shochu and awamori
Soba shochuそば焼酎（そばじょうちゅう）: Made from buckwheat: mellow and nutty. Born in Miyazaki.More Guide: Types of shochu and awamori
Kasutori shochu酒粕焼酎（さけかすじょうちゅう）: Distilled from sake lees (kasutori): a distinctive ginjo-like aroma.More Guide: Types of shochu and awamori
Black koji黒麹（くろこうじ）: The awamori koji: bold, rich, full-bodied shochu.More Guide: Types of shochu and awamori
White koji白麹（しろこうじ）: A mutation of black koji: clean, light, gentle shochu.More Guide: Types of shochu and awamori
Yellow koji黄麹（きこうじ）: The sake koji; in shochu it gives fruity, floral aromas.More Guide: Types of shochu and awamori
Atmospheric distillation常圧蒸留（じょうあつじょうりゅう）: Distilling at normal pressure: rich and full of the ingredient.More Guide: How honkaku shochu is made
Vacuum distillation減圧蒸留（げんあつじょうりゅう）: Distilling under reduced pressure at a lower temperature: light and fragrant.More Guide: How honkaku shochu is made
Awamori泡盛（あわもり）: Okinawa's spirit from Thai rice and black koji, made with an all-koji mash.More Guide: How does awamori differ from shochu?
Maewari前割り（まえわり）: Mixing shochu with water a day or more ahead, which makes it smoother.More Guide: Temperature and how to drink
Kōrui shochu甲類焼酎（こうるいしょうちゅう）: Shochu distilled many times in a column still: neutral, the base for chūhai and sours. KIKI covers honkaku shochu.More Guide: Types of shochu and awamori
Oyuwari (with hot water)お湯割り（おゆわり）: Shochu mixed with hot water. Pour the water first, then the shochu, for more aroma; 6 parts shochu to 4 water is the classic.More Guide: Temperature and how to drink
Mizuwari (with water)水割り（みずわり）: Shochu with cold water: softer, and easy to pair with food.More Guide: Temperature and how to drink
On the rocksロック（ろっく）: Shochu or awamori poured over a large ice cube. Full aroma and taste, changing gently as it melts.More Guide: Temperature and how to drink
Kurojoka黒ぢょか（くろぢょか）: Kagoshima's black clay pot: pre-diluted shochu is warmed in it slowly over a flame.More Guide: Shochu and awamori regions
Shitsugi仕次ぎ（しつぎ）: Topping up the oldest pot of awamori from the next-oldest, to keep kusu alive and growing.More Guide: Kusu (aged awamori) and shitsugi
Zen-kōji (all-koji mash)全麹仕込み（ぜんこうじじこみ）: All the rice becomes koji and goes into one single mash. This is how awamori is made.More Guide: How awamori is made
Ryukyu awamori (GI Ryukyu)琉球泡盛（りゅうきゅうあわもり）: Awamori under the "Ryukyu" geographical indication: black koji (Aspergillus luchuensis) and Okinawan water only, fermented, distilled, stored and bottled in Okinawa. Designated in 1995.More Guide: Where awamori is made
Ippanshu (regular awamori)一般酒（いっぱんしゅ）: Awamori aged less than three years: the everyday awamori, as opposed to kusu. In Okinawa it is mostly drunk with water.More Guide: Kusu (aged awamori) and shitsugi
Oyazake (parent pot)親酒（おやざけ）: The oldest pot in shitsugi, topped up from the next-oldest. Take out no more than a tenth a year.More Guide: Kusu (aged awamori) and shitsugi
Hanazake花酒（はなざけ）: A 60 % awamori from Yonaguni, made from the strong first part of the distillation. Above 45 %, awamori is classed as raw-material alcohol (原料用アルコール) under the Liquor Tax Act, though it may still be labelled awamori.More Guide: Where awamori is made
Karakaraカラカラ（からから）: Okinawa's ceramic pouring flask for awamori, wide at the bottom so it doesn't tip over.More Guide: How to drink awamori
Chibugwāちぶぐゎー（ちぶぐゎー）: A small Okinawan cup for sipping kusu.More Guide: How to drink awamori
Soda-wari (with soda)ソーダ割り（そーだわり）: Shochu topped up with soda, about 1 part shochu to 2–3 parts soda. Best with mugi or other light shochu.More Guide: How to mix shochu

Serving & more14 terms

Kan (warm sake)お燗（おかん）: Warming sake: nuru-kan (about 40 °C), atsu-kan (about 50 °C) and more.More Guide: Temperature and how to drink
Geographical indication (GI)地理的表示（ちりてきひょうじ）: A protected origin name, e.g. Yamagata, Hakusan, Nada Gogō, Satsuma, Kuma, Iki, Ryukyu.More Guide: Sake regions and breweries
Hiya冷や（ひや）: Sake at room temperature (about 20 °C). Despite the name, not chilled.More Guide: Temperature and how to drink
Reishu (chilled sake)冷酒（れいしゅ）: Chilled sake, about 5–15 °C. It suits ginjo and nama sake.More Guide: Temperature and how to drink
Yongōbin (720 ml)四合瓶（よんごうびん）: The 720 ml bottle, the everyday size for drinking at home.
Isshōbin (1.8 L)一升瓶（いっしょうびん）: The 1.8-litre bottle, the traditional standard size for sake and shochu. Often better value per glass.
Kuramoto (brewery owner)蔵元（くらもと）: The owner of a brewery, or the brewery itself; makes the sake together with the tōji.More Guide: Sake regions and breweries
Jizake (local sake)地酒（じざけ）: Local sake, made by a regional brewery and loved in its home area. A joy to look for when travelling.More Guide: Sake regions and breweries
Bottling date製造年月（せいぞうねんげつ）: The 製造年月 on a label is the month the sake was bottled, not brewed. Sake has no best-before date, so this is your freshness guide.More Guide: How to read a sake label
Yusen (hot-water bath)湯煎（ゆせん）: Warming sake by standing the flask in hot water: slow and even, the classic way to make warm sake.More Guide: How to warm sake
Nurukanぬる燗（ぬるかん）: Sake warmed to about 40 °C. The rice's umami and sweetness open up; lovely with junmai, kimoto and yamahai.More Guide: How to warm sake
Atsukan熱燗（あつかん）: Sake warmed to about 50 °C. Tastes crisp and dry; made for cold nights and hot food.More Guide: How to warm sake
Kanzamashi燗冷まし（かんざまし）: Sake that was warmed and has cooled down again. It is softer and smoother than before.More Guide: How to warm sake
Pure alcohol (grams)純アルコール量（じゅんあるこーるりょう）: The weight of alcohol in a drink: volume (ml) × strength (%) ÷ 100 × 0.8. One gō of 15 % sake holds about 22 g.More Guide: Calories and sugar in sake and shochu

Updated 30 September 2026All guides