Although shochu has recently become much more popular than sake in Japan, the reality is that shochu is not as popular as sake in the U.S. Some people don't even know the meaning of the term "shochu." In this case, wait staff will have to educate the customer and recommend ways for enjoying this new drink. We suggest that the wait staff should know the following things, and the recommendations are based on the level of the customer's knowledge about shochu.

The variety of shochu is sometimes mentioned or listed on the bottle's label. 

There are suitable foods to enjoy with shochu that is made from a variety of ingredients.

There is no set rule for drinking shochu, but there are preferred ways to drink it. Generally there are five ways to serve shochu. How it is served changes how one will experience and enjoy the many different characteristic tastes and aromas.

Rice Steaming Stage
The steaming process helps to make the dissolving of rice starch easier and also provides a sterilizing effect.

Koji
Koji is made by sprinkling koji-kin(aspergillus oryzae) on steamed rice that has been cooled to 95 ℉ - 104℉. Koji-kin is used in shochu production to break down the starches in steamed rice into fermentable sugars. It takes about two days to make koji

Technically shochu does not have a shelf life since distilled alcoholic beverages are not so high in sugar and/or protein content. Shochu is usually more than 25% in alcohol content, so technically it can be enjoyed for a long time without risk of decomposition. Many times people age shochu more, just as whiskey enthusiasts prefer well-aged bottles. 

The single distilling method, which usually is used for Otsu-rui shochu, can involve two different methods: 

1. Normal pressed distillation
2. Decompression distillation

Koji-kin (aspergillus oryzae) is the mold used in shochu production to break down the starches in steamed rice or sweet potatoes into fermentable sugars so that the yeast can then begin their job of converting the sugar into alcohol. Koji-kin is very, very important in producing or affecting the taste of the final shochu. 

Japanese sake is made from rice, just as wine is made from grapes. But shochu (Otsutype shochu) can be made from a variety of raw materials. Each material imparts a different unique flavor and aroma profile to the final shochu. The high-quality ingredients have to be selected carefully and are usually produced in the same region where the shochu is made. 

There are two types of shochu known as "ko-rui" or "otsu-rui". The difference in the two results from the number of times they are distilled.

There are two ways to make warmed sake. The first way is used in professional establishments such as restaurants. The second method is recommended for very busy restaurants or to people who want to enjoy warmed sake at home.

WHAT IS NIGORI?

Nigorizake is made from moromi that is filtered through rough cloth right before fermentation is complete. In nigori, the sweetness of the rice is easily tasted. Some nigoris are of the sparkling variety because when nigori is done pre-fermenting, the carbonation remains.
WHAT IS GENSHU? - Genshu is raw, undiluted sake It is moromi that is heated, filtered, and has no added water. It is then bottled immediately. Genshu has an alcohol content of 20-22%. Most of the sake to hit the consumer market is not genshu. The sake has water added reducing the actual content to 15-16%.

The Yayoi Era (B.C.300~ A.D.300)

Sake is offered to the Gods as a gift

The keywords associated with Japanese sake are 'Rice' and 'Farming'. It is well known that the first Japanese sake was created in the Western part of Japan in the Yayoi Era when the hunting society changed to an agrarian society.
At the time, people had not mastered the technique of fermenting rice, so they had to chew the rice well, using their saliva in lieu of the modern fermentation process. Don't worry, though; this saliva-made sake was used solely for religious rituals, not as a beverage.
Not everyone could make the chewed sake Women known as Miko who serve god were the only ones qualified to make the sake intended for honoring the gods.
Currently tojis are nearly all men, but originally sake was made by women.

Although customers will get sake information from the sake menu, the wait staff needs to know how to recommend sake to customers. The restaurant does not always need to have a sake sommelier, but the customer expects to be able to get answers from the wait staff. Inquiries may include things such as how to select the best matching sake for a particular dinner.

The following points would be useful for the wait staff to know.

Japanese sake is very sensitive & delicate and there are NO added preservatives as compared to wine. The pasteurization process helps to deter the degradation (aging) of the sake.
The lack of preservatives in sake makes it vulnerable to change in response to factors such as light, temperature or exposure to air. There are two things to remember to preserve the taste of sake .

Do the types of containers used change the taste of sake YES!!
The fragrance and taste of sake are totally dependent upon the size and shape of the container in which the sake is served. There are three points to consider in choosing containers for serving sake

Can Japanese sake be enjoyed with cuisine other than Japanese food? YES!! Japanese sake is most adaptable to any kind of cuisine because of its low acidity. Japanese, French or Italian foods can be enjoyed simply by changing the type of sake served with the meal.

Depending of the category and type, Japanese sake can be enjoyed at a variety of temperatures. But Japanese sake is a luxury drink so don't fail to experiment. Sake is always best enjoyed when the drinker finds the temperature he or she prefers the most.

Different rices produce sake 's with different tastes, just as different types of grapes produce different wines. The best types of rice for brewing sake contain less protein. The grain should be firm and not easily break during the rice polishing process. Sake rice typically has a bigger grain than table rice and has a lot of starch at the center of the grain called "shinpaku". Because shinpaku is white and very soft, it easily absorbs the Koji mold which converts the starch into sugar. 

The individual character of a particular sake is due in part to the variety of sake rice used in brewing (See diagram that shows the varieties of popular sake rice.) 

The making of saké requires three important processes. Koji making is the first process of these three. Koji is made by sprinkling Koji kin, a mold use to break down starch into sugar that is used in beer, and shochu production also; The koji is sprinkled on steamed rice that has been cooled and partially dried. It usually takes around two days to make koji.

During this process starch within the grain begins its conversion to sugar. The substance is now ready for the yeasts to begin their role of digestion of sugars and conversion to alcohol. This process of the breaking down of starch is important because the enzymes produced as a by-product of koji production have a major effect on the saké's taste.