Akae

Ochiai Distillery moved to its present location alongside the Kagamizu River after their original water source was corrupted due to land development. Today they draw their water from a spring beneath the river. Known primarily for sweet potato shochu, they are continuously innovating with alternative ingredients including ginger root, bell peppers, and unfortunately, garlic. 

Akae is made with murasaki masari sweet potatoes from Miyakonojo, Miyazaki. Filtration is kept to a minimum using only hand-skimming of oils off the surface of the aging tanks to create this bold, unfiltered shochu.