So This Is Christmas

Merry Christmas is such an infectious feeling I like to feel that way all year around.

So if you are visiting just before Christmas, just after Christmas or even here on Christmas day I am sure you will find something of interest for you and in the spirit of Christmas.

It may be said that Christmas is no longer a celebration but this must be spoken by people that have never had trouble closing their eyes on Christmas Eve in an expectation of what maybe left for them on the carpet under the tree.

I continue to look forward to the surprise on my Grandchild's faces to this day at Christmas events.

Merry Christmas - Merry Christmas - Merry Christmas

Monday, December 5, 2016

Kyoho Grapes Are A Local Favorite

By Roger Hall


The grape is excellent to the taste and has very good nutritional value. Varieties of the fruit have been developed for different applications. There are those used for winemaking, and those table varieties that are eaten fresh. Still, there are those that make good jellies and preserves, as well as raisins when dried.

A variety of the fruit that was first grown in Japan is available during late summer and early fall harvests. Served as a dessert on the table, it is hard to beat. Kyoho grapes are large, very sweet and juicy, perfect for those who want the fruit fresh.

These berries are as big as small plums, with thick and bitter skins, peeled before eating. The skins slip off easily. Traditionally, this is how they are served chilled in glass bowls. The pronunciation is kee-OH-ho and they come from an American and European cross, chosen for their qualities that are special in the fruit. The name means big mountain, after Mount Fuji, which can be seen from the prefecture they were first cultured in.

They can now be bought in markets in the city Los Angeles, CA. The demand for them is ever increasing because of their inherent quality as well as availability. People are beginning to realize its excellent taste. In Christmas, they are predicted to become more desirable for people.

The Kyoho is a great source of minerals and vitamins like potassium, thiamine, resveratrol which is vital for heart health, vitamin C, and fiber. Aside from being, eaten they are sometimes used for alcoholic cocktails like in Japan. Aside from the now legendary quality of grapes being primarily for winemaking, there are varieties that are not good for it. Although the nutritional values remain the same for all varieties.

With the Japanese, who first grew them, the variety has a third of the market for table breeds. California and Chile have followed the Japanese model and they now grow Kyoho for their own markets. As has been said, these have become more well known. Many breeders are coming up with a seedless type, to rival the best quality of some of the most well known varieties.

This variety is quite versatile, being well suited for making sweet wine and preserves, even becoming popular as juice. These grapes, however, have a bit of a disadvantage because they are a soft type and should be delicately handled or risk damage. When harvesting is over, these are immediately sent out for consumption or refrigerated as spoon as possible.

Meanwhile, it is doing great with Californians, now widely accepted and here to stay to give its sweetness and juice to many aficionados and most of all it has become a staple for many local tables. It now rivals the most popular table variety in America as well as the continent. In LA, they are ubiquitous and can be bought wholesale or in bunches, being in favor with many residents.

Being abundant, it is quite affordable. It is grown in perfect bunches and are usually marketed in the same way. The Japanese believed a perfect grape could be grown and the Kyoho is the result of their wondrous experiments. A bunch has around 20 to 30 berries and weighs up to 400 grams.




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