WARNING: This Hub contains information about Alcohol; do not drive under the influence and always watch your consumption limits.

Umeshu is a very popular drink in Japan for people who dislike the taste of beer. Millions of women (and soft-stomached men) enjoy drinking this sweet drink with water, on the rock, or with soda. During the summer it's especially refreshing on a hot, muggy day in Tokyo. I personally enjoy the drink over Beer and will either drink it or Whisky depending on the venue (I'm wierd like that).

Umeshu (梅酒) or Japanese Plum Wine is a finely aged drink composed of rock sugar, white liquor and japanese plums (often times you will find the plums in the bottle still!). It's aged for about 6-12 months and is found in all varieties of containers.

The drink itself is available in convenience stores in a canned variety. Usually the % is low in this variety and can be consumed directly from the can. Other varieties include paper cartons (like a milk carton) which should be consumed with water or ice. Upgrading from that we have the straight bottle with Ume or Plums still inside. The bottled version of Umeshu is generally the sweetest as the Plums are inside until the moment it's poured (sometimes restaurants will give you one of the Plums in your drink!).

The recipe is relatively simple but requires 1kg Japanese plums. I'm not sure if they are available in Asian Cuisine shops in the USA/UK but when I lived in Seattle there was a shopping center with Japanese goods where I'm sure you could get some. You'll also need 1.8kg of white liquor (Shochu, not sure if that's available in the US, but it's at about 35% so you should be able to find it where you find the plums) and 1kg of rock sugar which is much easier to procure than the Japanese plums.

Once you've gathered your ingredients you will want to take a 4 Litre jar and after cleaning it and the Plums out (Make sure to remove the waxy skin on the Plums and the stems, clean thoroughly) layer plums and rock sugar in the bottom of the Jar. You'll then want to fill the bottle with the white Liquor. Every month turn the jar upside down and let the mixture stir up a little. After 6 months it will be drinkable and should reach full maturity after 1 year.

Many Japanese make Umeshu by themselves and I was even offered a jar from a familiy that was moving (from whom I was going to purchase a refridgerator on craigslist at the time). That's just how common it is!

The drink itself is relatively tame (though the alcoholic level of the drink rivals beer). However, if you drink enough of it you can wake up with a bit of a headache, but I've never puked or had a very bad hangover from sticking strictly to Umeshu for a night of drinking with my coworkers. If you are concerned you can always try to get your hands on some Ukon. =)