Morinaga Cream Soda Choco Ball

While I've got to give Morinaga points for originality, I really need to stop buying every flavor of Choco Ball that I see. Darn you Kyoro-chan, and your irresistible little face! I'm not sure if I'm too old or just too boring, but these limited edition flavors just don't suit me. The original peanut kind is tasty, and these fancy ones from 2009 were good, but the rest have been interesting at best.

In Japan, the term cream soda refers to a melon soda float. Melon soda is my favorite Japanese fountain drink, so I definitely still have some kid in me. That must have been what compelled me to buy these candies, which are are white chocolate (and it does contain cocoa powder) wrapped around a fizzy melon-flavored ramune (Japanese vaguely citrusy soda) candy center. Sound appetizing?

I went in with an open mind, but these were as bad as they sounded. The candies smelled like ramune and dissolved easily with a slight fizzy sensation on the tongue. I didn't get much of a sense of melon flavor, just sour. There wasn't much flavor to the chocolate, either; it was just sweet and sort of milky (I guess that was supposed to be the ice cream component). Both had a bit of a stale aftertaste.

Either part would have been at least okay on their own, but when they tried to play together, it was a problem. The flavors clashed violently, resulting in a milky and sour mess of a candy. The soft, slow melting texture of white chocolate didn't go with the gritty fizzy candy either. The first piece I tried made me laugh out loud because it just felt and tasted so wrong in my mouth. Sucking the flavorless chocolate off and eating the candy alone improved the experience just a little, but that was about as pleasant as it sounds. Points for a fun concept, but no thanks.

D+

Morinaga website (Japanese)

Tirol Mini Variety Pack

Diving right into my new Tirol selection, I'll start with this mini variety pack. Of the 3 flavors, 2 are new to me: Mango and Pachi-Can (popping candy) Soda. Milk is a classic Tirol flavor that I've had many times before but never reviewed.

I'm not sure why the bag says Thank You, but I guess it's Tirol's way of thanking anyone who purchases their products. Well, Tirol is most certainly welcome (though I can't really accept their thanks, since this was a gift), and the brand has such a good track record that I'd like to thank Tirol, too.


Tirol flavors with gummy centers rarely disappoint, and Mango was no exception. The white chocolate had a mild mango flavor, and it wasn't too sweet. The center was tart and authentically mango. The texture reminded me of the actual fruit, and Mango was definitely my favorite flavor in the bag. A


Pachi-Can Soda smelled and tasted like the Japanese soda Ramune, but the white chocolate was slightly soapy and floral. Despite that, this one was packed with tart, citrusy popping candy. It was really original and fun! The pops weren't too intense, and the tartness of the candy helped the chocolate taste better. B


Milk is not my favorite Tirol flavor. The best thing about it is probably this little cow on the wrapper. Milk didn't really seem to go with the set, since the other chocolates were fruity (and Milk unfortunately seemed to pick up some of the soda flavor during storage). The milk chocolate was very creamy, enhanced by the milk-flavored center, but it has a very mild and slightly soured flavor that I don't enjoy. C+

Tirol Website

Kabaya Kakigori Gummies

Kabaya isn't the biggest name in the Japanese snack business, but they do make excellent gummies. These are based on kakigori, a popular Japanese summer treat that is basically a snow cone. These came in four flavors: Soda, Melon, Lemon, and Strawberry Milk. They were even shaped like little mounds of shaved ice!

Soda smelled strongly of ramune. The texture was really neat! The coating and bottom half was a little crunchy and grainy (sort of like ice) but the top of the inside was soft, sticky, and gooey. It had just a hint of a fizz to it and a good citrus flavor.


Melon smelled a little floral, and the flavor was a very convincing, mellow honeydew. It had the same interesting shaved ice-like texture, and I had no complaints.

Lemon smelled like a cleaner, and although it tasted a little more like a lemon than it smelled, it still wasn't too authentic. It was floral and sweet, but my least favorite of the flavors. Although the textures were similar, the flavor was not as good as the other Kabaya lemon gummies I tried.

Strawberry Milk was very authentic! It smelled and tasted just like strawberries and condensed milk. It was one of the sweetest of the bunch, but the favor was so good that I didn't mind.

B+

Kabaya website

Kanro Ramune and Cola Candy

I've never been big on hard candy, with the exception of two kinds: sour candy and fizzy candy. Both is even better. But actually, the first thing that drew me to these candies was the "cute bottle shape" advertised on the front of the bag. The fizz just sealed the deal.

