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The surviving Goya/Bitter gourds in front of the green curtain! I was recently asked by a good Japanese friend of mine to re-design her roof garden she had built some ten years in the view of creating a tree and flower space above her new apartment building. The plan is to transform at least half of it into a vegetable and fruit tree garden. I may not talk about the many reasons behind this project as this is part of a confidential venture, but I can at least describe my work as a journal. I certainly hope to share views with like-minded souls in Japan and abroad! 2013 May 12th The bitter gourd/goya that survived in one of the containers at the bottom of the green curtain are slowly coming back to life. The sole suyo cucumber left is doing very well indeed. The golden zucchini are blooming with male flowers as usual. Oregano! Peppermint! Thyme! No lemon grass, just weeds! The herbs are doing alright in the tall and low pots in spite of the wind except for the lemon balm which has disappeared to leave place to weeds. I will have to do that one all over again! other herbs doing well but slowly! I decided to take the risk to build another green curtain with four more bitter gourd/goya seedlings. I’m preparing more seedlings just in case! The new green curtain! 2013 May 13th The yellow radishes! the red radishes! The red and yellow radishes are doing fine in their container. The radishes seeded around the corn are doing well, too. The first suyo cucumber flower appeared. 2013 May 14th The first flower and cucumber have grown, although I doubt the cucumber will mature. The new batch of bitter gourd/goya seem to hold on. On the other hand the okra is really suffering from the wind. I acquired some more seeds; ???????/Ayame Ko Kabu/Ayame Turnips ??????/Chigensai/Qing Geng Cai/Green Pak Choi ??????/Haya Dori Komatsuna/Komatsuna/Turnip Leaf/Turnip Green/Japanese Mustard Spinach ???????/Sanraito Hourensou/Sunlight Spinach 2013 May 15th Roses are blooming everywhere. The first corn male flowers appeared. The blackberries are growing in size. Really big! I planted some okra beside the paprika which are suffering from the wind. Good luck! The Snack No2 peas seem to do better in a container than in the raised bed. 2013 May 16th The okra so far seem to do alright. Rose petals are everywhere. Some cleaning to come. I transplanted the other tomatoes, the egg plants and green basil. Green basil. The tomatoes. The corn are doing fine as ever! Snow white eggplants. Japanese pickling eggplants. The blueberries are going along well. 2013 May 17th Still only male flowers for the golden zucchini. I am using an elevated wooden container plank as a wind breaker but I will have to find something else! I acquired more containers and organic soil to be able to grow all the plants I have in store! It is starting to look like a real garden! I transplanted part of the hibiscus into a container. The first raspberry flowers have appeared. The tiny fruit on the lemon tree are doing well so far! 2013 May 18th The new bitter gourd/goya on the green curtain seem to hold. The suyo cucumber I directly sowed in the vacated spaces have sprouted up. We are having some terrible wind again creating havoc among the paprika, okra, the blackberries and the hibiscus. The latter are as good as dead but the sanchu lettuce is bravely surviving. poor hibiscus! The brave sanchu lettuce! battered blackberries! The cosmos flowers are doing well! I had to kill some insects today including small caterpillars. One of the two passion fruit trees is producing beautiful flowers. 2013 May 19th Only male flowers so far on the golden zucchini. I transplanted some round zucchini into two planters although they look a bit fragile. Pest! Pest nest! Destroying more insects and their nests. More flowers new to me are blooming inside the rim garden. What are these? 2013 May 20th The corn male flowers are growing rapidly. I acquired two more

