"Choko" is actually a Japanese word means "traditional small sake cups" which can contain about 50-100 mL of sake. Size-wise, it would be a little similar to shot glasses, but "Choko" can be made from a full range of materials and can have variety of shapes as you can see the examples in the green boxed photos.
The different types of sake cups are all called "Choko" or "Ochoko", because "O" is a polite prefix sound in Japanese. Then what about "Kiki-Choko"? It's one kind of "Choko" sake cups shown in upper photos that is used specifically for tasting and evaluating sake.
The design of "Kiki-Choko" is traditionally regulated to determine characteristics of sake. The base color is pure white to check the color of sake, and there is a blue double circle on the bottom to check the transparency of sake. The circles are called a "Snake Eye". Since Japanese sake includes cloudy and unfiltered types, the "Snake Eye" will not be clearly visible when an opaque type of sake is poured into the cup. The upper right hand side photo shows the comparison.
So, Masters of sake breweries carry "Kiki-Choko" at work and they use it when they examine the quality and the characteristics of their products. Also, as you can see an example in the lower left hand side photos, "Kiki-Choko" is often used at sake tasting corners. People can enjoy evaluating sake as if they are professional sake brewers or sake sommeliers with "Kiki-Choko". It would be fun for sake lovers!
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