Picture this: I have 2 hours before being picked up by a taxi for the first leg of my long journey to Narita Airport (which, by the way, is entirely too far away from Tokyo). I may have loose ends to take care of like packing a few last minute things, cleaning the apartment a little more, or perhaps making sure I have my passport ready to go. Instead, I decide to assemble homemade umeshu. Granted, my wonderful husband cleaned and stemmed the plums the night before so most of the hard work was finished. Still, who makes umeshu shortly before jumping on a plane? Me, apparently.

Since the season for ume (plums) begins in late May, I had little choice but to make this recipe at the very last second before heading back to the U.S. for June, July and August. Since I can’t drink it for a while, it’s just as well… The steps to put this all together are quite simple. Here they are:

1. Chose ume that are green and firm with no bruising or other blemishes.
2. Use rock sugar. This is sold in nearly every grocery store in Tokyo during ume season.

3. Use shochu or other clear, tasteless alcohol like vodka or, if you are brave, Everclear.
4. Allow lots of time. Some people allow umeshu 10 years of sitting time before drinking time. It is not necessary to wait that long- I’ll probably give it a year, maybe 2.

5. After sterilizing the airtight glass jar being used, allow it to air dry completely.
6. Begin layering the ume and sugar in the jar (1 layer ume, 1 layer of sugar) until you have used up your ingredients. (It is best to leave about half the jar empty. My jar was quite small, so I left about 4 or 5 inches at the top…hopefully it will be OK!)

7. Pour alcohol over the plums and sugar.
8. Tightly seal the jar and set in a cool, dark space.

As with the yuzucello I made in the fall, we will all have to wait patiently for the results! A little more patiently for the umeshu though…

In other news, I have a fun project in the works for this summer’s Cocktail Friday posts! Since I will be mainly in Minnesota and Colorado over the next couple months, I have decided to visit various bars and restaurants in both states so I can photograph and write about fun cocktail finds. My hope is that I will not only find some fun venues to share with you, but also that I will learn more about cocktail crafting myself. So, if you know of any great places to visit in the Twin Cities or Denver areas, please let me know by commenting on this post! I’d love to get some suggestions!

A few months ago, hubs and I made Yuzucello. Surprisingly, there is still plenty left and I have been finding some great ways to use it up. We had a dinner party the other night and I made a yuzu & lemon semifreddo. It was so creamy and delicious… I am planning to make it again this weekend since there isn’t any left for picture-taking-blogging purposes. I also created this tart, refreshing, and slightly sweet Yuzu Tonic for Cocktail Friday.

Afternoon sun in our jungle-of-a-backyard as seen from the patio

Spring in Tokyo begins subtly. The weather becomes warmer, trees explode with brand new bright green leaves, and everyone seems to be drinking in the bright sunshine and blue skies. The air is fresh and clean and the blanket of clouds that covers the city for much of the winter is taken away for a few blissful weeks. The result of this cleaner, fresher weather is the presence of cool, clean cocktails.

In Minnesota, I love to drink gin & tonics (my dad makes ‘em the best) while sitting on the deck at my parent’s house, enjoying the smell of the charcoal grill and watching the sun sink slowly over the spacious back yard. This Yuzu Tonic is the perfect way to bring that feeling back to my Tokyo apartment with a little Asian twist.

Since Yuzu liquor may be difficult to find for many of you in the United States, you can certainly use limoncello as a delicious substitute. The piney flavor of the gin keeps the cocktail from being too sugar laden and the tonic water adds the fun sensation of bubbles. I garnished this drink with a sprig of lemon-thyme, which helps to enhance the herbal flavors in the gin as well as the citrus flavor of the yuzucello.

So, now I leave you to sit outside and let a little condensation build up on the outside of your cold cocktail glass as you sip away! Happy Friday!

Yuzu Tonic
Makes 1 drink

1 oz. gin
2 oz. Yuzucello OR Limoncello
4 oz. tonic water
ice
lime wedge
sprig of lemon-thyme (optional)

Pour the gin and yuzucello/limoncello over ice in the bottom of a highball glass or other favorite cocktail vessel. Stir gently with a stir stick. Top with the tonic water and garnish with the lime wedge and thyme sprig.

As I write (or type, as it were) the rain is falling outside my window. The air is cold and damp, reminiscent of November rather than mid April. Still, in the midst of a dreary beginning to spring, the sakura have bloomed and given a delicate beauty to the gray skies. Somehow the rain becomes more romantic when it is falling on the pale pink petals of the cherry blossom tree.

My first experience with these iconic Japanese trees was last spring. In the weeks prior to the day when I took the photos for that post, I had been insanely busy. Life seems to accelerate about a million times for us in the spring, but when I stumbled upon 5 or 6 sakura trees along the Tamagawa River, I felt as though everything stood still. The hustle and bustle of life slowed down for a few minutes scented with the sweetness of fresh blossoms and warm spring air.