There were four flavors in the pack (Ramune, cola, pineapple, and green apple), based on soda and Ramune flavors. The pineapple seemed especially exciting, because I was reminded of the pineapple Fanta I used to drink before it disappeared from the shelves of Target.


I was disappointed that the colors of the candy were so muted. The photo below is pretty accurate, and I had been expecting something a little more vivid. Still, as promised, the bottle shapes were very cute. Here is the rundown of the flavors.


Cola (brown) was first on my list, because I hadn't had any cola flavored candy in a long time.I'm surprised there isn't more cola candy in the USA, because Coke and Pepsi are so popular. Anyhow, the flavor was very typical for cola candy, like a super-sweet sip of cola. It was fruity and tart, and the fizzy texture mixed in with the hard candy was really fun, especially because the fizz foamed in my mouth. My only complaint is that the hole in the center (presumably for the fizzy stuff) made the candy get a little sharp (as in cut the roof of my mouth) as I ate it.

Pineapple (yellow) was such a disappointment. It tasted like a white gummy bear or a cheap sucker, in that the pineapple flavor was dull and hardly tart at all. It was not a true pineapple flavor at all, with maybe too much pina colada influence. The fizz was still fun, but this one lacked the little bit of sour bite that the cola had.

When I bought these, I didn't really look at the flavors hard, and just assumed the pale green was melon (common in Japanese candy). Unfortunately, it was actually green apple. The favor was a decent fake apple, though my experience with apple soda is limited.

Ramune (blue) was last, and for those not familiar, Ramune is a popular Japanese soda with a lemony flavor. The candy was like the soda - fizzy and sour. I tasted lemon and lime, and was really pleased with the tartness.

The cola and Ramune flavors really stood out for me, even though the other two weren't bad. I would probably buy these again, but I have had better soda fizzy candy overall (such as the Kasugai Jiwa Jiwa soda candies).

B, but cola and ramune alone would get an A-.

Nestle Ramune KitKat

When I was in seventh grade, I had my first Ramune. I got it in Chicago, and made a huge mess when I popped the marble seal and Ramune went fizzing everywhere in my father's car. I've since improved my technique (hold the marble-popper down for a while after opening), but I don't drink Ramune much anymore.

In any case, while I don't have the same feelings of nostalgia about Ramune that someone who grew up in Japan probably does, some nostalgia is there. It's hard to describe the taste (citrus-y), but it's distinctively Ramune, and therefore easy to associate with memories.


This KitKat, a very pale blue in color, definitely smelled like Ramune. Of course, it was very sweet. The chocolate was a milder flavor, and the cream between the wafers packed the citrus punch.

It tasted a bit like bubble gum, but what it really reminded me of was a kids' fruity cereal like Trix or Fruity Pebbles. It had the same kind of non-specific fruity flavor and sweetness, so this added to the nostalgia (my childhood favorite was Fruity Pebbles). It was fun to try, but I didn't want to have more than one of this KitKat. For some other opinions, check out Japanese Snack Reviews, Jen's KitKat Blog, and Tasty Japan.

B

KitKat website

Glico Giant Caplico Miracle Beat

I don't know what I was thinking buying this. A year or two ago, I had a matcha Giant Caplico and didn't care for it. I guess the packaging just caught my eye for this one.

The packaging is pretty interesting. It says "Ramune and chocolate are a miracle match!" Basically, the little candies on top are ramune flavored. Ramune, for those who don't know, is a Japanese soda with a citrus flavor, and there are lots of candies with this flavor.


Maybe mine was a little old, but those candies weren't nearly as bright as they were on the wrapper. Anyhow, the first thing I noticed is that the thing smelled like an Easter Bunny. A hollow, drugstore Easter Bunny. When I took a bite out of the top, the ramune and chocolate combination was weird, and definitely not a miracle. The ramune was sour, and the chocolate coating was kind of cheap, and the combination was just odd. Also, this is a messy snack. I'm glad I ate it at the table, because there were crumbs everywhere. You can even see crumbs in the picture (oops)!

There were definitely some good parts, though. Under the bizarre chocolate/ramune coating was a layer of aerated vanilla-flavored white chocolate, and a layer of aerated milk chocolate. These were actually pretty good, much better than the chocolate coating. The cake cone was just there for texture, but it sure made things messy. I don't think I'll be buying one of these again, but you never know when attractive packaging will sucker me in.

C

Glico Website (Japanese)