Yup, it’s another Japanese candy reviewed by Laurie. With the large number of Asian grocers in my area, as long as Japan keeps cranking ‘em out, I’m going to keep reviewing ‘em – and as the Japanese candy industry is at least as productive as the American candy industry, if not more so, it doesn’t look like I’m going to run out of stuff to write about any time soon. Like these Four Seas Milk Candies, for example.
The wrappers for the individual candies, strangely enough, say “Four Seas Hokkaido Candy†rather than “Milk Candy,†and I’m sure I’ve seen bags of candy labeled “Hokkaido Milk Candy†as well, so perhaps this is the same case as Super Lemons, where the same candy has been picked up and packaged differently by more than one distributor.
Hokkaido, for those who don’t know, is the large uppermost island in the Japanese island chain. This area contains a quarter of Japan’s arable land, and is known for its agricultural products, including milk. (Thank you, Wikipedia!) Eating local ingredients is a big deal in Japan – different areas of the country are famous for their local specialties, and these ingredients are often used to flavor candies and other snack foods. If these really are made with milk from Hokkaido, then the Chinese melamine thing shouldn’t even be an issue… hopefully.
They smell like milk and artificial butter flavor – actually, a fair bit like Pocky. They taste like condensed milk and the ever-controversial buttered popcorn Jelly Bellies – and, unexpectedly, have a very coconut aftertaste. They kind of taste the way Silly Putty smells – not that this is a bad thing.
Their texture is VERY soft – I was expecting something like a Tootsie Roll, but these have a much softer, slightly granular consistency and dissolve away quickly in your mouth. As far as chewy Japanese things go, they’re pretty much the polar opposite of Hi-Chews, which have a firm, almost rubbery texture and don’t get stuck in your teeth at all.
In all, I’ve had better brands of milk candy – the overly soft texture didn’t do it for me, and the strength of the flavor was a little overwhelming in something that dissolves away this quickly.
