TOKYO, Japan — Shochu producers hoping to take advantage of the United States’ and Europe’s removal of import barriers are instead bumping into a major regulatory impediment at home. Late last year, the United States relaxed its shochu bottle size requirements, allowing distillers to ship spirits in their usual 720-milliliter and 1.8-liter bottles. Previously, they had to rebottle their liquid exports, which was seen as a non-tariff barrier by many. In 2018, the European Union reduced its bottle size regulation. As a result of the increased export potential, more shochu producers are looking to expand into international markets. “The world has yet to find shochu,” said a spokesperson of Hamadasyuzou, a distillery in Kagoshima Prefecture that unveiled Daiyame 40, a sweet potato-based shochu aimed solely at export markets, in May.
Daiyame 40 shochu was created particularly for international markets by Hamadasyuzou.
The alcohol concentration of the liquor is 40%, which is nearly double that of conventional shochu. According to CEO Yuichiro Hamada, the high content “makes it excellent as a cocktail foundation.” Kirishima Shuzo, a distiller from Miyazaki Prefecture, will conduct market research in the United States, China, and Southeast Asia for the first time this summer. Consumers who have had to spend more time at home owing to the pandemic are expected to drive demand, according to the company, which is famed for its Kuro Kirishima brand. However, the global shochu industry’s ambitions to promote its tipples outside of Japan are hampered by Japan’s “color” rule. The National Tax Agency established a regulation in the 1950s requiring a shochu spirit’s color intensity to be about one-tenth that of ordinary whisky. It was created to differentiate shochu from whisky. The issue, according to distillers, is that they are being compelled to remove the amber color that is associated with high-end whiskey in other countries. “Colorless drinks are not well received in other countries,” said Michito Ikebe, president of Rokuchoshi-syuzou. The Kumamoto Prefecture distiller filters their shochu via charcoal to change the hue. “Unless the color limitation is loosened, exporting shochu will remain tough,” said Taiki Nakayama, head of Tokyo shochu exporter Nanzan Bussan. “Distilled drinks are rarely regulated by color outside of Japan.”
At the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History in Washington, visitors can sample Hamadasyuzou’s premium shochu.
There are two types of shochu. The ko type is distilled several times to remove impurities, whereas the otsu type is distilled only once to preserve the rich aromas and smells of important ingredients. When matured in wooden barrels, otsu shochu can take on an amber hue, similar to whisky. However, distillers are required to filter off the hue under current regulations. Regulators aren’t sympathetic, with one official claiming that distillers are solely to blame. The Japanese government approached the shochu sector about loosening the color rule while negotiating with other countries to remove trade obstacles. However, several manufacturers complained, believing that the measure would result in the loss of their favorable tax treatment, according to the official. During the 1980s and 1990s, the whisky tax rate was cut in response to requests from the United Kingdom, which was attempting to grow Scotch whisky exports to Japan. Even yet, shochu with an alcohol concentration less than 37 percent is taxed at a lower rate than whiskey. Some shochu producers are concerned that if the color limits are lifted, whisky and shochu will be regarded equally, and shochu’s preferred status will be lost. Companies that don’t sell long-aged beverages were adamantly opposed to the loosening. In February, Japan specified what constituted Japanese whisky based on the use of domestic water and other characteristics, and the color regulation lost much of its relevance as a way to distinguish shochu from whisky. Shochu has lagged behind other alcoholic beverages in terms of exports. Annual shochu exports remained stable at roughly 1.5 billion yen ($13.5 million) from 2000 to 2020. Whisky exports, which were equivalent to shochu’s in 2010, increased 23-fold to 27.1 billion yen in 2020, while sake exports were 24.1 billion yen. The government included premium shochu in a focused export effort in November to enhance shochu’s international sales. By the end of 2025, the goal is to more than triple the value of shochu exports to 4 billion yen. Some distillers, however, are frustrated since they are unable to market their product as shochu. By adding dietary fiber to their beverage, a few have begun to promote it as liqueur. One observer believes that if this practice expands, Japan’s shochu business will lose reputation, and consequently international markets. Despite government efforts to help the business, Shochu faces a battle on the domestic front. Shochu sales in Japan have decreased by around 25% in volume from their peak in fiscal 2007./n
