Kevin Diedrich

Part 1: Experimenting with Distinctly Flavored Shochu Makes Mixology Very Fun

Kevin Diedrich opened Pacific Cocktail Haven (P.C.H.), a popular San Francisco bar, in 2017. Since then, he has won accolades for running one of “The World’s 50 Best Bars,” and he has been recognized for running the “Best American Cocktail Bar” and being the “Best American Bartender” by Tales of the Cocktail®. Diedrich is a regular among the top award contenders, this year being no exception. The owner bartender has also garnered popularity for being one of the first in the U.S. to put drinks made with Honkaku Shochu (single distillation shochu) on the menu.

⇒ Read Part 2: “There’s a Special Art to Welcoming Strangers Without Expecting Anything in Return”

Text: Akira Suzuki / Photography: Koichi Mitsui / Composition: Contentsbrain /
 English translation: LIBER
Interview Location: Kenji and Loa Bar, both located on the first floor of the International House Hotel at 221 Camp Street, New Orleans, Louisiana 70130, U.S.A.

No Other Spirit Contains the Stimulating Savoriness of Koji

One of the big differences between shochu and spirits like gin, vodka, and tequila is that producing shochu involves the use of koji. As a koji expert, what do you think is the appeal of using it?

What makes shochu so different from other spirits are the flavor and aroma coming from the koji. The umami really stimulates the taste buds. This creates a wonderful combination. No other spirit contains the stimulating savoriness of koji. Experimenting with the distinct flavor makes mixology very fun.

Japanese people are familiar with the distinctive aroma of drinks and condiments made with koji, such as amazake, miso, and soy sauce, but how do Americans react to them?

I think they have a good reaction when koji is used in cocktails. When American connoisseurs of alcoholic beverages taste the unique elements and freshness of koji in a cocktail, a drink they’re familiar with, it’s very appealing and intriguing to them.

Until recently, many people would have recoiled uncomfortably at the mention of a microorganism called koji fungus. How about now?

I think the general American public is becoming more aware of the fact that fermentation with koji fungus is part of making miso, soy sauce, shio koji, and other seasonings and condiments. More and more people are also learning that yeast, which is also microorganisms, is used with sugar to produce the alcohol in spirits. In the case of shochu, koji fungus acts on starch to convert it into sugar. This is the preliminary stage of alcohol fermentation. If you explain each step of the process, then you can dispel any misconceptions about fermentation with koji fungus.

In that case, it’s important for a bartender to share information with their customers.

That’s true. First, the bartender needs to gain knowledge. When you have a solid grasp, then you can talk with customers and expand their knowledge.

When I Find Something Unique,
I Ponder It

We heard you were one of the few top bartenders who appreciated shochu soon after Sanwa Shurui started exporting it to the States.

My wife is actually Hawaiian of Japanese descent, so we often visited Tokyo and I already had experience drinking different types of shochu. My first impression was that because of koji’s aroma, it reminds me of sake a little bit. Of course, the taste is different from sake, but it was very deep. When I drank it in Japan, it was almost always mixed with soda or served straight, so it was a challenge for me to make a new cocktail with shochu.

When I started mixing my own shochu cocktails, they had a unique character I hadn’t sensed with other spirits and I really liked them. When I find something that’s unique, I like to ponder it and experiment with it over and over again to understand its flavor. I’ve always liked experimenting with the unfamiliar.

I Decided to Keep Bartending
Because It’s Fun

Let me ask about you, Kevin. What made you want to become a bartender?

That’s a really long story... I’ll make it short. For five years I worked with IT and computers. I was an engineer in charge of centralized network management. I worked in a room with a big map of the U.S. with lights on it. As soon as a light switched from green to red, I would contact somebody in that state and deal with their problem. I was still 20 or 21 years old.

I grew up in D.C. My best friend and roommate was a DJ, and my girlfriend at the time was a bartender. I would party with them almost every night. It was so much fun I decided I wanted to work in a bar, too, so I quit my job as an engineer and went to bartending school. But since I didn’t have any experience working in a bar, it was hard to find a job. Fortunately, my girlfriend’s acquaintance gave me an introduction that landed me my first bartending gig at the Ritz-Carlton in D.C.

And then you were a bartender!

Yep, that was the beginning. I was still 22, so basically a kid. In addition to the Ritz-Carlton, I worked at a nightclub on weekends. I did it because it was so much fun. After a while, the beverage manager at the Ritz-Carlton told me to start making cocktails, but I still didn’t know much about them back then.

That’s why I started reading books to study them. That was when I realized I didn’t know much about spirits in general, not just cocktails. So I started visiting other cities to research bars and cocktails. In the process, I decided to move to San Francisco to study spirits and bartending more in-depth.

Why did you choose San Francisco?

I visited many cities, including New York and Chicago. But I grew up on the East Coast, so I wanted to go somewhere totally different. That’s why I requested a transfer to the Ritz-Carlton in San Francisco. In 2007, I bought a one-way ticket and moved there with all my belongings in three bags. Later, I returned to D.C., then moved to New York, and then again went back to San Francisco, where I went independent and opened my own bar, Pacific Cocktail Haven (P.C.H.).

⇒ Read Part 2: “There’s a Special Art to Welcoming Strangers Without Expecting Anything in Return”