Yuzu is a citrus fruit originally grown in China which is often used like lemons in Japanese cuisine. That is, people don't eat the actual fruit, but they use the juice or rind to season various sauces and dishes. It's an interesting and obvious choice as a KitKat flavor, much as chocolate and orange or lemon are at times combined in sweets in the West.
Since various types of fruit have relatively singular flavors, it is difficult to describe the taste of yuzu to those who have never sampled it, but it comes closest to a cross between a grapefruit and a mandarin orange. It is pleasantly fragrant and you can smell it the minute you open the package of the candy bar. Those who have never sampled yuzu may feel it smells a lot like an orange chocolate bar, though something seems a little different. The yuzu KitKat tastes like orange chocolate at first and has a slightly bitter finish. The bitter aspect takes a little while to show up and may not be apparent to someone who does not have a particularly acute sense of taste or who only takes one bite.
I really liked this, as did my husband who is not a fan of bitter flavors. If you like orange chocolate, you will probably embrace this as a good change of pace and an intriguing flavor. This is a limited edition, and as far as I know can only be purchased in mini size. My husband picked these up in a convenience store in Tokyo for about 40 yen (38 cents). Get some while you can.
Another review of this is at Candy Blog and Sweet Pursuit.
ohh, another kit kat, again???
ReplyDeleteYuzu... it's pretty common fruit at Japan, right? I never taste the real yuzu and I don't even know how they look... I hope I can taste Yuzu kitkat someday ^^ I am sure my husband will like it so much because he is a chocolate and orange lover :)
Heh, I think I could do nothing but KitKats if I were so inclined. ;-)
ReplyDeleteI think a lot of people are interested in the odd varieties in Japan so I'll probably review the ones I run across. I'm guessing that'll amount to 3 KitKats a month if the trends continue.
Yuzu look like wrinkly lemons. I could easily see someone buying them by mistake and thinking they were lemons.
Thanks for commenting!
It definitely sounds good. :) I just asked a friend in Japan to bring me some when she visits me in December! I hope she can find them!
ReplyDeleteYuzu seems pretty common in japanese bath salts and scents in shampoo/toiletries too. Although i've never seen the fruit here, or ever tried it, i'm familiar with the smell from using japanese toiletries! haha :) It would be interesting to try, i guess i'm thinking it would be similar to the blood orange kit kat that was out last year...
ReplyDeleteI haven't seen these ones yet, but I'll keep an eye out for them. I think they'd make nice stocking stuffers for the people back home. And me!
ReplyDeleteI like Yuzu very much.
Oh my goodness! These are totally addictive. I love them. I don't think I'll share with anybody else. They're just for me!
ReplyDeleteI got a big bag of the mini-bars in a grocery store here in Tsuruoka.
I think it'd be nice if these were not seasonal as I believe they're good enough to warrant year-round availability. Unfortunately, I think Nestle Japan prefers to use a revolving door when it comes to different KitKat flavors.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comments!