I finished making my plum wine. I also made plum syrup and threw together what I hope will be good strawberry cordial. I have to let the wine sit for about 5 months. The syrup for 2 - 4 I think, and the strawberry I'm not sure about.
These are ume. They are not really plums, not really apricots. They have a unique fragrance that I love but evidently they are quite astringent and are not eaten by themselves. They are used for plum wine, syrup, vinegar and dried salted plums (umeboshi).
I soaked them. Dried them, took out the little stem with a toothpick, then poked lots of holes in them to help the juices come out. Then I froze them which speeds up the process by about a month. Freezing must help break down the skin and the hard (unripe) fruit.
Then add rock sugar 40 - 100% of the weight of the ume and cover with shochu (like vodka but made from rice) or sake or brandy. I used sake because at the tasting I went to in January that's what I liked best. I hope the alcohal content is high enough to keep it from going bad since usually people use shochu (35%) vs. sake (around 12%). We'll see.
You're supposed to shake it each day until the sugar melts and then occasionally when you remember.
Left to right - strawberry liquer, umeshu (plum wine), ume syrup.
So that was fun. Now I just have to be patient. Not one of my strongest characteristics.
Last weekend I went to Osaka. It's a city. Don't need to go back. But it was fun once.
They say that people in Tokyo care about fashion. People in Osaka like to eat and laugh. So there are tons of eateries and many comedy shows.
And it turns out, loads of new towers with shopping.
We went to the restaurant of Kinki University which has come up with a way to farm tuna. Why? Because tuna is on the endangered list because so many people around the world are eating sushi and sashimi these days.
This is the line at about 10:30am. The restaurant opens at 11. By 11 the line had tripled (at least).
There were some nice gardens in, on and around the new buildings.
Osaka (Umeda) station.
This clock was really cool. The water falls in a way that it makes a pattern. First it spells out welcome in many languages, there are flowers, fireworks and eventually the time!
We left Umeda and went to Namba - Dotonbori to be exact - which is a very touristy area with lots of eateries and neon.
These are instructions in the kushikatsu (fried food on a stick) restaurant.
Meats, vegetables, fish, mochi and cheese - you can have it all fried as finger food!
Lots of covered shopping arcades which got much more crowded in the evening (it was drizzling).
Shops where the products have the faces of famous comedians.
Comedy show 365 days a year.
More shopping malls.
Waiting to cross the street.
Cosplay anyone? (Cosplay = costume play) Very big in Japan.
An Italian buffet for breakfast - yum.
I love this shrine (I realized I'd been here before). You throw water on the statues which are in shade, and that's why they're covered with moss.
I always look for green spaces - even when in a city. I found Nagai Botanical Garden that was located in a giant park with baseball fields, playgrounds, walking paths, an event stadium and a natural history museum.
A rare find - Adirondack chairs!!! Had to sit here for a while!
Meta sequoias
Lunch outside another very nice surprise.
Then into the museum. Although there were other things as well the focus was mostly on insects so not my favorite place....
Many people from Hikone go to Osaka to shop on a fairly regular basis.
I don't feel the need to go back. But it's always nice to get away and see something new.