“Sayogoromo no Uta/The Light Night Veil Song”! Call a Japanese friend to translate the label. It is worth it! And the sake is also worth a long conversation as it it is practically untouched/adulterated in its making! No pure alcohol or water added! Rice milled down to 55% Alcohol: 17~18 degrees Dryness: + 1 Acidity: 1.7 Bottled in 2012 Clarity: Very clear Color: Very faint golden hue Aroma: Light, dry. Pears Body: Fluid Taste: Well-rounded dry attack with assertive junmai petillant. Both complex and straightforward at the same time. Pears and nothing else apparently! Disappears quickly on a dry note. Turns on a drier note with food with more junmai petillant. Elegant in spite of its high alcohol content that tends to be dangerously forgotten! Overall: Another Morimoto Brewery nectar off the beaten tracks of Shizuoka Prefecture or whatever traditions for that matter! Chilled, makes for a superb aperitif, probably the best compliment to be made to any sake! For special people only! RECOMMENDED RELATED WEBSITES BULA KANA in Fiji Kraemer’s Culinary blog by Frank Kraemer in New York,Tokyo Food File by Robbie Swinnerton, Green Tea Club by Satoshi Nihonyanagi in Shizuoka!, Mind Some by Tina in Taiwan, Le Manger by Camille Oger (French), The Indian Tourist, Masala Herb by Helene Dsouza in Goa, India, Mummy I Can Cook! by Shu Han in London, Pierre.Cuisine, Francescannotwrite, My White Kitchen, Foodhoe, Chucks Eats, Things that Fizz & Stuff, Five Euro Food by Charles,Red Shallot Kitchen by Priscilla,With a Glass, Nami | Just One Cookbook, Peach Farm Studio, Clumsyfingers by Xethia, PepperBento, Hapabento, Kitchen Cow, Lunch In A Box, Susan at Arkonlite, Vegan Lunch Box; Tokyo Tom Baker, Daily Food Porn/Osaka, Only Nature Food Porn, Happy Little Bento, J-Mama’s Kitchen, Cook, Eat, Play, Repeat, Bento Lunch Blog (German), Adventures In Bento, Anna The Red’s Bento Factory, Ohayo Bento, Must-see tasting websites: -Sake: Tokyo Through The Drinking Glass, Tokyo Foodcast, Urban Sake, Sake World -Wine: Palate To Pen, Warren Bobrow, Cellar Tours, Ancient Fire Wines Blog -Beer: Good Beer & Country Boys, Another Pint, Please!, Beering In Good Mind: All about Craft Beer in kanzai by Nevitt Reagan! -Japanese Pottery to enjoy your favourite drinks: Yellin Yakimono Gallery Non gastronomy must-see sites by Shizuoka Residents HIGHOCTANE/HAIOKU by Nick Itoh in Shizuoka City

The toji/brewmaster at Shidaizumi brewery in Fujieda City is of the Noto School, that is from Noto Peninsula in Ichikawa Prefecture. Ichikawa and Shizuoka Prefecture sake arevery similar in concept and many are made for sake tasting competitions. Elegant presentation! plenty of explanations but this is the very top! Rice: Yamada Nishiki Rice milled down to 40% Alcohol: 15^16 degrees Yeast: Shizuoka HD-1 Dryness: + 4.0 Acidity: 1.3 Clarity: Very clear Color: Faint golden hue Aroma: Fleeting, elegant. Rice Body: Fluid Taste: Soft well-rounded attack backed up by junmai petillant. Abruptly turns to a very dry note at the back of the palate upon swallowing. Complex: Pears, hints of green apple, grapes. Late appearance of dry nuts. Elegant and sophisticated. There is no point to drink it with food although it changes little. Overall: A sake obviously conceived to be tasted on its own. A great and so elegant aperitif when chilled. But is eminently enjoyable at any temperature. A sake to impress your friends or important people! RECOMMENDED RELATED WEBSITES BULA KANA in Fiji Kraemer’s Culinary blog by Frank Kraemer in New York,Tokyo Food File by Robbie Swinnerton, Green Tea Club by Satoshi Nihonyanagi in Shizuoka!, Mind Some by Tina in Taiwan, Le Manger by Camille Oger (French), The Indian Tourist, Masala Herb by Helene Dsouza in Goa, India, Mummy I Can Cook! by Shu Han in London, Pierre.Cuisine, Francescannotwrite, My White Kitchen, Foodhoe, Chucks Eats, Things that Fizz & Stuff, Five Euro Food by Charles,Red Shallot Kitchen by Priscilla,With a Glass, Nami | Just One Cookbook, Peach Farm Studio, Clumsyfingers by Xethia, PepperBento, Hapabento, Kitchen Cow, Lunch In A Box, Susan at Arkonlite, Vegan Lunch Box; Tokyo Tom Baker, Daily Food Porn/Osaka, Only Nature Food Porn, Happy Little Bento, J-Mama’s Kitchen, Cook, Eat, Play, Repeat, Bento Lunch Blog (German), Adventures In Bento, Anna The Red’s Bento Factory, Ohayo Bento, Must-see tasting websites: -Sake: Tokyo Through The Drinking Glass, Tokyo Foodcast, Urban Sake, Sake World -Wine: Palate To Pen, Warren Bobrow, Cellar Tours, Ancient Fire Wines Blog -Beer: Good Beer & Country Boys, Another Pint, Please!, Beering In Good Mind: All about Craft Beer in kanzai by Nevitt Reagan! -Japanese Pottery to enjoy your favourite drinks: Yellin Yakimono Gallery Non gastronomy must-see sites by Shizuoka Residents HIGHOCTANE/HAIOKU by Nick Itoh in Shizuoka City

