Kit Kat Purse

My husband had a work trip to Hong Kong and came home with a KitKat purse for me! I haven't used it yet...haven't quite found the right occasion, but I'm thinking about it for this weekend. :) 

Japanese Sake Kit Kats

日本酒キットカット went on sale today! I searched locally and Yokohama before going up to Tokyo to find them. Nine mini packs came in the sake shaped box I got and three in the normal Kit Kat packaging. These contain .8% alcohol. The sake smell is stronger than the taste in my opinion. Good, not my favorite and with a strong aftertaste. I felt it in my throat too. Bottoms up!

Sublime Gold KitKats - Yup, Gold

Organized very well but I wouldn't expect anything less.

I love KitKats…discovering the plethora of flavors here in Japan has been so much fun for me. When we lived here from 2008-2010 I had quite the collection and was happy to come back and continue hunting for them. They haven’t released one or two flavors each month like they used to, but it’s still exciting to find the new ones.

Wonder if this would work in my living room?

Last month I read an article about gold KitKats coming out at the end of December. They were to release 500 hand done gold leaf covered chocolate bars throughout the country. I didn’t know details, couldn’t find specifics and patiently waited. That day came….today.

I woke up early with one of my daughters and we hopped on an early morning train up to Tokyo. I had a plan, sort of. I knew the station and the store, but didn’t know exactly where to go after that. I read signs and double checked the station map to figure it out. We arrived around 9 am and got in line; the store opened at 10. I knew this store had 80 on hand and once gone, they’d be gone forever…until showing up on eBay for far more than ¥2016 ($16ish USD) retail price. It's a nod to the new year. There was a very long standby line of at least 50 people by the time we got up to the counter at 10:10 am. 

We got our tickets guaranteeing one per until noon. We stayed in line because nothing else, except for convenience stores in the station, were open. The hour went by quickly between people watching, playing Words with Friends and emailing my husband pictures of us. The gentleman above let my daughter hold the sign for a hilarious photo too!

I didn’t think we’d be lucky enough to get one, never mind two, but had to at least try. Glad we did...and will be taking a nap this afternoon :) 

Strawberry Adult Sweetness Kit Kats

That's right...another adult Kit Kat. They're white chocolate. Adult or not, I loved these. And good thing...they're a bag of 12 minis!

Kit Kat Easter Fun Run in Tokyo

Have any plans for Sunday at 9 am?

Participants have to apply by March 31st and are chosen via lottery. They're encouraged to dress up as the Easter Bunny and will get a bag of the Easter Kit Kats after the run/walk.

Kit Kat Sandwich at First Kitchen

Break me off a piece of that Kit Kat....sandwich?!

First Kitchen is a fast food chain in Japan. Today was my first time in one and I would compare it to a Burger King in the U.S.

Not only do we have a plethora of Kit Kat flavors, but now we have a Kit Kat sandwich! The details can be found at First Kitchen's website.

This became available on Thursday but between school field trips, homework, making cookies and rain I wasn't able to make it out until today.

You can see the size of the sandwich with my hand in the first photo. I think it's comparable to the size of a Thomas' English Muffin. The bun was spongy and a little sweet...almost like a steamed pork bun. The description says it has whipped cream but it was more like Cool Whip to me. Not very sweet and not much flavor (for an American palette). The orange peel was great...it looked (albeit larger) and tasted like the orange peel Starbucks used with its Orange White Mocha in January. The Kit Kat was Kit Kat Café which is made for dipping in hot drinks. It seemed to be more crunchy than others I've had. I bought one from the display in front of the register and will have it tomorrow morning with a cup of coffee.

It was good and once my daughters taste it they'll try to convince me to pack this "sandwich" in their school lunches instead of the usual turkey or PB&J.

Apple Pie with Carrot Easter Kit Kats

That's not a typo, they really are apple pie with carrot flavor. I didn't taste much carrot and wonder if they added the flavor since rabbits are synonymous with carrots.

There aren't many Japanese Christians, but what I noticed when we lived here from 2008-2010 and again this time around, the commercialization of holidays is becoming the norm. Check out this post or this one, both about Santa Claus and Christmas from December 2008. This is the first time Nestle has connected Kit Kats with Easter.

In a recent post about Japanese Kit Kats I talked about them being popular and marketed to students. These continue to do so. I asked a man on the train platform to translate the packaging for me. According to the kind gentlemen who spoke excellent English, Nestle is saying Easter is an ii sutaato or "great start." April also happens to be the start of the school year in Japan, so they're playing that up.

