What I’m Drinking Now: Ryan Ota and the Shochu Highball

Ryan Ota is beverage director at Eos & Nyx in San Jose, CA.

I taste cocktails and spirits as a major part of my job and it can be overwhelming. When I want to have a few drinks, I want something dry and simple.

My go-to right now is a Shochu Highball, known in Japan as a chu-hai. The lack of sugar keeps it crisp, and you can vary the flavor wildly depending on the shochu and citrus you choose, but it always remains simple and refreshing.

To make a Shochu Highball, build in a highball glass with ice: 1 ½ oz. of good honkaku shochu and 3 oz. of club soda. Squeeze a lemon wedge squeeze and drop into the glass.

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