Yardbird, the commonplace yakitori restaurant in Sheung Wan, is commonly used for its wide range of jap liquors such as umeshu (plum wine), sake, shochu and jap whisky, lots of which characteristic within the inventive cocktails. whereas Hong Kong diners are frequently established with these drinks, the restaurant currently has all started to make cocktails with a lesser-general jap spirit, awamori.
entertaining to Okinawa, awamori is hard to locate outdoor Japan. Elliot Faber, Yardbird's beverage director, explains: "Awamori is a blanketed appellation distillate produced in Japan's 47th prefecture of Okinawa. rather than being comfortably fermented from jap rice as in sake creation or being fermented and then distilled from dissimilar elements ranging kind corn to barley and soba as in shochu production. Awamori is distilled solely from Thai rice."
About as close to Hong Kong because it is to Tokyo, Okinawa became widely used as the Ryukyu Kingdom and cut loose mainland Japan, except the nineteenth century, so lots of Okinawa's traditions come from other ingredients of Asia. Add to that its subtropical climate and delightful shorelines and even jap americans see the archipelago as a bit diverse from the rest of the country.
It's these idiosyncrasies that caught the attention of Yardbird's co-proprietor and executive chef Matt Abergel, who, together with Faber, travelled to Okinawa these days to be taught greater about its meals and subculture.
"It's the style of the Hawaii of Japan – that turned into the inspiration," says Abergel of their new awamori cocktail, named Okinawa categorical. With pineapple juice, lime, Okinawa black sugar, black sugar shochu and aged awamori, Abergel says "The purpose for the cocktail and our service of awamori is to make it purchasable".
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As a distilled beverage, an identical in production components to vodka, whisky or rum, awamori's alcohol content material is greater than fermented alcohols reminiscent of wine or sake, and might take somewhat of getting used to. Cocktails are therefore a great way to get conversant in the drink.
"depending on your favourite foreign spirit, it can shock to understand that there are forms of awamori that a newcomer to the category may be in a position to familiarise themselves with," says Faber.
As with many spirits, awamori can also be aged, so they can affect its flavour.
Faber says, "Awamori has a distinct vibrant youngsters earthy terroir to it. sometimes aged in ex-bourbon casks or home made ceramic urns, awamori can range from round and vanillic when aged in barrels to having a grassy or yoghurt personality whether it is bottled younger or aged in ceramic. this can all depend upon getting older methods and alcohol power. The results can yield a sparkling, lean spirit or something more wealthy and savoury [to] the palate."
The awamori used within the Okinawa categorical is Kura, made via Helios, a 55-12 months-ancient distillery in Nago, almost correct in the center of Okinawa island. it's aged for three years in new American very wellbarrels, giving it a fuller body and creamy notes. Helios is certainly one of greater than 50 awamori distilleries in Okinawa prefecture, and regardless of being somewhat younger (just a few that date again to the nineteenth century are nevertheless in operation these days), it produces a big range of products – awamori aged in traditional ceramic urns, metal tanks, French and American oak, in addition to fruit liqueurs, rum (the use of native sugarcane) and craft beer – and has develop into one of the few extra recognisable awamori brands in Hong Kong.
Ku-suya Rakuen, an Okinawan izakaya in Causeway Bay, also serves Helios's Kura. The izakaya is a part of En neighborhood, a cafe community headquartered by way of Hong Kong brothers Peter Hung-yan and Raymond Hung-tat Ng, who grew up in Okinawa.
There are more than a dozen distinctive awamori available by the glass in Ku-suya Rakuen, and they're traditionally inebriated neat, on ice or with still water. There are greater modern mixers together with soda water and juice from the shiquasa, a tart citrus fruit native to the islands.
In authentic izakaya vogue, the meals is only as vital at Ku-suya Rakuen.
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whereas Yardbird is yet to introduce any Okinawan dishes, Abergel and Faber say that definite dishes on their existing menu pair with awamori, such as the eggplant salad, which includes smoky, torched eggplant, cucumber, myoga (jap ginger) and a tosazu (bonito and soy vinegar) dressing. "commonly, it's a summery dish, and that i suppose everything that we're talking about has this type of warm-weather form of believe, [like Okinawa]," Abergel says. "The earthiness of the nasu [eggplant] and the umami of the tosazu works with barrel-aged or undiluted awamori," adds Faber. Shiso duck-fried rice, with brilliant floral herbs layered with the gaminess of the duck confit, creates a pretty good stability.
For the skewers that Yardbird is time-honored for, Faber says, "i would love to see the duck meatball with the barrel-aged awamori and whatever thing like fowl thigh shiso ume or fillet with a younger awamori." He provides: "The awamori selection can be an extension of the shochu part with a two or three offerings and two highballs. At Ronin [their sister restaurant], I plan to construct the option up with 5 - 6 offerings and two highballs."
Ku-suya Rakuen
12/F Circle Tower, 28 Tang Lung street, Causeway Bay, tel: 3580 8858
Yardbird
33-35 Bridges street, Sheung Wan, tel: 2547 9273
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