There are 13 different designs in all and 12 minis in each bag. One in every 30 has the "Lucky Easter" design. We only opened three, but the first was that one. Lucky me?!

I thought they were very good and sweet. I didn't taste much carrot though; probably for the best. One of my daughters didn't like them and the other wouldn't try. They reminded me of the Nagano Apple Kit Kats I got on our trip to see the Nagano Snow Monkeys. You can click here to see that post.

I hope your spring is off to an ii sutaato!

Adult Cocoa Kit Kats

No, not "Fifty Shades of Gray" Kit Kats! Not adult as in adult. In one of my recent posts I talked about Kit Kats being marketed for exams and students. Well to balance that out and remind adults they haven't outgrown them, Kit Kat/Nestle Japan has one just for us. The word "cocoa" is on the front of the box and I asked the cashier exactly what it meant...she said it's dark chocolate. I think they tasted like a cup of hot chocolate, but wouldn't consider them dark chocolate compared to what the average American palette is used to.

Sakura Season is Almost Here

Japan Weather Assoc

Here is this year's sakura zensen (cherry blossom front). If you'd like to see or read more, click here. Sakura, or cherry blossoms as they're known in the United States, are a big deal here in Japan. The Japanese gave the cherry tree to the U.S. in 1912. When we lived here from 2008-2010 I found sakura Kit Kats and am hoping they're released again. Here is my post about sakura from 2009...the girls are so little and have changed so much! On a side note, I changed the header of the blog today. I used a picture I took in Kamakura from this post.   

  

Mini Message Pack Kit Kats

The Japanese pronouce Kit Kat as "kitto kattso" and it literally translates into "you will surely win." They’ve become popular to give to students at entrance exam time and that’s a huge campaign here; they're like a good luck charm. There is a marketing genius behind Nestle’s Kit Kats, no doubt about it!

They can be sent directly through the mail and even have "Kit Kat Mail" at post offices. We were running errands and stopped in to the Yokosuka Post Office last month. Right at the counter was a box and on it a space to write an address. No need to wrap or package them up, they're ready to go as you see to the right. 

I have only seen the large box at the post office, but the box I got, the Mini Exam Message Pack, has a spot to address and mail. On the back is a student with a singer, May J. It reads, "Dear Students (or examinees), everyone is supporting you." 

There are three mini sets per box and they each had a different message engraved into the chocolate. Each individual package has a spot on the back to write a note or message to the recipient. There are 15 different messages in all, but when I went back to the store the next day they were gone. 

Baked Cheesecake Kit Kats

You read that right...bakeable Kit Kats! They're Bake 'n Tasty Mini Kit Kats to be exact. A kind stranger translated the package for me when I bought them. Last year they came out with bakeable custard pudding Kit Kats and I was sad to miss them. Fast forward to last Monday and I found the boxes with three mini packages at a convenience store for less than ¥150. I bought two boxes so we'd be able to taste test them "raw" and after they were in the oven.

We don't have a toaster oven so I put them on a foil-lined cookie sheet and under the broiler for a few minutes. They darkened fairly quickly so keep a close eye on them. There are instructions on the back...they don't do me much good, even with Google Translate, so I stood in front of the oven with my daughters diligently watching.

We let them cool for a minute or two, I snapped a picture and they were scarfed down! My younger daughter preferred them before they went into the oven and my older daughter and I loved them after. Not only did they taste like cheesecake, the texture was spot-on. The cookie inside wasn't crunchy...they were perfect! We'll be buying more if I can find them again...I looked in five or six stores (including grocery stores) before finding them.

I found the commercial for them on YouTube. If you subscribe to Pass the Chopsticks and receive it in your email you may need to visit this post directly in order to view the video.

Kit Kat Japan's Regional Flavors

-->Most of the Kit Kats I have are in small boxes or bags, but some are in larger boxes or even boxes that can be sent through the Japanese mail system. On my list I have them noted as “Regional” and this map explains it. Different areas of Japan have different flavors available. The map above shows which flavor is available when and where. I’ve been able to get my hands on some and plan on getting the rest before we leave Japan. I've been told Narita Airport in Tokyo sells about half of these flavors, but for me, it's the thrill of the hunt, so buying them at a place I know will have them takes the fun out of it! But, on the other hand, If I'm not able to get some of the regional flavors, I'll be buying them from Kit Kat Japan's website!