This year, the experience was a bit more rushed. Life has been busy yet again, which along with the crummy weather has made Sakura season seem shorter. Still we were able to enjoy a few moments among the pedals as they fell like snow from the trees. We live very close to a park with massive Sakura trees that take your breath away. During ohanami, crowds of people flock to any Sakura tree they can find, armed with blankets, food, and  beverages. Grocery stores are full of Sakura-themed treats that are dressed up especially for ohanami. I found this Japanese Sakura Wine, complete with tiny gold flakes in the shape of cherry blossoms, along with various mochi treats flavored with matcha and filled with red bean paste.

There is no question that ohanami is one of the greatest times of year in Japan. The already hauntingly beautiful scenery in Japan is enhanced by the light frosting of Sakura flowers for a brief time. The Japanese have successfully learned how to embrace this time of year in a way that I have yet to do. Next year, my goal is to be free and clear of anything that could take away my chances at experience ohanami at its peak. I will sit under the cherry blossoms on a blanket eating, drinking and breathing in the scent of a Japanese spring with friends. I promise!

There are a lot of things that make living in Tokyo really interesting. The food, the sights, and the culture are all incredible and provide numerous outlets for learning and creativity. Knowing that this experience would bring new opportunities to my door, I never thought that living in Tokyo would bring me face-to-face with a camera (actually several cameras) and a group of great people with a brilliant vision of bringing food and drinks in Japan closer to home through their website, JapanEats.tv.

My time spent with the Japan Eats crew has been one of the best experiences I’ve had while living here. Being involved in this project has given me new motivation to learn even more about Japanese culture, specifically in the culinary sense. Along with a wonderful vision for Japan Eats TV, their knowledge about food in this booming metropolis is extensive. Japan Booze Blind, also known as JBB, is one of the exciting projects they have going. With several videos focused on Japanese “booze”, JBB features host Christopher Pellegrini along with two guests that change with each show. With some witty banter and discussion about the history, taste and other various characteristics of the featured beverage, JBB is a guessing game of sorts. In this video, beer (or non-beers as it were) are featured. I was lucky enough to be one of the 2 guests for the show, so if you’d like to watch to find out more about exactly what JBB is all about and to see if I know my Japanese beers well enough, click on the link below:

Japan Booze Blind: Third Type Beer

So now you might be wondering where the food videos are. Japan Eats will be releasing episodes devoted to discovering deliciousness in even the smallest corners of this huge city. In December, we filmed a show in Nakameguro. There isn’t a video to share with you yet, but sometime this month it will be available. In the mean time, check out the great Japanese recipes, prepared and photographed by Marcus Lovitt and wife Mieko, posted on the site. Also, here are a couple photos of the Nakameguro shoot to tide you over. Trust me, it will definitely be worth watching!

I am sure all you food lovers reading will enjoy JapanEats.tv. Please check in to see how the site develops over the coming weeks and months. Thanks to Marcus for recruiting me as a participant in this exciting project, and to the rest of the crew for being so warm and welcoming!

Remember a really long time ago when I put up a post about our Yuzucello project? Well, it is time to share the results. But first, a little background…

Here are the basic steps we went through during the 60 day process:

It looks simple, but there was a lot of waiting around, wondering what was going on inside that jar and if it would be amazing. Or not. What a lesson in patience! In addition to the waiting, we added simple syrup about 1 month into the process. A couple weeks after the syrup was added, we did a little taste test. Slightly bitter. Added more syrup. Taste tested again. Still bitter. Added a bit more syrup (each time we added just under 1/4 cup). Tastes awesome but now there is too much water in it and it freezes. Boo. On the plus side, the taste is great and it is actually a very nice digestif at the end of a fabulous meal.

If we were to do this again, here is what would change:
1. Use vodka with a higher alcohol content. We were warned by a few of you and should have listened. But we were stubborn. I will say that we had trouble finding anything very high in alcohol content, so we made do with what we had. For the record.
2. Be very, very thorough in removing the pith (the white part of a citrus peel). Thorough to the point of a possible mental breakdown. It is probable that the bitterness would lessen.
3. Remember that we are not professionals. Yet. Practice makes perfect, so I guess we’ll just have to keep trying until we get it right! Poor us.

Overall, this was a very fulfilling experience. We learned a lot and have certainly gained a new appreciation for those that do this often. It is tedious, sometimes anxiety inducing, but has the potential to be extremely rewarding.

Since this didn’t turn out as well as we’d hoped, I’m going to hold off on posting the recipe until it is perfected. Wouldn’t want anyone being disappointed! In the meantime, pour yourself a nice glass of wine or browse the other Cocktail Friday recipes to find something to celebrate the weekend. Happy Friday everyone! Kanpai!