The story 2022 Spring to 2023 winter

Shinjuku Golden Gai. In 2015, we opened a lemon sour specialty store called "Open Book" on this small street corner where the Showa era charm and modernity intersect.

"Real Lemon Sour" was born in 2021, with the desire to allow more people to enjoy the refreshing acidity and fresh flavor of the lemon sour served in our restaurant, so that it can be enjoyed at home.

Open Book Lemon Sour allows you to enjoy different flavors with each season.

In this article, we look back on the history of Real Lemon Sour 2022 (Spring), which has been further improved since the first product was created, and Real Lemon Sour 2023 (Winter)

Spring 2022

This is the last lemon sour of the year.

Saying this year may be misleading, but this marks the end of the lemon harvest that began last fall, and it marks a temporary turning point, regardless of the year.

The new lemon seedlings planted around this time will be ready for a new season next fall.

The lemons have turned yellow, grown big, and are starting to look ripe. It's a shame to see them go, but if I hold off any longer, they'll get burnt in the heat and lose their freshness, so I think this is the last time I'll be preparing them.

This is my fifth time brewing in total, so I feel like I'm getting quite used to it.

We coordinate our schedules with the farmer, Mr. Suga, and the lemons are sent exactly on the preparation day, so they stay fresh.

The skins are not packed together, but are soaked for several hours straight after they are peeled. The oil content of the skin is the most important, so we pay the most attention to keeping it fresh.

After pickling, we check the taste and remove the skins after about two days. By the way, we squeeze all the juice from the parts other than the skin to make juice, which we use in our regular syrup products.

The syrup is added in liters, checking the taste. In the end, I ended up adding all the syrup I had prepared.

This is just how it feels when it's prepared, but if the lemon aroma and acidity come out, you can add a lot of syrup. It seems that the lemon flavor has been absorbed well, just like in the winter.

The sake was also luxuriously prepared by Tomita Sake Brewery, with their top-of-the-line sake. This one also had a strong hint of brown sugar and koji.

The special thing about this one is that the lid is brazed.

Of course, this is also handmade.

At first you might be confused about how to open it, but it has a screw cap, so if you twist it over the wax, it should open.

thank you.

(Tanaka)

Winter 2023

Lemon sour is made three times a year: autumn, winter and spring.
The fall 2022 model is not yet on sale, but we will wait for a while and then start selling the winter 2023 model first.

I try to make use of the lemon's unique characteristics and set a theme for each dish, and in winter it's sour.

The big difference in this year's recipe is that I've added fruit juice.
Even though it's called lemon sour, I've never added fruit juice to it.
The fruit juice itself oxidizes, it doesn't have much of an aroma, and it simply becomes sour, so how does that affect the overall balance, how does it combine with the aroma and flavor of the shochu, etc.?

This is the process of squeezing the juice by hand.

However, last year's winter lemon sour was not bad, but I felt that the acidity was monotonous compared to the spring one. On the other hand, the spring lemon sour has the oil content of the lemon peel at its peak, which is why it is a simple and delicious lemon sour. In other words, it's a bit of a bad word, but I think it could be considered a slightly inferior version of the spring one.
I wanted to go in a different direction this winter, so I decided on a sour taste to contrast with the bitterness of autumn and the umami of spring. So I peeled the lemons, squeezed the juice on the spot, and put it in the tank.
When the sourness increased a little, it had a sharp sourness like the one you would get at an izakaya, like the "Ban" in Yutenji, with a whole lemon squeezed into it. However, it doesn't have the usual sweetness of Open Book, so when I use it at my shop, I add syrup. About 5ml per 100ml. So, depending on the person, I recommend adding syrup.

The end result was a pure lemon sour mix that probably tastes like what everyone would think of as lemon sour.
Personally, I wish it was a bit more sour, or I'd like to add a bit more of a refreshing taste. Please look forward to next year.

(Tanaka)

Fall 2022

It will be built in November 2022 and sold in July 2023, so there will be a gap between the two.

As always, this is a drink with a refreshing autumn taste, allowing you to feel the lushness of green lemon.

This is a little more refreshing and less sweet than Open Book's usual lemon sour, so I think it would be perfect with food.

By the way, at Open Book, when we serve our autumn lemon sour, we put a little extra syrup in it. If you feel like it's not strong enough, try adding some syrup. Of course, if possible, use our lemonade syrup.

Starting this time, the labels will be made of handmade washi paper. They are made by a kid my age who is protecting a traditional industry in Saga. It's cool. It's called Nao Handmade Washi.

Also, as you may have noticed, we have increased the prices a little again...sorry.

We are affected by the rush to raise prices around the world... but we have definitely improved the quality of our washi paper labels, etc., so we appreciate your understanding.

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