We Tried Japanese Drinks and Candy!
Recently, we went to our local FYE while browsing in the mall. We expected to see some overpriced used CDs and vinyl records, but what we saw in addition to that was a pleasant surprise. Near its entrance, there was a collection of Japanese foods and drinks for sale. Sampling various foods and drinks from around the world has always been a dream of ours, so we had to take this opportunity to do so. We ended up getting three drinks and a bag of candy, and we largely enjoyed all of them. So, what did we get exactly?
The first thing that caught Chase’s eye was Mountain Dew Violet, which makes sense given that he tries every new Mountain Dew flavor that comes out. The can it came in was a little different from soda cans here in America. The top had three little ridges, the hole the soda comes out of was a little bigger, and there were instructions on the top of how to open the can. All these differences are fascinating, but how was the taste?
As you can probably guess by looking at the can, this is a grape-flavored Dew, and a pretty good one, too. Chase has always wondered what a pure grape Dew would taste like, and it tasted pretty similar to grape soda, but with that distinct Mountain Dew product aftertaste. Pretty good, but not amazing.
The other two drinks, which caught Cory’s eye, were both flavors of Ramune, original and orange. One thing that sets Ramune apart from other sodas is the unique bottle. To open the bottle, you use a plastic plunger to force a glass marble through the neck and into the soda, causing it to bubble up.
The original one was unlike any drink we’ve ever had. It was like 7-Up, but with the taste of bubble gum or cotton candy instead of the advertised lemon-lime. It was good and unique, but the orange one was less remarkable. It was basically like an orange soda, but less sweet and not as tart. We’ll take Orange Crush over this, any day. While Ramune definitely has a neat aesthetic and unique bottle design, we don’t think either soda was outstanding, although the original was much better than the orange variety.
However, this next product was the star of the show: Setouchi Salt & Lemon Kit Kats! If that Nestle logo is confusing you, Nestle produces Kit Kat outside of America, where it is produced by The Hershey Company.
The first thing that we noticed was the wrapper design: it looked cool! However, that doesn’t compare to the awesome taste of these things. Chase was immediately reminded of Girl Scout Lemonade cookies, and Cory of Betty Crocker boxed lemon cake, but the Kit Kats pack a saltier punch. Salt can make a candy better if the right amount is used, and Nestle pretty much nailed it. The salt starts to get detected near the end of the chewing, leaving enough time for the lemon to make its impact.
These were clearly the best thing we got, but that begs the question: How much did this stuff cost, anyway? We got two cans of the Mountain Dew for $5 each, the two bottles of Ramune for $3 each, and the bag of Kit Kats for $10. That may seem too expensive (which, it probably was…), but it’s cheaper than flying to Japan to get it there for less, and on Amazon, they’re either more expensive or more difficult to find. So, good on you, FYE!
Thanks for reading! If you’ve ever tried any foreign treats or beverages, let us know what you thought of them, and how they differed from their domestic counterparts. We hope you enjoyed the article, and be sure to check out Edwards Bros. Reviews for more content. Have a great day.
