Ikkomon Honkaku Shochu

Rating: 16/23 I've never had shochu before. It's frustratingly hard to come by. When I found this, there were 3 options available. I limited myself to one because I had no idea what to expect and didn't want to be stuck with three bottles of something I didn't like. Reading about the flavor profile of this one, it didn't sound as appealing to me as one of the others did because it mentioned a lighter, more sour profile with more minerals. I went with this though because it's a honkaku shochu made from sweet potato, which to me sounds as quintessentially shochu as it gets. Hopefully it's good. N: OK, that is sour. It reminds me of La Luna Cupreata. It isn't just sour as in tart - it has a funky fermented character that borders on decaying. There's a touch of melon as well and also a very faint eartiness with even fainter spices. The core of this actually seems pretty complex, though it's very difficult to describe. This is interesting, but is striking me as a bit too challenging. P: Mercifully, the low ABV here adds a clean creek water character and tones down the aggressiveness of the nose. This is actually very approachable and it's substantially sweeter than I'd expected. There's kind of musty paper first, then it gets into that sour flavor with mild sweetness that actually does remind me of sweet potato, plenty of earthiness, and some spiciness. The earth and spice remind me of potato and rye vodkas, respectively. It tastes fermented for sure. There's definitely some of that melon from the nose and there's also a touch of funky vegetation that isn't quite rotting. It's quite a complex palate with some interesting flavors, but it's still balanced and pretty easy to sip. It does come across as a bit watery, but it's a big improvement over the likes of soju and it has a very clean profile. Faint menthol numbingness as well, but not in a bad way. Think potato vodka, but with a bit more subtlety and depth of character. F: Clean water with some paper, sweet potato earthiness and a long-lingering fermented character. A touch of pepper as well. It's a very enjoyable finish, though it isn't very exciting. - Conclusion - This isn't quite what I expected, but it's quite good and much more approachable. It's pretty nuanced and easy to sip. It's hard to figure out just what to make of it and it's difficult to compare with other things because of its low ABV. I am inclined to believe, based on a quick side by side, that this is better than Beluga Transatlantic Racing Vodka (15/23). While I've at times considered a 14 or 15 for this, I've mostly been thinking of a 16 or maybe higher. 7 Leguas (17/23) has more fullness and tasty character to it though. This is more nuanced, but also more challengingly funky. I am thinking that this is better than Partida Añejo though. I think a 16 is most appropriate here, with a small chance of a 17 instead.