When you want a drink with your meal in Japan, you should drop by an izakaya. An izakaya, like a pub in the West, offers a place for visitors to enjoy food and drinks in a social atmosphere.
A broad range of people go to izakayas, from college students to seniors, and men and women often go together. Most visitors who go to izakayas are friends, couples, or work colleagues, but there are also people who enjoy having a quiet drink by themselves.
Each izakaya will have various products available, but the following kinds of beverages will be on offer at any izakaya.
1. Beer
The first beverage is beer, a staple for foreign tourists as well as Japanese people. Most places will primarily offer domestic lagers, but some izakayas also have options such as foreign ales and locally-brewed beers. When pouring a beer in Japan, it is common to purposely create a foamy head atop the beer, with a 7:3 ratio of beer to foam. It is believed that this prevents the beer from losing flavor by exposure to air and keeps CO2 from escaping.
2. Hoppy
The taste of “Hoppy,” a Japanese original, is quite similar to beer. You mix it with shōchū (a Japanese variety of distilled liquor, explained below) when drinking it.
3. Shochu
Shochu is a variety of distilled liquor, made from a principal ingredient such as rice, potatoes, or barley. Many kinds of Shochu are clear, and compared to other varieties of liquor stocked at izakayas, Shochu will have a comparatively high alcohol by volume (ABV) of 35-45%. Various brands are manufactured all over Japan. Depending on the brand, Shochu has a harsh or sweet flavor, so enjoy searching for a taste that suits you.
4. Sake (Nihonshu)
Sake is brewed using rice as the primary ingredient and also has a comparatively high ABV (15%). There are many different brands of sake, so you can enjoy drinking and comparing them.
5. Cocktails
Cocktails are next on the list. These drinks are familiar to people all over the world. In addition to standard cocktails, bars also offer original cocktails.
6. Ocha-wari
Ocha-wari refers to Shochu mixed with green tea, oolong tea, or jasmine tea.
7. Sours
Sours consist of a base of shōchū or some other liquor, combined with ingredients such as fruit juice, then diluted with soda water. These are also known as chūhai. Similar to cocktails, some sours may have fruit pulp or pickled plums floating in the drink.
8. Umeshu And Other Fruit Wines
Fruit wine is made by fermenting fruits such as plums, peaches, apples, and mandarin oranges. These sweet-tasting drinks are popular with women. These are drunk on the rocks and sometimes diluted with water or soda water.
For non-drinkers, izakayas will also have juice, tea, soft drinks etc.
Article: Matcha JP