Morimoto brewery is not only “notorious” for its sake away from the general Shizuoka trend but it also produces extraordinary “koshu/old sake”! But the more extraordinary is that that particular koshu had been matured at room temperature for the last 12 years! And there were only 3 bottles left in the whole brewery! Rice milled down to 60% Alcohol: 17~18 degrees Bottled in 2001 Clarity: Very clear Color: Golden Aroma: Chinese old spirits, very dry, sherry Body: Fluid Taste: Strong pleasant dry attack. Very complex. Reminiscent of a dry sherry at first, but turns sweet on the palate before disappearing on a drier note. Very fruity. Mandarines, apricot, loquats, dry persimmon. Changes little with food although junmai petillant asserts itself. So easy to drink in spite of its high alcohol contents. Overall: A rare treat as usual! To think that every year sees a new sake crafted to be left in the same spot for years and years! Makes for the perfect aperitif although it would definitely make for a very dangerous proposition late at night! For connoisseurs and gastronomes only! RECOMMENDED RELATED WEBSITES BULA KANA in Fiji Kraemer’s Culinary blog by Frank Kraemer in New York,Tokyo Food File by Robbie Swinnerton, Green Tea Club by Satoshi Nihonyanagi in Shizuoka!, Mind Some by Tina in Taiwan, Le Manger by Camille Oger (French), The Indian Tourist, Masala Herb by Helene Dsouza in Goa, India, Mummy I Can Cook! by Shu Han in London, Pierre.Cuisine, Francescannotwrite, My White Kitchen, Foodhoe, Chucks Eats, Things that Fizz & Stuff, Five Euro Food by Charles,Red Shallot Kitchen by Priscilla,With a Glass, Nami | Just One Cookbook, Peach Farm Studio, Clumsyfingers by Xethia, PepperBento, Hapabento, Kitchen Cow, Lunch In A Box, Susan at Arkonlite, Vegan Lunch Box; Tokyo Tom Baker, Daily Food Porn/Osaka, Only Nature Food Porn, Happy Little Bento, J-Mama’s Kitchen, Cook, Eat, Play, Repeat, Bento Lunch Blog (German), Adventures In Bento, Anna The Red’s Bento Factory, Ohayo Bento, Must-see tasting websites: -Sake: Tokyo Through The Drinking Glass, Tokyo Foodcast, Urban Sake, Sake World -Wine: Palate To Pen, Warren Bobrow, Cellar Tours, Ancient Fire Wines Blog -Beer: Good Beer & Country Boys, Another Pint, Please!, Beering In Good Mind: All about Craft Beer in kanzai by Nevitt Reagan! -Japanese Pottery to enjoy your favourite drinks: Yellin Yakimono Gallery Non gastronomy must-see sites by Shizuoka Residents HIGHOCTANE/HAIOKU by Nick Itoh in Shizuoka City

