Protected local food
Aomori Cassis
あおもりカシス
Blackcurrants grown around Aomori city in northern Japan, from plants that came from Germany in 1965. Every berry is picked ripe and by hand.
Key facts
- Registered as a protected name
- 22 December 2015
- Region
- Tohoku
- Official name in Japanese
- あおもりカシス
- Official area (in Japanese)
- 東青地域(青森県青森市、青森県東津軽郡平内町、青森県東津軽郡今別町、青森県東津軽郡蓬田村、青森県東津軽郡外ヶ浜町)
A berry that came from Germany
In 1965 a professor at Hirosaki University was offered blackcurrant seedlings in Germany, on the idea that they would suit Aomori's cool climate. They did. Growers never bred the plants into anything new: the berries grown today are the same variety that arrived then, simply called Aomori cassis.
Tart, fragrant and dark
If you know blackcurrants from Europe, you know the taste: a fresh, sharp acidity and a strong, unmistakable aroma. The berries are rich in anthocyanin, the pigment behind their deep purple colour. Growers sort the fruit and pick only fully ripe berries, all of them by hand.
Where it grows
The growing area is the Higashi-Aomori district: Aomori city and the small towns of Higashitsugaru on the bay, at the very top of Japan's main island in Aomori.
Good to know
- Fresh berries are rare in shops. Look for cassis jam, juice, liqueur and sweets in Aomori city's souvenir stores and at the station.
- Aomori is also famous for apples. A cassis product makes a less obvious gift to take home.
- Further west in the same prefecture, try Jusanko Yamato Shijimi clams from Lake Jusan.
Questions travellers ask
What is cassis?
Cassis is the French name for blackcurrant, a small, tart dark berry. In Japan the word cassis is used for both the fruit and the products made from it.
Where is Aomori Cassis grown?
Around Aomori city and the towns of Higashitsugaru, in Aomori Prefecture at the northern tip of Honshu.
Where it comes from
More protected foods from the same area
Crafts from the same area
Heritage stories from the same area
Sources
We checked the facts on this page against these sources.