Katie's Kit Kat Kount thru January 2010

Below is the list of flavors I've collected since finding my first Kit Kat in Japan, Matcha, in May 2008. I take pictures [on the kitchen counter] of each flavor individually, but in October I took a picture of them all on my kitchen table. The ones I've gotten between then and now won't be included in the photos below, but they are included on the list. I have a Shutterfly album of all the individual flavors and you can click here to see them. Click the pictures below to enlarge them.

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-->Ajiwai Ichigo (Strawberry)

Apple Vinegar

Azuki Bean Bar for Setsubun

Azuki from Hokkaido (regional flavor)

Azuki Sando

Banana Littles

Black Kit Kats from Hong Kong

Blueberry Cheesecake

Caramel & Salt Littles

Caramel in a Jar

Caramel Macchiato McFlurry

Caramel Pudding for Halloween (2008)

Caramel Pudding for Halloween (2009)

Cherry with Free Music Download

Cherry Littles

Chestnut

Chilli Pepper Littles

Chocolate & Rose

Chocolate & White Chocolate Minis w/ Sakura & Message Packaging

Chunky Caramel Bar from Australia

Chunky Cookies & Cream Bar from Singapore

Cookies + Chocolate

Cookies + Minis

Custard Pudding

Daigaku Imo (Candied Sweet Potato)

Dark from Hong Kong

Dark Noir from South Korea

Double Berry

Easter Bunny (from U.S.)

Espresso Coffee

Fruit Mix

Ginger Ale

Green Tea Terimisu

Ichigo (Strawberry) Littles

Ichimi (Red Pepper) from Nagano (regional)

Ito en (Fruit & Vegetable Juice)

Iwate Zunda

Jasmine Tea

Jyagaimo (Baked Potato) from Hokkaido (regional)

Kic Ker from South Korea

Kinako (Soy Bean Powder)

Kinako Littles

Kinako Ohagi

Kit Kat Bar with Sakura Packaging for Exams

Kit Kat Coffee Mug

Kit Kat Eraser in the Shape of Bars

Kit Kats from Korea

Kit Kats from Korea (International Recipe)

Kit Kats from the Phillppines (International Recipe)

Kit Kats from Thailand (International Recipe)

Kokuto (Brown Sugar)

Lemon Vinegar

Lucky Littles

Mango from Okinawa (regional)

Mango Littles

Mango Pudding

Maple with Quebec Sugar

Matcha (Green Tea)

Matcha from Kyoto (regional)

Matcha with Kinako Bar

Melt in the Mouth Cocoa

Melt in the Mouth Cocoa with Cheese

Mild Bitter

Milk Chocolate & White (to write on) for Exams

Milk Coffee

Muscat of Alexandria

Nagano Ringo (Apple)

Nangoku Banana

Nescafé Gold Blend Special

Olympic Gold for 2008 Summer Olympics

Orange from Hong Kong

Oshiruko

Peach & Yellow Peach

Pumpkin

Ramune

Raspberry & Passion Fruit for Valentine’s Day (2009)

Raspberry & Passion Fruit Happy Pack

Rich Soy Powder

Rilakkuma Ichigo (Strawberry Milk)

Ringo (Apple)

Roasted Tea

Royal Milk Tea

Sakura

Santa Claus (U.S.)

Satsumaimo-aji (Sweet Potato) from Kawagoe (regional)

Shoyu (Soy Sauce) from Tokyo (regional)

Shoyu (Soy Sauce) Mailable from Tokyo (regional)

Sour Orange

Sparkling Strawberry

Sports Drink

Strawberry

Strawberry Cheesecake

Strawberry Cheesecake from Yokohama (regional)

Strawberry Mini

Strawberry Happy Pack

Strawberry Petit

Sweet Bean

Takimorokoshi (Grilled Corn) from Hokkaido (regional)

Terimisu

Triple Berry

Uji Matcha

Uji Tea & Chocolate

Ume Soda (Plum)

Lemon for Valentine’s Day (2009)

Wasabi from Kanto Plain (regional)

Watermelon & Salt

White Chocolate

White with Hokkaido Milk

Yakimo Baked Sweet Potato

Yakimorokoshi (Corn Butter) Mailable from Hokkaido (regional)

Yamanashi Grape from Nagoano (regional)

Yokohama 150th Anniversary Salty Caramel Kit Kats

Yokohama Strawberry Cheesecake (mailable)

Yokohama Strawberry Cheesecake

Yubari Melon Mailable from Hokkaido (regional)

Yukimizakura Mailable

Yuzu (Citrus)

Zenryufun Bar (Whole Wheat Flour)

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