#3 - The Golden Drop

黄金糖

(The Golden Drop)

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Name: The Golden Drop

Company: Ogontoh

Price: $2.59 at One World Market (Japanese Market)

안녕!  こんにちは! 你好! Every other greeting under the sun! It’s me, 蜜, and I’m just by myself now. Actually, I’ve taken over this blog as my partner 花 and I have grown apart – we have no more classes together and barely chat for more than a minute. And, from everybody in the United States and beyond, I apologize for not updating the blog. From now on, I will take up my duty as owner and get cracking with the reviews (if I can find my candy tasting notebook again… oops…). So, without further ado, I’ve become your ringleader. Hope this isn’t a problem!

Anyway, let’s get down to the pleasant conversation and hard core candy reviewing. I hope all you guys, whether nonexistent or few, have been faring well after the winter. The warm weather is super nice and being able to wear shorts without regretting it an hour later as you shiver is definitely a plus. I recently got my driver’s license which means I’ll be frequenting the Japanese, Chinese, and Korean markets even more and we know what that means – candy, candy, candy! The candy we’re reviewing today is so near and dear to my heart, it has its own little trophy cabinet with a light shining down upon its greatness. It’s actually a rarity at the markets, coming and going off the shelves like a ninja, always out of stock seemingly the minute I walk into the store. When I was finally able to grab it again, I bought 3 bags and have been rationing it as if it’s all I can live on.

Ladies and germs, I proudly present The Golden Drop. Actually, directly translated, it means gold candy but where’s the class in that? I feel like I could open a swanky little bar in some hot city with a name like that and everybody would flock to it. If that were a metaphor, this candy is the swanky little bar and I’m the youngster desperately trying to get in behind the exclusive velvet ropes – that’s how rare it is and, obviously, how much I covet it.

However, you have to save up to covet it. This thing cost me $2.59 which, when compared to other candies we’ve reviewed, is quite cheap. However, the packaging is small and while there are quite a lot of candies packed in there, it’s still a lot less than other candies priced like this. But it’s worth it. Sigh… I’m a slave for candy.

The candy’s color lives up to its name, shining like a beacon of tasty hope in a translucent shade of gold that catches the light so artfully, I feel like giving it its own museum. It’s covered in crinkly, clear wrapping with a little cute twist on both sides so you feel like a little kid as you listen to it speak while you unwrap. (I like to think the candy is shrilly screaming, “STOP TAKING MY CLOTHES OFF!” while I unwrap it but that’s beside the point.) The candy’s shape is a very modern and sleek… prism? I’d like to describe it as a pyramid with a square base but there is no pointed, stabbing edge at the top. Just a smaller square. So it’s pretty much a nice, disproportionate square prism. Either way, it’s fun to roll around with your tongue and let it clink against your teeth.

Okay, so you’ve stripped this succulent little candy (I apologize, I’m getting creepy but on the inside, I’m fangirling) of its clear wrapper and now you’re holding it awkwardly. Alright, bring it to your mouth – slowly, slow—TOO FAST—perfect. Just let it sit there, maybe roll it around a bit. Is your tongue exploding into fits of passion yet? Nope? I’ll just wait then.

Here’s a bit of forewarning for those who don’t like overly sweet candies: back away from the computer screen. You hear that? Get back! This candy is like pouring water over a witch – you’ll wither away and burn. Want to know why? The Golden Drop is pure sugar cane candy. I’m not even making this up. It’s on the packaging, flaunting its sweet little self. If you’re a person with a raging sweet tooth, pass Go and collect $200 worth of this stuff. If you’re not, go straight to jail and do not collect any of it. None. Leave it for the sweet lovers.

Now that we’ve narrowed down our tasters, time to decode this. It tastes like cooked, golden sugar – you know, it has that slightly caramel and toasty flavor to it in which you just know they cooked the pure sugar until it was bubbly and gold before giving it to us. I’m sure you’ve all tasted this before if you’ve had a childhood that involved some sort of fair, carnival, circus, large school event, etc. Haven’t guessed what I’m talking about?

Cotton candy. It’s a mouthful of hard, smooth cotton candy. Not the flavored kind where the synthetic blueberry and strawberry curdle on your tongue, but the pure and real deal. This is the fluffy stuff in compact form with none of that dry, crystal residue that paints your tongue a neon color. And boy, does it last long. In fact, I just had it in my mouth for 20 minutes and it still tasted and felt as if I’d just popped it in. Of course, as you know, I gotta chomp stuff so in my crunch test, I observed that it crunched quite easily but kind of sticks to your teeth. No worries, I won’t be sacrificing any bit of my time anymore by doing that – I want to savor each bit of this candy.

