Modern flavor technology permits recreating almost any flavor. So a novelty company might have the idea of selling regional flavors in candy to tourists, like baked-bean flavor in Boston or sourdough flavor in San Francisco. Only the company that had the idea happened to be in Japan, which has strong traditions of regional specialties like stuffed squid in Hokkaido and a kind of noodle soup in Hokodate. Thanks to the internet, I was able to try some of these out. The flavors are genuinely interesting, and offer great potential for Trick or Treat.

The candy is exported to the U.S. by J-List who reports that Japan is in the midst of a “drop candy” boom. Sweetness does not dominate. That would mask the luscious squid and other flavors. Flavors include a half dozen different styles of noodles, hamburgers. natto (fermented soybeans), pepper, pudding, okonomiyaki (an egg dish), sweet beans, cherry, sea urchin on rice, and green tea, among the dozens. Makes you wonder how an odd flavor like cherry got in there. They are packaged with about twenty-five drops in a tin.

I have done my duty and tested five flavors, reported herewith.

Yaki Kaki are oysters cooked Hiroshima style. These drops successfully reproduce a good oyster flavor. The hard candy texture with the oyster flavor is every bit as weird as one would expect.

Ikameshi is squid cooked with a rice stuffing. The drops are a dud, with almost no discernible flavor. Imagine the disappointed when you are geared up for baked squid.

These are sake (rice wine) flavored. The flavor starts slow, but builds. The flavor is unmistakably wine, but more towards stale wine than fresh. Real sake is safe from competition, but the flavor is nonetheless intriguing.

Japan has as many styles of noodle soup as America has styles of barbecue, and the localities are each just as proud of their own. These drops are Hakodate style noodles, and the noodle flavor is remarkably distinct and accurate. Well, accurate in terms of being like some kind of noodle soup. I’m not up to saying whether they are like Hakodate noodles in particular.

Finally, I tasted the Jyaga butter drops. As the label shows, the this is a baked potato with butter. The butter flavor dominates. Again, this is an amazing recreation of flavor. This is probably the one for the non-adventurous and for outright wimps to try.

The demonstration of flavor technology is impressive. I could get hooked on the oyster drops. I’m sure that candy flavors like Cajun crawfish and smoked salmon are in America’s future.