Mentos Fuji Apple

These days, it seems like Mentos are more known for their reaction with Diet Coke, but I can't help but remember the goofy ads from the early 90s (or the parody music video by the Foo Fighters) where ordinary citizens solved their problems with breath mints.

This Korean flavor of Mentos was provided by Tsunami.hk. The English slogan for Mentos is The FreshMaker, but the Korean website included a few others, like That's so Mentos and Be fresh with world best seller Mentos. If freshness is your goal, a fruity flavor like Fuji Apple probably isn't the best choice, but it's an orange Tic Tac situation: these are candies, not breath mints.


The candies had an intensely powerful and realistic apple juice flavor, but the strength did hurt the authenticity just a bit. Still, the Mentos were very juicy and tart, and it was easy to knock back several in one sitting.

These would probably please anyone with a favorable opinion of apples, and though I can't say for sure that they taste like the Fuji variety, I was impressed that these tasted like apple without tasting like cider. Still, I can't imagine a worse breath mint, so you may want to pop some regular Mentos afterward, just in case.

B+

Mentos website

Lotte Let's Be Mild Coffee

While at one of a local Asian markets, I was in the mood for canned coffee. Suntory Black Boss coffee was available, but it was about $2.50. Since that seemed a bit excessive for a tiny can of coffee, I went for a $0.99 Korean coffee called Let's Be. Lotte is a giant conglomerate with a presence in just about every industry in East Asia, including food and beverage.

I am a bit of a coffee fanatic (though not quite at the Gilmore level). My husband and sister are both sensitive to it, but if I don't mind staying up late, I can drink several cups with no indigestion (so long as the creamer is lactose-free).

Let's Be mild is not the best choice for coffee fans. It smelled mostly of sugar and not very much like coffee. The taste was also extremely sweet, and a bit milkier than it looked. To its credit, it tasted very fresh for a canned drink. The bitterness and much of the acidity were muted by the sweetness.

Let's Be mild just wasn't suited to my tastes at all, but coffee is a rather personal thing. There was nothing wrong with the drink itself, I just wouldn't recommend it to those who like stronger coffee. Then again, it was labelled "mild coffee," so I doubt it would attract those types anyhow. There are bitter and black versions of Let's Be, and I would definitely try them if I found them in the future.

C+

Lotte Chilsung Beverage website