Umesu is technically labeled as a vinegar, but it's something more interesting than that — the liquid that forms naturally when ume plums are packed in salt and left to cure. Tangy, salty, fruity, and loaded with umami. Two ingredients: organic Nanko ume plums and sea salt. Nothing else. The golden liquid is filtered for six months with no water added, concentrating everything the plum has to offer.

Fukami is a fourth-generation family farm in Wakayama Prefecture — Japan's most celebrated ume-growing region — where they've been cultivating organic Nanko plums without pesticides or chemical fertilizers since 1940. Nanko is the most prized variety of ume. This is as close to the source as it gets.

Use it anywhere you'd reach for soy sauce, salt, or a fruity vinegar — but with more complexity than any of those. A splash in salad dressings, soups, braises, or marinades. Drizzle over steamed vegetables or fish just before serving. Produces particularly glossy, fluffy rice when added before cooking.

• Umesu — naturally occurring liquid from salt-curing ume plums
• Two ingredients only: organic Nanko ume plums and sea salt
• Six-month filtration, no water added
• Fourth-generation Fukami family farm, Wakayama Prefecture, Japan
• Certified organic, no pesticides or chemical fertilizers
• Rich in citric acid, malic acid, calcium, magnesium, and polyphenols
• 3.52oz / 100ml