What is Yuzu, actually?

What is Yuzu?

This amazing fruit is a favorite of chefs around the globe, and has been on the rise in the past few years, appearing on menus at Michelin-starred restaurants with ever increasing frequency. In fact, it's even caught the eye of Whole Foods - they recently announced that yuzu is their #2 top food trend of 2022.

Yuzu is a hybrid citrus that's widely cultivated in Japan, and is tart yet incredibly aromatic - it's commonly likened to a lemon, but that would woefully undersell how wonderfully fragrant the Yuzu is.  In fact, due to its fragrance,

its zest and juice are commonly used in dishes, desserts and beverages, and featured in soy sauces, miso toppings, and ponzu sauces.

As Gregory Brainin, chef de cuisine at Jean Georges in New York once remarked: “It has an amazing floral citrus fragrance -- you can smell it from across the room.”

Where do I find yuzu?

In the U.S., fresh yuzu is very difficult to find as nearly all yuzu is grown overseas in Asia. However, you can find the more accessible yuzu juice and zest at Asian grocery stores. 

At Lunar, we're proud to celebrate this fruit in our Yuzu Hard Seltzer. We source our all natural yuzu juice straight from a farm in Japan’s Shimane prefecture, where the fruits are harvested and juiced on-site, flash frozen, and then shipped via boat directly to our brewing facility.

What's the difference between yuzu and yuja?

You may have heard of yuja before, and that's simply the korean word for yuzu. For Sean, as a Korean-American, he grew up drinking yujacha, also known as yuzu citron tea, which is an herbal tea his parents would make on cold winter mornings. Even after moving to college, Sean would still visit home to restock on jars of the tea for school. 

In our hard seltzer, we've aimed to capture that deliciously tart and fragrant flavor profile into each can, and hope you enjoy!