Chuao Earl Grey

Since the other Chuao bars I've had have been so tasty, I was excited to try this bar. I found it at a Jewel Osco grocery store while traveling. The grocery stores near me definitely don't carry fancy lines like Chuao.

I'm not just a fan of matcha - I'm a fan of tea in general. Earl Grey isn't my favorite to drink by itself, but it is nice with a touch of milk. I didn't know what to expect of this candy bar, but I hoped it would be something like that.


The bar had a lovely scent, with cocoa and floral notes. The texture of the bar was good, with a nice, pleasing snap and a smooth melt. The taste immediately reminded me of royal milk tea, as it was flowery, sweet, and a little spicy.

The begamont flavors were especially strong on the finish, leaving a distinctly Earl Grey taste in my mouth. The bitterness was well countered by the sweetness of the 41% chocolate, making for a balanced bar. I shared it with friends and got an overwhelmingly positive response from them as well. My husband wanted me to give it an A+, but I was only slightly less impressed.

A

Chuao Chocolatier website

Kirin Afternoon Tea Special Milk Tea

Kirin is a beverage giant in Japan. Aside from alcoholic drinks (Kirin beer in particular), they have large lines of soft drinks as well. This tea comes from their popular Gogo no Kocha (Afternoon Tea) line, and was a "special" version of their regular milk tea.

The back of the bottle (mostly obscured by the label with the translation of the ingredients, as I bought this in the US) said that it was made with Assam tea and milk. I read online that the "special" version here had creamier milk and a more robust tea base. It's been a little while since I had the regular version, so I can't make a comparison.

The tea was very refreshing, with a complex, slightly floral flavor. It wasn't too sweet or too rich, and did taste special. The Assam tea was present, but not strong, which I enjoyed. It definitely worked well as an afternoon tea for that reason. Of course, no matter what time it is, my father likes his tea black and almost over-steeped, so those with tastes like his would not care for this.

The drink certainly wasn't sickeningly sweet by any means. I assume that it was a limited edition release in Japan, but I would certainly drink it again. I will have to try the regular version to see if there are any detectable differences.

A-

Kirin Website

Nestle Fragrant Black Tea KitKat

Continuing with my recent theme of Japanese snacks, here's another KitKat review I've been lazy about posting. October was a busy month, so I kind of let candy blogging get put on the back burner.

As far as I know, there were four different flavors released in this series of wider, more filling/less cracker KitKats. This is my third, and since these are no longer being made, I doubt I will ever try the fourth. The fourth is an apple flavor, though, so I'm not too upset. Fruity KitKats are not my favorites, with the exception of orange. Actually, there may be a fifth variety of this kind of KitKat that is orange, but I'm not sure if it came out at the same time.



Anyhow, the KitKat pictured above is called "Fragrant Black Tea" and it certainly was. The chocolate coating is smooth, as always. As for the filling, it was the bitterest KitKat I have ever tasted. It was much stronger in flavor than any KitKat I've ever tried. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but it was a little weird. Delicious, but weird.

I liked this KitKat, but it's not a new favorite. It was definitely a fun tasting experience, especially if you enjoy tea. It really tastes like black tea, and it doesn't taste like a rehash of an old KitKat.

B+

KitKat Website (Japanese)