The Making of Plum Wine 梅酒

I first knew about plum wine through the Choya commercials on TV.

From then on, this sweet fragrant wine has always been on my alcohol list.

I didn`t know that we can make home made plum wine till my mother in law taught us how to.

Plum wine or ume-shu, is made from unriped plums, harvested in June.


This year we are lucky to receive 2kg of plums from Takashi`s uncle, Yuzo ojisan.

He harvested the plums right from the family garden and were bigger than those sold in supermarkets.

The fruits gave off a sweet scent and I was very tempted to eat them.


However according to mother in law, the unripe plums are still bitter sour.

`Inedible`.....she said

I simply couldn`t resist those juicy looking plums and secretly licked one of them.

She was right. The plums tasted horribly sour.


The method for making plum wine is simple :

First wash the plums and soak them in water for a few hours.

Then remove the calyxes with a toothpick and wipe dry with towel.



Make a few holes in each plum to enable the essence to flow out more easily.

Wash the glass jar well and make sure it dries completely before placing the plums in.

Place the plums and crystal sugar in alternate layers.



Pour white liquor and seal up the jar tightly.

Store in dark and cool place.

The plum wine will be at its best one year later.

In the meanwhile, we just have to be patient and wait till next year.

Japanese cherries さくらんぼ

Living in Japan makes me more aware and appreciative of seasonal fruits.

Japanese cherries also known as sakuranbo are best in mid June.

This year due to the harsh winter and lack of sunlight, cherries could not grow well in Nagano.

Hence, we travelled to Yamanashi prefecture which is beside Nagano prefecture for cherry picking.


The ride was around 2.5 hours to Yamanashi.

It was hot and humid on that day.

Summer has arrived!



We reached the cherry farm at around 2pm in the afternoon.

It costed 2000yen per person for 45mins which is kind of steep but in Japan a small packet of high quality cherries would cost just as much.




We were not allowed to bring any cherries home, just pick enough to eat.

Bags were not allowed in the cherry farm so we left our bags in the car instead.

Before we started picking, the farmer gave us a short introduction of the farm.


He taught us the correct way of picking and told us which cherry tree is in its best season.

There seem to be many different varieties of cherries.

After the introduction, we started picking up from the tree nearest to us.



Our strategy was to eat a few from each tree and find the best tree with the sweetest cherries.

After 20mins, we finally found our favourite tree and climbed the ladder to reach for the higher cherries.

I think I ate around 100 or maybe more.

They were some of the best cherries I have ever tasted .


Takashi was also very satisfied even though he was not that keen on cherries at first.

I spotted him popping 3 cherries into his mouth at one go.



We stopped at a cherry shop after the cherry picking where you could buy some to take home.

As you can see in the picture, a mere 300g costs at least 1000yen.

The high price is due to the low production quantity.

It seems that cherries are difficult to cultivate.


We bought a packet for my in laws as we thought they might want to try some Yamanashi cherries too.

We will come back again in mid July for peach picking. I love peaches too!

Rosy Weekend

I have never received roses from my husband.

However, on one of the weekends, he brought me to the rose festival.

On that day, we had a lovely day together enjoying a garden of fresh roses.






At Kindai Museum in Azumino city, thousands of roses in a wide variety of scents and colours were in full bloom.

There were even different names for the various species.

The white rose is named as `Silver world`.

Interesting isn`t it?





The rose has been the all time favourite flower to express one`s love .

It is strange that such a beautiful flower is also equipped with a thorny stem.




I couldn't show you the full beauty of the garden with my camera, as the breathtaking view and aroma cannot be captured .

Out of all the shots taken on that day, I would have to say this red rose is my favorite.

The Rainbow Connection

I can`t remember the last time I saw a rainbow.

Last Sunday, after a sudden storm, a beautiful rainbow formed right in front of my eyes.

I hummed one of my favourite songs `The Rainbow Connection` by The Carpenters.

The first phrase goes like :


"Why are there so many songs about rainbows
And what's on the other side?
Rainbows are visions, but only illusions,
And rainbows have nothing to hide.
So we've been told and some choose to believe it
I know they're wrong, wait and see.


Someday we'll find it, the rainbow connection,
The lovers, the dreamers and me."

I love this song for the lyrics and melody. It reminds me of Kermit the Frog and the `Muppet show` which I used to watch often when I was a child.

The rainbow lasted at least ten minutes and then took another ten to fade away.

The memory of it still lingers vividly in my mind.

Get Fruitty

Nagano Prefecture is famous for its fresh produce of fruits.

The yield of apples in Nagano is the second largest in Japan.

Besides the apples, Kyoho grapes, pears, watermelons, prunes, apricots and blueberries are also produced widely.

Come summer, we will be able to pick up fresh grapes from the vines or pick up a bottle of red wine from the winery.

The apple trees started flowering in the beginning of May.

The blossoms are pinkish white with a delicate fragrance.

Do you know that fruit flowers are bisexual with both female and male parts?

They have to be cross pollinated to produce fruits. Some farmers release honeybees during the flowering season in order to pollinate the flowers.


Last week, we discovered little apples growing on the trees.

In another 3 months, it will be the apple harvesting season.

I will post again when the apples are red and ripe.

Mizubasho 水芭蕉

In mid May, we went to the forest to search for a plant called Mizubasho.

The dictionary says "skunk cabbage" in English.

The plant looks like a big cabbage but definitely not smelly.

As it grows only in the highlands, we have to travel for about 3 hours from Matsumoto before reaching the national park in Kinasa village.


The journey was further and more tedious than what we expected due to the mountain roads.

In order to protect the natural habitat in the park, private cars were not allowed.

We stopped our car at the carpark and took the shuttle bus which costed 150yen per way.




This park is the biggest mizubasho natural park in Japan with more than 80 thousand blooms.

They were blooming all over the swampland displaying their snow white flowers.

From far, they look like little boats with white sails in the rust coloured swamps.

It was such an amazing sight!
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Flower Paradise

I love the beautiful spring flowers .

They are everywhere along the streets, in the parks, blooming in different colours,shapes and sizes.

I simply can`t resist showing off some of my flower shots.

Which is your favourite?

Agriculture- Rice Paddies and Wheat Fields

From the beginning of May, the rice farmers in Nagano start to flood their fields in order to prepare for rice planting.


Rice requires lots of moisture and has no problem growing below three or four inches of water.

There is a rice paddy just next to my apartment.

I have never seen how rice is grown and it was indeed a great opportunity for me to observe the changes in the paddy field.

In big farms, the planting process could take weeks and families would usually come together to help each other.


Most farmers have a machine that loads up trays of rice sprouts and as he drives the vehicle in a straight line,it plunges the rice into the ground.

This machine makes rice planting such an easy task.

My neighbour had this convienient machine too.

He drove it while his family members fill in the spots that the machine can’t reach.

It was really interesting to watch our neighbours plant their rice in the day.

However, on the same night, new neighbours moved in.

Hundreds of frogs partied in the rice field. We couldn`t find them because its too dark but we can hear them croaking even through closed windows.

Luckily I do not dislike frogs. They usually croak through wee hours but amazingly I find peace in their croaking.



Next, are the wheat fields.

Wheat grows really fast, so in only a few days time the fields turn from green to golden wheat fields.


The wheat field looks magnificient, especially under the sun.

Its really GOLDEN.

If you listen carefully, you can hear a rattling sound when the wind blows through.