Watanabe Hidama Roasted-Barley Infusion Spirit, 25%, 720ml
Barley shochu infused with hand-roasted barley: amber in the glass, with roasted, bitter-chocolate notes and no cask in sight.
Pre-order: arriving in the UK in early November 2026
Hidama (ヒダマ) is made by Watanabe Shuzōjō (渡邊酒造場), a shochu distillery in Tano, Miyazaki Prefecture. The distillery takes its own barley shochu and infuses it with six-row barley that has been slowly roasted by hand over a low heat. The roasting gives the spirit its amber colour and a fragrant, mellow aroma with notes the maker compares to bitter chocolate. It was the first release in Watanabe's Infusion Spirits range. 25% ABV, 720ml.
Why Chefs Choose This
- Something different on the list: a roasted-grain shochu that guests will not have tried before.
- Colour from the grain: the amber comes from roasted barley, not from cask ageing.
- Made for mixing: the maker recommends it with water or soda, which suits highballs.
- Works with rich food: suggested with Chinese dishes and meat.
How to Serve
- Mizuwari: with cold water over ice, to open up the roasted aroma.
- Soda highball: with chilled soda water in a tall glass with ice.
- On the rocks: for the fullest roasted character.
- With food: grilled meat, yakiniku and Chinese-style dishes.
Shochu is Japan's native distilled spirit, and southern Kyushu, including Miyazaki, is its heartland. Most shochu is made from a single base ingredient such as barley, sweet potato or rice. Watanabe Shuzōjō's Infusion Spirits range goes a step further by steeping a flavouring ingredient in the finished shochu, a technique borrowed from the world of infused spirits. With Hidama the added ingredient is barley again, but roasted, so the spirit tastes of the grain twice over.
Learn more: Shochu
What does Hidama taste like?
The maker describes a fragrant, mellow aroma and bitter-chocolate-like notes from the roasted barley, with a sweetness that develops in the glass. Think of the toasty smell of roasted barley tea, carried on a barley shochu base. Water or soda lengthens it and brings the roasted notes forward.
Product Details
| Type | Infusion spirit: barley shochu infused with roasted barley |
| Producer | Watanabe Shuzōjō (渡邊酒造場) |
| Origin | Tano, Miyazaki Prefecture, Japan |
| Infused With | Six-row barley, slow-roasted by hand |
| Alcohol | 25% ABV |
| Volume | 720ml |
| Cask Ageing | None; colour comes from the roasted barley |
What is an infusion spirit?
A spirit that has had a flavouring ingredient steeped in it after distillation. Watanabe makes its own shochu first, then infuses it, in this case with roasted barley. Because an ingredient is added after distilling, it is sold as an infusion spirit rather than as plain shochu.
Is it aged in oak?
No. The amber colour and the toasty notes come from the roasted barley infusion, not from a cask. The distillery states this clearly on its own description.
When will my pre-order arrive?
This line is due to land in the UK in early November 2026. Pre-orders are dispatched once the stock has arrived and been checked in at our warehouse. Alcohol is sold only to customers aged 18 or over.
SKU : X5006