Hawaiian Shochu

Ken was an absolutely amazing tour guide and provided an in depth explanation on the process. It's a small operation but I'm very happy I made a reservation for a tour. It's small batch and unique. They use traditional methods and it reflects in the taste of the product. If you are visiting, I recommend emailing him and booking a tour!

Been coming since the pandemic. This small, husband and wife run distillery make the best local (not sure if anyone else even makes it) sochu and gin products! Get on their mailing list to keep up with their latest releases. Super friendly and always willing to talk about their products and production...it's worth the drive from town to pick up and chat with Ken-san and his wife. So much more to say about how they use local ingredients as much as they can, but I'll leave it at that. Come to see them...you won't be sorry!

If you can get a tour do it. Just go on their website and email him. Ken, the owner, is amazing. It's just him and his wife and they use a traditional method to distill. He thoroughly explains the process and then provides a tasting of one item. Bottles are more expensive than what you can get at the local stores, but it's the small batch hand crafted quality you're paying for. There are no timers, computers, etc here. Everything is done the traditional way with high quality ingredients.Please understand he's a one man operation and has limited availability for tours. Book way in advance. Or visit between operating hours, currently 1-3 pm, to purchase. Buy local, support local.

Bonzai strong shochu. It will whip your bottom! The suggested instruction to drink Banzai is to pour into a very small glass with a small amount of ice. Well, i didnt have small...so with a henerous amount ofnice and a pour over if Banzai, with a testing sip.... Yowza! Cheeehoooo! Strong ... too strong. Went to look for a bite to eat and the suggestion by Ken is dark chocolate or dried fruit. Well, i was hungry so heated up some chicken long rice. Came back to the table, took a couple of slurps of my chix longrice then took a tentative sip of the Banzai. Woweee! Different taste! Now, after dinner, im sipping the Banzai and thinking this is the best drink in earth. Was it the first sip? Or did this drink become sweet and im mellow and content! Peace Out!

They say the best can weather even the worst storms. I'm not so sure about that these days, but one outstanding local business I'm going to try to keep afloat is the Hawaiian Shochu company (HSC)Due to covid, HSC hasn't sold out of its regular 6,000 annual bottle production of the 750 ml bottle. The extra strong 375 ml is sold out for now. Lucky for me that let my friends and I pickup four bottles of their heavenly Nami Hana. Ken, the master brewer, suggested drinking it with a little ice, but not directly chilled from the fridge. I just drink it neat, cuz, you know, I'm not a heathen. They're only open for pickup via reservation, which you can make by email or telephone. The tour of the distillery is not regularly offered. So if you are planning to go to Haleiwa, make a reservation to drop by and pick up a bottle of some of the finest, most unique liquor. Just remember to wear your mask!

Forever in my heart the original on Liliha st !! Been going here since I was 5. I love everything Especially a hamburger steak grilled bread with jelly.

Hawaiian moonshine! I josh, rather award winning artisan shochu crafted using traditional Japanese methods, focusing on Hawaii grown ingredients.This isn't the stuff you'd mix with green tea, rather cut with water or served on ice, savoring the unmistakable nose of sweet potato, while enjoying the silkiness of the high proof spirit as it goes down and starts to warm you from within.Excess food trivia: Shochu is a distillate. Mold grown on rice consumes the sugar and starch of the sweet potato mash. The product ferments for months before being distilled, yielding a clear spirit of 60 - 90 proof. A visit with a tour by the enthusiastic husband and wife team will explain the entire process. Hands on from beginning to end, nearly zero automation, bottled and labels affixed by hand, steeped in history with 100 year old vats obtained from his master in Japan... it's just cool. And best of all, everything comes through in the finished product.Tasting note: 2016 NamiHana Banzai Strength - pronounced nose of steamed sweet potato. Gentle astringency that vanishes as ice melts leaving a very clean and slightly sweet finish. Sweet potato flavor lingers for minutes. $41 / 375ml as of Dec 2016.Note: email [email protected] to purchase and/or schedule a tour. Production is very limited so be sure to get on the list for the next release if sold out.Warning: to visit and experience the passion of the owners may kick off a shochu habit. A right fine thing If I should say so myself.

the compass points NORTH.Our North Shore adventure day continued with a visit to the Hawaiian Shochu Company in Haleiwa. My brother's girlfriend was keen on visiting during their vacation in December 2016 after reading an article on the internet profiling the owner and his business.LOCATION / SETTING: In a rural part of the North Shore/Haleiwa. We were thankful our GPS guided us on the right way to HSC. The property is large with one main building housing all the equipment and manufacturing processes. NOTE:1. Appointment made via email. On the day of our visit, we booked at 1pm appointment for a tour and tasting. I'm not sure what the fees were since I was not directly involved in making the arrangements.Upon our arrival at HSC, the three of us were greeeted by owner and proprietor, Ken, and his wife. They gave us a warm welcome and invited us into their production building. They also provided us with slippers to use while walking around the interior of the building.After our welcome, Ken proceeded to give us a brief history of the origins of HSC: He immigrated to Hawaii from Japan, where he was an apprentice and trained in the process and art of Shochu making/production. Incidentally, Ken was also eager to point out the differences between Shochu and Soju; the main difference that each has a different country or origin. Korea versus Japan. One other main characteristic he shared with us is that Shochu is distilled and not fermented or brewed. Although they were not currently in production at the time of our visit, he showed us a book containing pictures of their Shochu production process and gave us a tour of their production facility (which is all contained within the one building on the property). After the tour was completed, we all sat down for the main event: the tasting. Ken informed us all early on during the visit that they produce only two batches per year, spring and fall. We were going to sample product from the most recent batch, which was batch 7. Suffice to say, we all found the Shochu to our liking, and my brother and his girlfriend bought some bottles for gifts as well as one for themselves. side NOTE: We all found Ken to be very friendly and personable. We were all engaged in a lively conversation when his 2pm appointment arrived. At that point, we wrapped up on discussion, and Ken and his wife thanked us for our visit, extended holiday greetings, and we were on our way.BOTTOM LINE: A delightful visit to the Hawaiian Shochu Company. Recommend to locals and tourists for sure.

I was just introduced to this very special place on the north shore today. Went along for the ride with my cousin to pick up his order and was honored to meet Ken Hirata and his wonderful wife. Their passion for making shoju is obivious. I was lucky that their current batch was just released so that had bottles I could purchase without pre-ordering. Got it home and tried it. Even with high anticipation, it did not disappoint. Raising a glass to Hirata-san. Kampai!!

Excellent sake. Special breed for the Hawaii islands and the South Pacific. They sell 100% of their products before the end of the year!