Japanese ‘limoncello’

We’ve been fans of the cheerful yellow Italian lemon liqueur limoncello for some time. But did you know the Japanese have a variant? Yuzushu sake.

Sake? Absolutely—a sweet sake, to be precise. Well, sweet… The name yuzushu sake gives it away: yuzu is used in this sake. The flavor of the Japanese fruit can be described as a cross between grapefruit, mandarin and lemon. And you can taste that: quite bitter and very tart. You have to like it, but for those who prefer to drink their limoncello a little less sweet, the yuzu variant is the perfect solution.

Would you serve a Lidl wine to your guests without embarrassment? And would you admit it honestly?

As the basis for a cocktail

Of course, you can drink it in its purest form à la limoncello, but it also works well as the basis for a refreshing spritzer or in a cocktail. The advantage: the drink contains only 10 percent alcohol. Want to try it? You can, among other places, at restaurant Entrepot, where they serve Ginjo yuzushu sake from Japanese brewer Akashi-tai. Ginjo isn’t a brand, but a class. What single malt is for whisky, Ginjo is for sake. A premium sake with yuzu, in other words. A nice change from your ‘standard’ digestif.