Hokkaido Summer 2012 北海道夏季之旅 - Furano Jam Garden 富良野果酱工房

Visited 11.07.2012

Third attraction on the Twinkle Bus Furano route.
Furano Jam Garden was one of the main reasons why I signed up for this day tour package.
Founded in 1974, this factory features handmade jam using locally produced ingredients. To date, a total of 35 types of jams have been introduced, and all subjected to the taste test in the shop! Bread and biscuits are provided by the shop, to go with the wide array of jams during taste testing.

The list of jams created by Furano Jam Factory goes on and on... apple, strawberry, carrot, blueberry, pumpkin, cherry, white grape, red grape, blackcurrant, blue honeysuckle (haskup fruit), tomato, watermelon, plum, prune, etc.
My vote goes to pear and melon jams. The former has crunchy bits of zesty fruit in it, definitely one of the better version of pear jams I have eaten so far in my life. Melon, being one of their most expensive fruits in Japan, turn out to be equally popular (and tasty as well) in the form of jams.  

Apart from the shopping experience, Furano Jam Garden also offers jam making class for visitors at a fee of 1000 yen per person. More details such as timing of classes and reservation method can be found on their homepage and brochures.
English brochure: http://www.furanojam.com/pdf/furanojam_guide.pdf

Travelling all the way to Rokugo to grab (and taste) these jams can be quite a hassle and inconvenient if you taking public transport. A decent selection of jams can also be found @ Furano Marche or souvenir shops located in hotels within Furano.
In Singapore, Hokkaido food satellite shop (Come-In-Hokkaido) in Meidi-ya (Liang Court) will import some of these jams every now and then, but only limited/more popular flavours are available (spotted melon and grape jams previously). Therefore, no need to fret if you have just finished your favourite handmade jams...

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Furano Jam Factory
富良野市东麓乡3
Opening hours: 0900 - 1730 hrs
Closed during winter season (Dec and Jan).
http://www.furanojam.com/

大きな地図で見る

How to go there?
(1) Twinkle Bus Furano, makes a 40 mins stop at this attraction. Only available in Jun - Aug, weekends in Sep and Oct. Fee = 1000 yen.
(2) Infrequent local buses heading for Rokugo (麓乡) from Furano JR Station.
Alight at the last stop, takes about 40 min to 1 hr by foot (3.5 km) or you can choose to rent a bicycle instead.
Refer to Furano bus website for updated bus schedule: http://www.cbnet.co.jp/furanobus/rosen.html#rokugou
(3) Taxi, about 5000 - 6000 yen from Furano JR Station.