{"product_id":"suyematsu-olympic-berry-jam","title":"Suyematsu Olympic Berry Jam","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThis jam is a limited edition flavor, produced with Olympic Berries grown and harvested at Suyematsu Farm on Bainbridge Island, WA.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eOlympic Berries are a regional hybrid berry developed originally on Vashon Island in the 1920's. They are a cross of a \u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003ePhenomenal berry, a blackberry-raspberry cross similar to a loganberry with the wild blackcap raspberry, forming a plump fruit with a deep, purple sheen, bursting with a juice that is punchy, lightly sweet, with a tartness that trails not far behind upon first taste. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eRebekah Denn at the Seattle Times \u003ca rel=\"noopener\" href=\"Phenomenal%20berry,%20a%20blackberry-raspberry%20cross%20similar%20to%20a%20loganberry.%20With%20Burbank%E2%80%99s%20permission,%20Erickson%20crossed%20the%20Phenomenal%20with%20the%20complex%20wild%20blackcap%20raspberries\" target=\"_blank\"\u003ewrote an article\u003c\/a\u003e about the berry almost a decade ago, and how a fruit once crowned \"the aristrocrat,\" and since become nearly impossible to find. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"\u003eAbout the Farm\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThis 40-acre berry farm was founded in 1928 by Yasui and Mitsuo Suyematsu, two first generation Japanese immigrants who had been farming on leased land for over a decade in the same region. The property was placed under the eldest son, Akio's name, when he was merely eight years old, and a\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003efter two decades of regenerating by horse and hand what was primitive forest into what is now the largest producing farm in the county, the Suyematsu family was forcibly removed from their home in 1942 at what would have been their most significant bumper crop season, along with thousands of other Japanese American families in the region and detained at Manzanar Internment in Death Valley, California. Upon their return, they worked tirelessly to restore the farm to its pre-war operation. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003eIn the 1970’s, Akio planted raspberries and learned to raise them from Felix Narte, a Filipino farmer, who had worked with Shigeko Kitamoto, one of the first local farmers to grow raspberries. Akio\u003c\/span\u003e continued to farm, educate, and innovate up until death at 90 years of age in 2012. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e6 oz.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eImage (left) courtesy of Educulture Project at Suyematsu Farm\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Ayako and Family","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44060791799891,"sku":null,"price":20.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/4517\/files\/DSCF5664-2.jpg?v=1771172151","url":"https:\/\/ayakoandfamily.com\/products\/suyematsu-olympic-berry-jam","provider":"Ayako \u0026 Family","version":"1.0","type":"link"}