Whenever you talk about Kagoshima,
you can’t avoid talking about shochu.
And when you talk about shochu in Japan,
you can’t avoid mentioning Kagoshima.
That’s how deeply connected this city is with shochu —
“Shochu means Kagoshima, and Kagoshima means shochu.”
So for a Kagoshima trip, shochu is essential.
It’s one of the biggest reasons why I travel to this city.
Of course, Kagoshima is a city of shochu, so you can find it anywhere.
Even ordinary restaurants often have ten, twenty, or more varieties.
You don’t need to search hard to taste the famous ones.
But!
If you’re truly into shochu, you eventually end up at a shochu bar.
You can explore a much wider range and hear fun stories from the owner.
Kagoshima has many such places,
and finding one that matches your taste feels like a personal mission for real enthusiasts.
The one I discovered is Shochu Bar S.A.O (焼酎BAR S.A.O).
It’s located underground along Bunkadori Street (文化通り),
just before you reach Tenmonkan Park (天文館公園).
The sign is tiny — keep your eyes open.
Compared to other bars, the backbar here might look small.
But what’s visible isn’t everything —
they have over a hundred kinds of shochu.
Quantity aside, what matters is how you experience them.
Here, shochu can be enjoyed in a more “maniac” way.
At least, that’s how it feels to me.
At S.A.O, you can drink “Maewari (前割り).”
You may know Soda-wari (ソーダ割り), Mizu-wari (水割り), or Oyu-wari (お湯割り), but Maewari is different —
it means “mixed beforehand.”
It’s basically shochu and water,
but they’re mixed several days in advance.
It sounds like it would taste the same as Mizu-wari, but it doesn’t.
The alcohol becomes softer, rounder —
you can really feel the difference.
It’s a subtle but amazing experience.
The first Maewari I tried here was from Manzen (萬膳).
The owner even used water brought directly from the Manzen distillery —
the same water used to make the shochu.
That dedication gives the drink a sense of unity.
This kind of obsession is what defines S.A.O for me —
a pure devotion to shochu.
When I asked what kind of Maewari he had this time,
the owner smiled and said,
“I have something very interesting.”
It was a five-year-aged version of Manazuru (真鶴),
the white-koji version of Manzen.
Usually, it’s aged for about a year before release,
but this special one was aged for five years and marked with a gold medal.
It was so good that I ordered it every time I visited.
I’m not entirely sure how much bottle-aging affects shochu after bottling,
but comparing the 2021 and 2024 versions,
I could definitely feel the passage of time.
That was fascinating.
One of the most unique drinks I had here was a kind of soda-wari.
Normally, soda-wari is just shochu mixed with sparkling water.
But this one was made by adding carbonation to Maewari itself.
I can’t quite explain how it differed,
but it was definitely a fun experience.
Another time, the owner said, “Let me show you something interesting,” and brought this out —
Nakamura Muroka Shinshochu 2025 (なかむら 無濾過 新焼酎 二〇二五).
It had been distilled just two days before my visit.
Fresh from the still.
When I smelled it, it had a very distinctive scent —
a kind of sharp aroma from the distillation process that hadn’t yet faded.
I decided to call it “jōryū-shū (蒸留臭)” — distillation aroma.
I didn’t drink it on the rocks but as Mizu-wari,
and that unique scent turned into a deep, savory note.
A transformation worth remembering.
At S.A.O, special experiences are guaranteed.
When I asked for a soda-wari recommendation,
perhaps because it was autumn, he served me another Shinshochu —
Kura no Shikon (蔵の師魂).
The clear bottle is for Shinshochu; the dark one for the regular version.
It was very clean, with a pleasant sweet potato aroma at the finish.
Perfect for soda-wari.
Another time, he recommended a soda-wari made with “Joy White.”
I couldn’t find much info online,
but I learned that “Joy White” is actually the name of a sweet potato variety.
A rare and charming drink.
You can order a few small dishes here,
but they’re truly small.
Think of them not as a meal, but as light bites to go with your drink.
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