Which Japanese Drinking Vinegar Is Best? We Tested 10 to Find Out

While apple cider vinegar drinks and fruity shrubs are common in Western countries, Japan has its own remarkably diverse world of drinking vinegar. You’ll find everything from rice vinegar and rich kurozu (Japanese black vinegar) to bright fruit varieties made with yuzu, grapefruit, blueberry, and Shine Muscat grapes.To find out which ones actually taste best, we gathered members of the Japanese Taste team and put 10 Japanese drinking vinegars to the test. With tasters representing Asia, Europe, the Americas, and Oceania, we had plenty of different opinions at the table. Each vinegar was rated on a scale of 1 to 5 across four main criteria: How we decidedFlavorHow pleasant and enjoyable the flavor was.SweetnessHow sweet the vinegar tasted, with 5 indicating a higher level of sweetness rather than a better score.AcidityHow strong, tart, or sharp the vinegar tasted, with 5 indicating greater acidity.OverallHow much the taster enjoyed the product as a whole. Our tasters also selected their overall favorite, least favorite, best vinegar with sparkling water, and best vinegar with yogurt. After tasting, rating, comparing, and debating all 10, we finally had our winners! Here are the Jap...