As soon as this time of year hits, people seem to love to make Umeboshi (pickled Japanese plums) and Umeshu (Japanese plum liqueur) from scratch! I'm going to try my hand at both after watching from the sidelines last summer.

Did you know that what we know in English as "Plum Wine" isn't really wine? It's not fermented the same way wine is, and a ton of rock sugar is added. It's really literally just a sweet, sometimes strong liqueur. You pile rock sugar in layers with ume, add some alcohol and WAIT. Some instructions tell you to wait at least a month, while others wait an entire year before cracking their umeshu!

Did you know also that ume, or Japanese plums, are not really plums as we know them? They're more like small apricots. You are supposed to use them for umeboshi and umeshu when they're still green and unripe, though some people wait until they've ripened a bit, to lend a more mellow, sweet flavor to their drink!