Name: 黒麹造り安納 Kuro Korji Anou

Type: 芋焼酎 Potato shōchū

蒸留方法: 常圧蒸留 (Atmospheric)
Ingredients:

安納芋 Anno Sweet Potato (Kagoshima)
黒米麹 Black Rice Koji (Domestic)

Alcohol: 25%

Enjoy on the rocks

In the bottle: Beautifully fresh and light on the nose, with a soft sweetness that spreads generously out of the bottle, this gives the sweet potato ample room to expand and take center stage. After settling, light vanilla and cereal grain notes rise to the surface, joined by a touch of earthiness that ties everything together seamlessly. Anou keeps things simple—and that’s not a bad thing. What’s present comes across cleanly and well-integrated, building nice anticipation for what will be in the glass without any clutter or excess.

On the rocks: Incredibly bright and fresh sweet potato character takes the lead, backed by subtle chocolate, dried fruits, and just enough cereal grain to add interest—certainly more layers than the nose initially suggested. The finish brings a gentle black pepper bite, mirroring the nose and adding balance and complexity to the overall experience. As the ice melts, sweeter notes become more visible—particularly chocolate and cereal grain—which pair beautifully with the mellowed sweet potato. The result is a dynamic, enjoyable range of flavors that evolve gracefully over the glass.

Straight: High-impact sweet potato from the moment this hits the tongue. Annou starts with a slight sharpness for the first few seconds before moving to that characteristic sweetness that Annou sweet potatoes are known for. The second sip opens up a bit more as there is a bit of dark cacao, dried fruit, and a bit of black pepper bite on the finish, which makes this quite enjoyable neat in the glass.

Paired with Chocolate: Cafe Tasse dark chocolate. This was a very nice pairing. The cacao really opens up with Annou and the dried fruits/raisin notes blend really well, almost like an alcoholic Raisinets (chocolate-covered raisin). The finish had a bit of that black pepper bite which was a great balance to the sweetness of the chocolate and added quite a bit to the overall experience.

Reflections on this shōchū

Anou is straightforward in the best way—fresh, clean sweet potato focus with just enough supporting notes (vanilla, cereal, light earthiness, subtle chocolate/dried fruit) to make it interesting without overcomplicating things.
On the rocks is where it shines brightest: the brightness stays, the sweetness opens gently, and the pepper adds a nice edge. Simple, enjoyable, and easy to keep coming back to. A solid everyday sweet potato shōchū that delivers exactly what it promises.