Either than a pleasant and sweet flavor, it leaves no kind of residue or trace that it was even there. Usually, when I have stuff like this, it dries my mouth out and I crawl into the kitchen gasping, “Water, water…” as if I’ve just stepped off the plane from the desert. Not this stuff. It’s in and out like a first love. Wonderful, awesome, oh no please don’t break up with me noooo stop melting away, and then bitter sorrow at its loss. But it’s without the drastic heartbreak, so don’t worry!

But you must know: this is the stuff your mom, your dentist, and your doctor warned you about. This is PURE sugar. Seriously, the ingredients are only ‘pure cane sugar’ and ‘corn syrup’. You’re not going to get anything more sugary than this unless you just starting shoveling sugar from a bag with a spoon to fix your sweet tooth. The reason this stuff is so good is because it’s cooked for that amazing, roasted taste. So please, please, please don’t eat a whole bag in one night! In fact, I only let myself have one once a week (but you know I ration hard core). If you don’t heed this, expect many cavities. I don’t need to read the stars to know your teeth’s future.

However, can you read the stars to figure out our candy’s future? Let’s look into the crystal ball. I see a very good rating in your future, Golden Drop…

Congrats, Golden Drop! This is like the Miss America of candy awards!

Wow! Yep, you probably saw this coming. Sorry, I’m just so biased towards this candy. It’s knock-your-socks-off good in my opinion. Anyway, it feels great to be blogging again. I hope you guys aren’t mad and will continue reading.

Stay cute!

-蜜

#2 -- Lemon Tea Candy

れもん紅茶

(Lemon Tea Candy)

 Name: Lemon Tea Candy

Company: Kasugai

Price: $2.79 @ the Japanese Market

Goooood evening, candy lovers! How is your winter going so far? I’m trying to survive the whiplash of sudden weather change by learning how to knit and, of course, gobbling up candy for your reading pleasure. But the one thing I love most about winter is that it’s the perfect temperature for a relaxing cup of tea -- therefore, it’s only appropriate for us to review a tea candy today!

We’re reviewing Kasugai’s “Lemon Tea Candy” right now, which we plucked off the shelves because we’re both avid drinkers of that leafy brew. As this seems to be a trend with Kasugai’s candy, it’s large and quarter sized; a tad bit bigger than you’d expect of your regular hard candy. And, of course, it’s individually wrapped -- this time in a lovely sheath of triangle gold wrapping. Classy. The coloring of the candy itself is the shade of amber, so it’s pretty much just the shade you would expect a tea candy to be.

Now, ladies and gentlemen, the moment you’ve been waiting for: tasting time! Let’s take this candy party straight to the mouth. This candy is hard all the way through and, as you guys know that I (蜜) am an impatient chomper, I discovered that it crunches nicely. Not that terrible half-crunchy-half-sticky-oh-goodness-it’s-stuck-on-my-teeth stuff. The real deal. But back to the matters of tasting...

The taste itself is, unfortunately, not very much like lemon tea. But, fret not! It’s still delicious. First of all, there is much more honey flavoring to it than lemon. In fact, we only got the smallest hint of lemon when we tasted it and it quickly faded away. The first minute or so of eating is heavily laden with tea flavor and that pretty undertone of lemon taste. After that, it all goes to hel-- I mean, honey. However, it’s not so laden with the flavor that you choke a bit and whisper, “Why are you making me do this, Kasugai?” It’s very sweet but nicely balanced so it doesn’t dry your pretty little throat out.

The flavor lasts super long and leaves a syrupy texture, thoroughly coating the tongue and roof of the mouth. Not to mention, my throat felt utterly soothed after finishing it. During the winter, I wake up with terrible sore throats and this was just the thing I needed to get rid of that aching pain that lingered behind after morning. However, you’d have to pace yourself on these -- I, along with many others, probably couldn’t have more than one of these in a day. It’s just too rich and heavy to gobble down by the handful. I do believe this makes it more worth the price... you really get to pace yourself and make the bag of candy last for a while.

When we asked our loyal taste testers, many of them said that they were hesitantly expecting something that tasted like cough drops or slightly medicinal. But they were obviously surprised about how soothing it was and how greatly they loved the sweet -- but not too sweet -- subtle flavor. They all commented that there was certainly a heavy honey flavoring to it and that the tea flavor was quite discreet. Also, there was a large lacking of this supposedly promised “lemon” flavoring. One person squealed, “My throat feels so much better and my stomach doesn’t hurt!” So, we’re not suggesting that you start treating this like Tylenol but it’s a tasty reliever to sore throats.

We did have one taste tester who didn’t like it. Yep, my Creative Writing teacher Mr. N. Now, a tad bit of forewarning -- Mr. N strongly dislikes hard candies. When we asked him to rate the candy on a scale, he proceeded to ask us, “On what basis is this scale? What does a 10 truly mean? Is this an only candy scale or a purely hard candy scale? See, this is the problem when political parties conduct polls using these scales is because--“

“Oh, hush up and tell us what you think!”

