Distillery: 沖縄県酒造協同組合 Okinawa Shuzō
Address: 2 Chome-8-9 Minatomachi, Naha, Okinawa 900-0001
Website: https://www.awamori.or.jp
Additional Content: There is a short introductory video on youtube, mostly just showing areas of the distillery with no addtional explanation other than just stating to bring aged Awamori to the world.
Name: 海乃邦 1990年 Uminokuni 1990
Type: 泡盛 Awamori 26yr (Bottled in 2016)
蒸留方法: 常圧蒸留 (Atmospheric)
Ingredients:
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米(タイ産) Rice (Thailand)
Alcohol: 42%
In the bottle: To start, there is a really nice earthiness that pours from the bottle—like wet stone with some musty notes on the back end. Once it opens up a bit, you get these beautifully smooth and fresh awamori notes. All the key components are there: vanilla, caramel, custard, toasted rice, and cocoa, which give this 26-year Uminokuni some nice complexity. The nose is rich, layered, and very inviting, building strong anticipation for the glass.
On the rocks: What hits the tongue is a perfect marriage of earthy and sweet—those vanilla, caramel, custard, toasted rice, and cocoa notes flow in and out in a wash of awamori amazingness. At 43% it never feels heavy, and the alcohol really helps spread out the remaining flavors on the finish, which is refreshingly dry. As the ice melts, you are treated to an ever-evolving glass of awamori—the earthy notes expand, giving a range of aged flavors while the sweeter notes take a bit of a back seat. Very dynamic and enjoyable over ice.
Straight: So smooth. Just like on the rocks, you start with a hit of funky earthiness that quickly fades into those beautiful sweet notes—vanilla, caramel, custard, toasted rice, and cocoa that just fill the entire palate. The 43% alcohol does a great job carrying the key flavors of this well-aged awamori and never oversteps its bounds or gets in the way. Neat in the glass is an excellent way to appreciate and enjoy this masterpiece—refined, intense, and deeply satisfying.
Enjoy Straight or On-the-rocks
Bottle label and Information
Front Label
Back Label
Name: 海乃邦10年 Uminokuni 10yr
Type: 泡盛 Awamori 10yr
蒸留方法: 単式常圧蒸留
Ingredients:
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米麹(タイ産米) Rice Koji (Thailand)
Alcohol: 43%
In the bottle: At the crack of the bottle, there is a beautifully fragrant burnt caramel sauce with vanilla on the front end, and at the back there are ripe cherries and toasted rice—just sublime. If you nose this a bit too hard, you will find the alcohol, but that is to be expected at 43%; however it is not off-putting and adds another layer of complexity to this amazing awamori. The overall nose is rich, layered, and deeply inviting.
On the rocks: Uminokuni comes in thick, sweet, and powerful—all of those beautiful notes from the nose are front and center and full of impact, which can be a bit overwhelming on the first sip. However, for as heavy as it feels in the mouth, it still remains easy to sip and only gets smoother as the ice melts. The 43% alcohol adds a good level of complexity with a nice bite on the backend that reminds me of cracked black pepper and almonds—or more like the skin on the almond, which has a slight nutty bitterness.
水割り Diluted with water
4:1 ratio: While I did not specifically try diluting this down, I did let the ice melt quite far; overall it was very similar to on the rocks, just a bit more mellow. Given the range of high-impact notes, I really preferred this at its maximum intensity.
Enjoy straight or on the rocks
Reflections on this Awamori
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I love everything about Uminokuni—from the package and bottle to the beautiful awamori inside. It is a bit pricey at around 3,000 JPY, but well worth it.
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Overall, this is a very accessible awamori with a clean and refined taste. It would make a great introduction if you have never experienced awamori before—the flavors are smooth, mature, and approachable without any harshness or overwhelming intensity. The toasted rice, caramel, vanilla, and subtle earthy notes come through clearly, making it easy to appreciate even for newcomers.
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I am very keen to try everything I can find from this distillery. The webstore has a special set of 6 bottles that seems like a low-risk purchase—perfect for exploring more of their range without committing to full bottles of each one right away. Given the quality of Uminokuni, it feels like a safe bet that the rest will deliver similar refinement and enjoyment.
Bottle label and Information
Front Label
Bottle Label
Name: 海乃邦15年 Uminokuni 15yr
Type: 泡盛 Awamori 10yr
蒸留方法: 常圧蒸留 (Atmospheric)
Ingredients:
-
米麹(タイ産米) Rice Koji (Thailand)
Alcohol: 43%
In the bottle: Right from the start you are treated to a wash of cocoa, vanilla, and a slight bit of cherry that follows along with a sudden burst of strong/sweet/dry awamori notes that you can often find with Uminokuni. Once you get a little oxygen in the bottle, what comes out is fragrant and almost perfumey; however, considering everything that you can find on the nose, the alcohol is practically nonexistent, even at 43%. Overall, this is already an amazing bottle of awamori and builds a lot of anticipation for what this 15-year-old bottle will deliver in the glass.
On the rocks: Uminokuni knocks it out of the park again with this 15-year offering—this is easily one of the smoothest awamori I have ever had. The important part is that smoothness does not in any way take away from the impact notes; you still get the full range of big flavors from rice, cocoa, vanilla, and custard, each with a perfect amount of sweetness and clay dryness. Interestingly, the cherry notes only appeared on the finish, while still very nice, were not as up front as I thought they might be. Overall, an absolute smash and something to savor slowly.
Straight: Wow, Uminokuni 15-year is unbelievably smooth and maybe one of the best I have ever had neat in the glass. Right from the start, you get a wash of sweet rice awamori notes, most notably cocoa, vanilla, and that bit of cherry found on the nose which linger nicely before fading into some drier, more earthy flavors. The finish keeps mostly to the sweeter flavors, and the 43% does its job by bringing the softer cherry more to the forefront—kind of reminds me a little of cherry cola or cherry Dr Pepper without the bubbles.
Paired with Chocolate: Kaldi 70% dark chocolate. Another interesting match. The cherry notes burst open and meld with the chocolate to create a dark cherry chocolate dessert-type vibe. As mentioned many times, it is time that chefs start to experiment with shōchū and awamori in desserts—absolutely amazing. The pairing elevates both: the chocolate gains richer depth and fruitiness, while the awamori adds smooth warmth and complexity.
Enjoy straight or on the rocks
Reflections on this Awamori
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Another dream bottle from Uminokuni—just an absolutely perfect awamori experience.
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Awamori and chocolate is really a match made in heaven. If only I had an oven, I would definitely explore some awamori-based desserts—the richness, subtle fruitiness, and smooth maturity seem like they’d work beautifully in a ganache, cake soak, or even a simple reduction. The pairings I’ve tried so far have been outstanding, and this bottle only reinforces how well the category plays with dark chocolate.
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I really enjoyed the aesthetics of this bottle, especially the blue bottle which really gives you an island vibe. The color feels fresh and evocative of Okinawa, and the overall design is clean and elegant—makes it feel special just sitting on the shelf.
Bottle label and Information
Box
Back Label
Bottle Top
