Making homemade umeshu and plum syrup
I saw some plums on display at the supermarket, so I bought some.
I make umeshu ( Japanese plum liqueur ).
Plums, rock sugar, high-alcohol liquor, and a jar for pickling.
In June, supermarkets will stock everything you need to make umeshu.
In fact, homemade umeshu costs more than mass-produced commercial products.
Why do we make them?
That's because it's easy to make and delicious.
Umeshu made only with plums, sugar, and alcohol, without artificial flavors or acidulants, allows you to enjoy the authentic flavor of plum.
This time, I decided to freeze the plums before using them.
Freezing the plums apparently helps extract more of their essence.
I removed the stems, washed the plums, and froze them in the freezer.
I make umeshu using frozen plums, high-alcohol liquor, and rock sugar.
It's very easy to make.
Simply place the plums and rock sugar in a jar, alternating layers, then pour in the sake.
From my experience, if you use the right amount of sugar and a strong alcoholic, there's no risk of it going bad.
As long as the plums are thoroughly soaked in the sake and sugar, it's fine.
The plums and rock sugar are placed alternately in order to extract the essence by having the sugar come into contact with the plums.
I try to follow these basic rules to prevent corruption.
This time, I prepared two types of alcohol.
One is shochu, which is tasteless and odorless and has an alcohol content of 20%.
The other is gin with an alcohol content of 37%.
How much does the taste of umeshu change depending on the type of alcohol used?
I'm looking forward to its completion.
Some people say that brandy is delicious.
At izakayas, the more expensive umeshu often contain brandy.
I had originally planned to buy some brandy as well, but it was sold out.
Next year, I plan to prepare earlier and buy some brandy.
Making umeshu is quite profound.
This completes the preparation of umeshu.
Keep in a dark, cool place for at least three months and it will be ready to drink.
I also prepared some plum syrup for my kids.
The plum syrup is made without adding any alcohol, just using rock sugar.
The plum syrup will be ready to drink in about two weeks.
It will rest in the cardboard box until it is ready to drink.
It gave me something to look forward to in my stressful daily life.
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