Baird Beer & Taproom Events Bulletin Two More Hoppy Spring Seasonal Beers Dear Taproom Friend & Baird Beer Enthusiast: May is our ‘tribute to the hop’ month and we are pleased to announce the release of two more wonderful hop-character seasonal brews: Fire in the Belly — Doug’s Red Ale and Belgian Pale Ale. New Baird Beer Seasonal Releases: *Fire in the Belly — Doug’s Red Ale (6%): Doug Benning was what we would consider a ‘founding customer’ in our Fishmarket Taproom. He first made an appearance the second or third weekend of our operation, visiting together with his wife, Miyuki, and fellow ‘founding customer’, Jason Block. That Doug was a curiously inquisitive and passionate person was revealed to Sayuri and me within minutes. That he was to be a life-long fan of the Taproom and Baird Beer, a future owner-partner in our business, and, most of all, an intimate and fiercely loyal friend, became apparent over the coming months and years. Sadly, Doug passed away one year ago today, in a fashion as sudden as his life was intense. I understood Doug’s intensity perhaps better than most; we shared what my mother would have called ‘fire in the belly.’ We love Doug and Fire in the Belly is our beer memorial to him. Fire in the Belly — Doug’s Red Ale is an explosively flavorful ale, richly malty with a bright hop character. The aroma is piny and pungent and comes courtesy of dry-hopping with two American varieties: Chinook and Simcoe. Doug, this Baird Beer is for you! *Belgian Pale Ale (5.2%): Pale Ale is the Pilsner of the ale world — myriad versions of it are brewed by ale breweries around the world. In this take, we ferment with our house Belgian ale yeast (a witbier strain) and incorporate a unique blend of fruity, grassy, herbal hop varieties (Galena, Santiam, Motueka, Styrian Golding, Saaz), all of which are used in dry-hopping. The flavor is fruity and full in the mouth, finishing with a very pleasant spicy dryness. Both Fire in the Belly and Belgian Pale Ale are available for immediate release in kegs as well as bottles (360 ml). Cheers, Bryan Baird Baird Brewing Company Numazu, Japan HOMEPAGE RECOMMENDED RELATED WEBSITES BULA KANA in Fiji Kraemer’s Culinary blog by Frank Kraemer in New York,Tokyo Food File by Robbie Swinnerton, Green Tea Club by Satoshi Nihonyanagi in Shizuoka!, Mind Some by Tina in Taiwan, Le Manger by Camille Oger (French), The Indian Tourist, Masala Herb by Helene Dsouza in Goa, India, Mummy I Can Cook! by Shu Han in London, Pierre.Cuisine, Francescannotwrite, My White Kitchen, Foodhoe, Chucks Eats, Things that Fizz & Stuff, Five Euro Food by Charles,Red Shallot Kitchen by Priscilla,With a Glass, Nami | Just One Cookbook, Peach Farm Studio, Clumsyfingers by Xethia, PepperBento, Hapabento, Kitchen Cow, Lunch In A Box, Susan at Arkonlite, Vegan Lunch Box; Tokyo Tom Baker, Daily Food Porn/Osaka, Only Nature Food Porn, Happy Little Bento, J-Mama’s Kitchen, Cook, Eat, Play, Repeat, Bento Lunch Blog (German), Adventures In Bento, Anna The Red’s Bento Factory, Ohayo Bento, Must-see tasting websites: -Sake: Tokyo Through The Drinking Glass, Tokyo Foodcast, Urban Sake, Sake World -Wine: Palate To Pen, Warren Bobrow, Cellar Tours, Ancient Fire Wines Blog -Beer: Good Beer & Country Boys, Another Pint, Please!, Beering In Good Mind: All about Craft Beer in kanzai by Nevitt Reagan! -Japanese Pottery to enjoy your favourite drinks: Yellin Yakimono Gallery Non gastronomy must-see sites by Shizuoka Residents HIGHOCTANE/HAIOKU by Nick Itoh in Shizuoka City

Oh, Barcelona, you stunner, you. 10 things I learned in Spain:1. A large number of the men in Catalonia are named Jordi.2. A typical Spanish breakfast consists of Jamon Iberico, chorizo, and Manchego cheese, followed by freshly baked pastries stuffed with apples and dried fruit, and glazed with icing sugar. The breakfast of champions includes a glass of cava.3. The word for “slate” in Spanish is llicorella, a beautiful example of the seductive musicality of the language. Just try saying it: llicorella. The syllables roll off your tongue like pearls.4. The white wines of Priorat -- an appellation famous for big, bold reds -- have a lot of potential. Many of these wines are made from white Grenache and are especially delicious with crusty bread and some of the piquant local olive oil.5. Goat’s cheese, fresh anchovies, and olive tapenade on toast is an outstanding combination, the perfect accompaniment to a glass of cava and an hour of people watching at the tapas bar Quimet y Quimet.6. After a few glasses of cava, the world shimmers with possibility. Despite the fact that you have not slept for days, can’t speak Spanish (or Catalan), and have a deadline looming over your head, you will feel excited to be alive and hanging out in Barcelona.7. Getting a reservation at Tickets is difficult, but well worth the effort.8. To arrive 2 hours before your flight at 6:50 am, you need to wake up at 3:35. Arriving 2 hours before your flight at 6:50 am is entirely unnecessary. 9. Dealing with JAL is a study in misery. Air France is only marginally better.10. Even before you set foot on the plane, you will miss this country and dream of returning one day.I have not yet cracked the mystery of how the Spaniards manage to eat dinner at 10 pm and still get up early for work in the morning.Overlooking vineyards in Priorat.The days have whizzed by in a blur. It’s been an amazing trip, down the leafy boulevards of Barcelona and on through the captivating, austere terrain of Priorat, two hours southwest of the city. The Priorat is a land of tough nature: serpentine mountain roads, twisted trees and grapevines sprouting from near-vertical slopes, and forests concealing tiny villages that look as though they’ve been forgotten by time. After the last few years of scant precipitation, the winemakers have welcomed this year's unexpected, heavy rain. Usually, the Priorat is a somber monochrome of burnt sienna and dusty sepia tones. Now, spiky bushes jut up from the hillsides and brazen wildflowers pepper the ground with sprays of yellow and fuschia. The landscape wears its verdant robes like an act of defiance -- a flinty-eyed Cinderella decked out in late-spring finery, ready to dance on bare, calloused feet. Beneath this mantle of unruly foliage, you can still see the dry, slate-flecked earth that gives the wines their mineral character. Our schedule was demanding: a tasting of 50 wines before embarking on the journey to Priorat, morning vineyard visits followed by five hours of tasting and late, Spanish-style dinners. Or, on another day, a long lunch in the stone cellar of a winery, surrounded by barrels and a 12-bottle line-up of wines. To be honest, I’ve lost track. Back in Barcelona, I rushed to meet my friends Alan and Anna, who, in true rock-star style, flew all the way from Hong Kong on a whim, to have dinner with me at Tickets (a great meal, which I will write about later). One more day, a lot more food, and two hours of sleep later, I’m back in the air -- looking forward to finally being home sweet home.

