In the bottle: There is an initial mellowness when you first crack the bottle open that while soft at first, slowly opens up into a range of beautifully sweet and earthy Awamori vibes. This is definitely one of the most fragrant bottles I have opened in a long time; Ryūkyūōchō Tokusen Koshu has an almost floral note to it, which might be a first for me to find. Additionally, you get a little more oxygen in, I have to say this becomes a bit like an earthy bath soap, it is not unpleasant but yeah, bath soap.   

On the rocks: The first sip is an interesting mix of bright freshness overlayed on top of an earthy funk that has a long lasting finish of full of vanilla, custard and a bit of cacao in for good measure. Letting the ice melt a bit more, Ryūkyūōchō Tokusen Koshu mellows out very quickly and while the intensity fades into the background, what is lefts is smooth and incredibly enjoyable if you are looking to enjoy this sip by sip.

Straight: Super smooth, with a strong vanilla, burnt caramel and custard opening that just works so well neat in the glass. The finish on that first sip has a nice earthy funk that melds perfectly with the initial hit of dry sweetness to tie the whole experience together. Ryūkyūōchō Tokusen Koshu rank quite high up there in my top Awamori bottles, mainly for just how amazing this is neat in the glass, really worth giving it a go.

Paired with Chocolate: Tonny's Chocolonely 70% Dark. This is an interesting one, I tried this a couple of times and the Awamori just seems to disappear in the chocolate, you can catch a bit of the alcohol but really not much else showing up. The only thing I could find was a a really nice earthy cacao vibe on the finish, hard to judge if this was a good pairing or not.  

Neat or on the rocks