“I don’t think I realized toffee could be this perfectly executed,” said supervising editor Marilyn Ong. The box included thin, snappy toffees coated with satiny bittersweet chocolate in the Baby Grand Assortment, plus the chunky yet equally satisfying Almond Toffee Treats. Though our panel was smitten with most of the box’s contents, the toffees were the stars. The box also held a few meh items: The packaged baked goods were blandly sweet though satisfyingly carby, and the packets of green tea were nice, if basic, compared with the other showstopper items. The Funwari Meijin Mochi Puffs-nutty, buttery, soybean-powder-coated rice clouds-dissolved on our tongues. The surreal White Strawberry is freeze-dried and then injected with white chocolate to dial up the sweetness of the fruit. The Seaweed Tempura Setouchi Sudachi, a mind-blowing citrusy, salty, and earthy morsel, is composed of crisped rice clusters that look like barnacles glued to small squares of seaweed. We loved the snappy Edamame Senbei, a salty-sweet cracker dusted with soybean powder. Textures ranged from crispy to chewy to melt-in-your-mouth cotton-candy wispy. The flavors of the crackers, puffs, and candies inside were alternately zingy, tart, sweet, and salty. The Seasons of Japan box has 22 snacks, which felt like enough to last one person one to two weeks or to tide over several people for a few days. Some items that were popular with our tasters include tender matcha-powdered mochi, crisp senbei (rice crackers) encrusted with sugar, and strawberry shortcake gummies shaped like slices of cake. The box includes a fun array of snacks that mostly skew sweet. If you purchase a subscription in February or March, the Sakura box, a selection of snacks from Kyoto inspired by cherry-blossom season, replaces the Seasons of Japan box. This is the only buying option that comes with free shipping, an e-gift message, and does not include a receipt. A note on ordering: Although there’s an option to choose a gift box subscription, which sends the recipient a different box each month, placing a one-month order gets you just the Seasons of Japan box we recommend. Each snack is thoughtfully chosen, and a booklet explains where each item comes from, its significance, and potential allergens. Both the colorfully illustrated wrappers and the bites inside are dazzling. Why it’s great: Filled with an array of individually wrapped snacks from Japan in a multitude of flavors, Bokksu’s Seasons of Japan Snack Box is simply delightful.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |