Try the Best Peaches in Okayama! How to Enjoy, Where to Buy, and More!

• Table of Contents
• The history of peach growing in Okayama
• Okayama peach varieties and characteristics
• 3 Recommended Farms for Peach Picking
• Where can I buy peaches?
• Must see! Delicious ways to eat peaches
• Recommended as souvenirs! 4 sweets made with peaches

The history of peach growing in Okayama

Okayama's nationally proud "brand fruit" is characterized by its elegant white skin and refined sweetness!

 Okayama's "white peaches" stand out as a high-end fruit perfect for gifts. Originating from the "Tianjin Shuimitsu" and "Shanghai Shuimitsu" peaches imported from China during the Meiji period, Okayama's white peaches were born in the Meiji era. Thanks to the efforts of Okayama's "father of fruit cultivation," Koyama Masutaka, and Okubo Jyugoro, who invented the white peach, beautiful white peaches characterized by their refined sweetness are still produced today. Okayama Prefecture is also said to be the hometown of "Momotaro," and the peach blossom is the prefecture's designated flower.

Okayama peach varieties and characteristics

When you think of Okayama peaches, the first thing that comes to mind is "white peaches."
The peach harvest season for each variety is just about two weeks, and they are in season from late June to August. Starting with the early-ripening peaches "Akatsuki" and "Hikawa Hakuho", the representative Okayama white peach "Shimizu Hakuto" born in Ichinomiya (Shimizu) in Okayama City, the large, high-sugar "Okayama Yume Hakuto" born in Okayama, and "Hakurei", the final variety of Okayama white peach, you can enjoy different varieties depending on the season.

How peaches are made

The secret to the whiteness of Okayama white peaches is the "bagged cultivation" method unique to Okayama.
By covering each peach individually with a bag, they are protected from rain, wind and insects and grow into translucent white peaches that are juicy and smooth to the touch. Pruning takes place in January or February, the buds are thinned out in March, and pollination takes place from early April. The bags are placed on the peaches from late May to late June, and the harvesting period varies depending on the variety, with harvesting beginning in late June.

3 Recommended Farms for Peach Picking

Momomien (Akaiwa City)

Yoshii Farm (Akaiwa City)

Ohara Tourist Orchard (Niimi City)

Where can I buy peaches?

During peach season, freshly picked white peaches are available at farmer's markets, roadside stations, and JA agricultural produce stores in Okayama Prefecture. Some peaches can be purchased in small quantities, and are priced more affordably than gift-giving peaches, so be sure to stop by. *Please contact each store for information on the varieties available and the season.

List of direct sales stores in Okayama Prefecture

Must see! Delicious ways to eat peaches

Which one is the most delicious?

It is said that the most delicious part of a peach is the part between the skin and the flesh. Therefore, it is important to peel the skin as thinly as possible. The best way to eat soft peaches is to chill them in the refrigerator for about 30 to 60 minutes without using a knife, and then peel them with your hands.

How can you eat firm peaches deliciously?

For hard peaches, insert the knife until you reach the seed, as you would when cutting an avocado, and when you have turned it around, hold the top and bottom of the peach and gently twist it. Separate it into two, remove the seed, peel it, and eat it. You can also imitate peeling tomatoes by placing them in boiling water for about 10 seconds and then cooling them in ice water, which will allow the skin to peel easily and allow you to eat the delicious parts.

What's the best way to cut it?

The hollowed part of the branch is less sweet, so it is recommended to cut it lengthwise. This will include both sweet and less sweet parts, making it more delicious on average.

Things to note

Be careful not to chill peaches too much, as they will lose their sweetness. They taste best when placed in the refrigerator 30 to 60 minutes before serving, allowing you to fully enjoy their sweetness.

Recommended as souvenirs! 4 sweets made with peaches

1. Peach Parfait

Okayama Prefecture is known as the fruit kingdom, with the largest production of Shimizu white peaches, Muscat grapes, and Pione grapes in Japan. Okayama City is known as the "city of fruit parfaits," and you can enjoy fresh, seasonal fruit parfaits all year round at about 30 stores in the city. During the white peach harvest season, parfaits made with the entire peach are also available.

2. White peach jelly

This white peach jelly uses plenty of half a peach, with the melt-in-your-mouth flesh sealed in. Its juicy taste makes it popular for both home use and as a gift.

3. High-quality canned fruits

This high-quality canned fruit contains one and a half whole Shimizu white peaches, Okayama's representative peach. Peaches are in season for a short time, but canned peaches can be enjoyed any time of the year.

4. White peach liqueur

"White peach liqueur," made by soaking peaches in shochu, is sweet and easy to drink, so it's popular among women.