It's nearly 11 by the time I leave Paris.5/12/2013 Paris. 6:30am.The international terminal at Charles de Gaulle airport is a long, airy structure with high ceilings and glass panels that give it the appearance of a giant greenhouse. Inside, the bruised petals of fatigue are blooming behind eyelids and around eye sockets. From my stool at the espresso stand, I watch fat cumulus clouds move slowly across the sky overhead, a reminder that time is passing. The light flooding the building is strong and tinged with the orange-pink hue of early morning. It dazzles the retinas of the travelers -- many of whom, like me, have flown overnight, or must have risen well before dawn. It’s bright enough to wear sunglasses, but no one does because it seems silly to wear shades indoors. The faces of the people connecting here are largely Caucasian, mostly French. You can spot the Americans by their breakfast choices: large coffees and orange juices to wash down a sandwich-and-chocolate-croissant combo. There are a few Spaniar

Emerson has always been affectionate with me. That first night one year ago today, May 12, 2012, when he came home, Emerson sat near me constantly, ready to be pet, ready to be taken into our life, his soul-searching eyes asking me, “What’s in store for me lady? Got treats?” Ready for bed that night in our bedroom, we all stared at each other, Carlos and I from the bed, Emerson from his crate. All three of us apprehensive, tired, wondering how this would go. By the next morning though, Emerson woke up, registered where he was, shook himself, and seemed to have decided the living arrangement could work just fine. But with strangers he was pitifully nervous. I paraded him over to the neighbor’s house to show him off and he cowered at my feet, tail between his legs, terrified. Other friend-neighbors came over to meet the new dog and he cringed and growled. I got the pity-face from everyone. I walked him up to Your Dog’s Best Friends doggie daycare several days later and he flattened

Flowering golden zucchini! I was recently asked by a good Japanese friend of mine to re-design her roof garden she had built some ten years in the view of creating a tree and flower space above her new apartment building. The plan is to transform at least half of it into a vegetable and fruit tree garden. I may not talk about the many reasons behind this project as this is part of a confidential venture, but I can at least describe my work as a journal. I certainly hope to share views with like-minded souls in Japan and abroad! 2013 May 10th The golden zucchini are presently flowering and there should be an early crop coming! Watering did a lot of good to the potted trees on the balcony. On the other hand the paprika really suffered from the wind on spite of the improvised wind guards. I will give them time to see if they recover or if I have to replace them with backup seedlings. The new batch of baby leaves will be ready for harvesting next week. The lettuce will have to be regularly harvested as insect

Baird Beer & Taproom Events Bulletin 2013 Release — Saison Sayuri Dear Taproom Friend & Baird Beer Enthusiast: I am a big fan of Belgian-style Saison beers and so is my wife Sayuri. In 2007 I brewed this style for the first time as a birthday present for Sayuri. She liked it so much that we now brew it annually and release it on her birthday. Today is her birthday and we are pleased to release Saison Sayuri 2013. Baird Beer Seasonal Release: *Saison Sayuri 2013 (ABV 6%): Saison means “season” and this family of beers is thought to have originated in Wallonia in southern Belgium. Saisons were brewed in the winter at farmhouse breweries for summer consumption by thirsty farmhands. While there is no exact flavor profile or processing technique that define Saison stylistically, common traits exist (e.g. relatively pale in color, moderate in alcohol, refreshing in a dry or sour type of way, etc.). Often spices and ingredients uncommon to beer but otherwise readily available on the farm are incorpora