Yanagita, Senbonzakura Beniharuka Sweet Potato Shochu, 25%, 720ml
Pre-order: due to arrive in the UK in late October 2026
Sweet potato shochu with honeyed depth, made from Beni Haruka potatoes grown around the distillery.
Sold only to customers aged 18 or over.
Senbonzakura (千本桜, a thousand cherry trees) is Yanagita Distillery's sweet potato series. This expression is made from Beni Haruka (紅はるか) sweet potatoes from contracted farmers around Miyakonojo, rested for 40 days or more before use, with black kōji on rice, distilled at atmospheric pressure and matured in enamel tanks. 25% ABV, 720ml.
Why Chefs Choose This
- Local potatoes: Beni Haruka from contracted Miyakonojo farmers
- Rested potatoes: stored for 40 days or more before processing, which the maker uses to build sweetness
- Black kōji: for a fuller, more robust body than white kōji gives
- Atmospheric distilled: keeps the sweet potato character at the front
How to Use
- With hot water: the classic sweet potato shochu serve, which lifts the aroma
- On the rocks: over a large ice cube
- With soda: long and cold for a lighter drink
- With food: pork, grilled meat and richly seasoned dishes
Yanagita Distillery (柳田酒造) was founded in 1902 in Miyakonojo, Miyazaki Prefecture, and is the oldest distillery in the city. It is still family-run, now by fifth-generation president Tadashi Yanagita, an engineer by training who adjusts the stills himself, and it makes around 65,000 bottles a year from barley and sweet potato, with labels still pasted on by hand. Water comes from the distillery's own wells, 100 to 150 metres deep, fed by the Kirishima mountains. Honkaku shōchū (本格焼酎) is Japan's single-distilled spirit, made with kōji like sake but distilled, and it is usually drunk with water, hot water, soda or ice.
What does Beni Haruka sweet potato shochu taste like?
Beni Haruka is a sweet variety, and in shochu it tends to give a soft, honeyed sweetness with notes of baked sweet potato. Japanese retailers describe Yanagita's Beni Haruka shochu in exactly those terms, with a smooth mouthfeel. Black kōji adds body and a firmer finish. Our own tasting notes will be added when the stock lands.
Product Details
| Type | Honkaku sweet potato shochu (本格芋焼酎) |
| Maker | Yanagita Distillery (柳田酒造), founded 1902 |
| Origin | Miyakonojo, Miyazaki Prefecture, Japan |
| Alcohol | 25% vol |
| Volume | 720ml bottle |
| Base | 83% Beni Haruka sweet potato, 17% rice kōji (maker's tech sheet) |
| Kōji | Black kōji |
| Distillation | Atmospheric pressure |
| Maturation | Enamel tank |
| Age Restriction | Sold only to customers aged 18 or over |
What is imo shochu?
Imo shochu is shochu distilled from sweet potato, the signature spirit of southern Kyushu. It has more aroma and body than barley or rice shochu, and is traditionally drunk with hot water, which brings out its sweet, earthy character.
Why is it called Senbonzakura?
Senbonzakura means a thousand cherry trees, and is the name of Yanagita's sweet potato series. The series was revived in 2013 after a long gap in production at the distillery.
When will my pre-order arrive?
This line is due to arrive in the UK in late October 2026. Pre-orders are dispatched once the stock has landed and been checked in at our warehouse. Anything still marked "To follow" on this page will be added when the stock is in.
SKU : X5003