So, even though he hates hard candies, he said this one was pleasantly “delightful” for being a hard candy. Of course, he smacked a 3/10 rating on it -- “No, you see, this is only on a regular candy scale!” -- but, on a hard candy scale, gave it a whooping 8/10. Don’t let this candy Grinch get you down, though.

So, Lemon Tea Candies, here comes the moment of truth...

You may not have won our hearts with flavor but we appreciate your efforts to soothe our winter pains.  Reach for the stars, Lemon Tea Candy!

Overall, this was a heavy, sweet, and soothing candy. It wasn’t the flavor as promised but it was pleasant none the less. Pick it up if you’re looking for a delicious way to fight the aches of winter.

Stay cute!

-蜜

#1 -- Jiwa Jiwa Soda Candy

ソーダキャンディー

(Soda Candy)

Name: Jiwa Jiwa (じわじわ) Soda Candy

Company: Kasugai

Price: $2.99 @ the Japanese Market

Tada! The first candy review on our website and --  pull up your chairs -- because this gun’ be good.

Today, we’re reviewing Kasugai’s Jiwa Jiwa Soda Candy. It comes in three flavors: grapefruit (グレープフルーツ), melon (メロン), and cider (サイダー). The candies themselves are individually wrapped and quarter-sized, each a pale yellow color. At first, the individual wrappers were pretty awesome but after a while, I got tired of sticking my empty wrappers in and then pulling them back out by accident when I wanted another piece. Or maybe I’m just too lazy to throw them away. I like to think that everybody else has this problem and I’m not pathetic for refusing to remove myself from the couch to get to the trashcan.

Let’s pop the candy in our mouth -- the “soda” part is a little slow on the up taking. At first, you’re just sucking on this rough textured candy but a few long seconds in, the soda fun starts. The fizz itself is nice, creamy foam that is pretty sweet while the candy packs a tiny sour punch. And guess what? The fizzing fun doesn’t just stop. The candy is solid AND fizzy all the way through -- a change for most of us who are used to a candy with a fizzy filling. It was a wonderful change and we received plenty of happy remarks about how it’s a soda candy all the way through. No need to crunch into it and get to the good part; it’s the whole candy on this one.

And might I, 蜜, state for the matter right now: I am an impatient eater. I am the girl who, when given a lollipop, begins to chomp on it right away and pulverizes it in her mouth before anybody can get a lick of theirs. I don’t savor a popsicle... I absolutely destroy it in a single bite. But this candy did the unthinkable to me -- it made me suck on it all the way through. I usually just chomp it so I can eat more candies but the continuous foaming on this made me savor it until it melted away. That, my friends, is good candy.

It also left our tongues dry and numb, burning it slightly. No, we don’t mean those third degree burns that leave everything tasteless for a week after you eat some too-hot soup. Think about cracking open a fresh soda and those burning, fizzing bubbles on your tongue that make it sting a little and leave it numb. That’s what we’re talking about, but much milder. We kind of liked how they captured that aspect of soda on a smaller scale, as unusual of a trait as it is. That’s pretty authentic. But, as my partner warns us, don’t drink water when you’re sucking on the candy. The result is just... weird and uncomfortable. She couldn’t elaborate further than that but I will take her odd grimace as a sign that you guys should only try that only if you’re real badasses.

Let’s get into details.

The grapefruit flavor was sweet and fruity that we wouldn’t market under this flavor name, had we marketed the candy. Like most sweets, it’s definitely an artificial flavor and tastes more like a medley of sugary citruses instead of just grapefruit. But we did have one or two people pick out that flavor right away when they tried the candy.

The melon flavor was easy to pick out fairly quickly. It tasted like a sour, musk melon with a hint of sweetness. It was our favorite flavor, mostly because we go crazy when things are melon flavored. It had a sweet, bubbly bite to it and, although we got a hint of lime at first, it mellowed out into a flavor that Asian countries love -- as do we... the wonderful melon.

Lastly, we have cider. I don’t know about you guys but I have no idea what cider is supposed to taste like. Whatever it is, it’s nothing like the warm apple cider we have here in America. Either way, it was puh-retty damn good. In fact, we had several people tell us that it tasted like Mountain Dew Voltage. All the pack of a heart attack-inducing caffeinated soda in one little candy -- excellent. So fear not, those weary of the name, you will not be getting the taste of an autumn apple drink when you take a bite of this one.

Overall, this candy was good. Super good. That’s why we’re giving it a...

7/10 -- Nice job, Jiwa Jiwa Soda Candy! You're pretty awesome!

Yep! If this is in your local Asian grocery, I suggest you pick it up. Just don’t eat them all in one day. For the love of God, please.

Stay cute!

-蜜