Choya Ujicha is an umeshu from Japan. The liqueur is made from the ume fruit, which is in the family of plums and apricots, fortified with sugarcane spirit and flavored with sugar. However, this special edition has a unique twist: it is also infused with cold-brewed green tea from the Uji region in Kyoto. The alcohol percentage (7%) is also slightly lower than most other umeshus.
Colour: Golden.
Scent: Elegant notes of green tea, almond, orange blossom and apricot.
Tasting notes: Nicely balanced taste, which has both sweetness and freshness, with notes of green tea and stone fruit.
Serving suggestion: Can be served both warm or “on the rocks”.
Located in Habikino, Osaka, Choya is the world’s largest (and, in the opinion of many, the best) producer of umeshu. And what is that? Yes, umeshu is a Japanese liqueur made from the ume fruit, which belongs to the same family as plums and apricots, but has a significantly higher acid content. Choya makes many different kinds of umeshu, some completely traditional and others more innovative – but what they all have in common is that no artificial additives are ever used – neither coloring nor flavouring.
The flavor of a good umeshu comes not only from the fruit’s flesh and skin, but also from the core. Out of the hundreds of ume varieties that exist in Japan, Choya has chosen to work with only four, of which Nanko-ume from Wakayama in particular is particularly sought after, among other things, because of its high acidity.
