Egraphsen
Stephanie Cullingford
Theatrical Design
Sakuraco
Box Five - July 2021
Part Two
July 31st
Winter is on! It's Makuru - the Noongar season of cold and rain, the season of fertility, as all the plants try and soak up as much water as they can, and the black swans begin to build their nests. It's also the season for blue/purple flowers, most obviously the dianella/ blueberry lily and the native iris. It's nice to know, that even though Japan is probably the only modern country that is SO defined by it's seasonal flowers, Australia had a system as refined and elegant, now, sadly, all but lost. Without further ado: the thrilling conclusion to my review of Melons and Hokkido Summer, my fifth Sakuraco box...
My picture wall is growing!
Jewelry display created from IKEA pot stand CHILISTRAN (poles painted copper)
and small 'bird' magnets from Officeworks.
Postcard freebie from ErstwilderXJocelyn Proust reads
'If you truly love nature, you will find beauty everywhere'
The Food (part two)
Peach Matcha Tea
Because I wasn't sure how the cheese cake was going to turn out, I decided to schedule the tea directly afterwards, figuring that the bitter grassy taste of matcha should be an adequate palate cleanser. Yes, it was, but not for the reasons I thought. Firstly, the package is adorable! If you can't quite read the 'comic', it says
Kabuki Actor: "Hey Ms. Momoko, this looks tasty, could you make a cup of it for me?"
Bijiyo/Beautiful Lady: "My Pleasure Mr. Chanosuke"
As I definitely recognise 'Mr. Chanosuke' as being from a Ukiyo-e print by Tōshūsai Sharaku*, I'm going to assume both the mountain and the Bijiyo are from other, equally famous prints. I also know that 'momo' is Peach (and obviously 'Cha'-nosuke is Tea). As an aisde, I was flicking through my book of Japanese Fairy/Folk tales, and I noticed the tale of The Dancer of Yedo telling the story of the Geisha Sakura-ko. I had always assumed that Sakuraco was a portmanteau of Sakura Co(mpany), but now I wonder if it's something more along the lines of a German sweet box called Rapunzel (rapunzil, rampion or lamb's lettuce is a leafy green for salads).
* Yes, of course I looked it up! But I did recognise it.
After my usual glum-bum review of previous matcha, I imagine you can guess what I'm going to say about this one...
Well, you'd be wrong!
Yes, it smells like matcha - but it also smells like peaches. Of course, if you've ever drunk a herbal tea you'll know that they all smell lovely... and taste like cardboard. Not this one. It is innocent of both cha and cardboard. It tastes like peaches! It's oddly sweet and very fruity, with a sourness that develops as it cools. Yes, I like this very much indeed. I used water 'boiled' to the green-tea setting on my kettle, so it cooled quite quickly. The tasting notes also give an option of an iced version, and I want to try that - but it's just too cold to drink something with ice in it!
The back of the packaging is nearly as cute as the front - and the powder inside is the same colour as the palest part of the package. It's as fine as you would expect matcha to be, but slightly crystalline which makes me think of jelly crystals.
Clematis brooch pretending it's summer
Yubari Melon Cream Sandwich Cookies
As you can tell from the pictures above, I enjoyed my yubari melon cream sandwich cookie (which I think is the longest item title) with my peach tea. In that vast plastic packaging you get two melon creams, which look quite similar to an Arnott's shortbread cream, but a bit wider and without any decoration - it feels a bit rustic or homemade. The biscuit is a bit tougher as well. Overall, it smells and tastes like melons, however the addition of candied/dried melon to the cream is a really nice touch, which gives it an interesting texture and chewy-ness. The dried melon pieces are similar to the dried paw-paw that is found in high class muesli.
Melon Mochi
The back of the packaging shows the signature 'T' shaped stem, which I thought was a very classy touch. I also like the mix of traditional Japanese patterns done in monochrome green. My favourite is kikko (hexagon/tortoise shell) and asa (hemp leaves/ tessellating stars)
Two in one package 'Paddington thought that was very good value'
The melon mochi are very similar to the plum mochi in box three, when you take into consideration things like 'melon' vs. 'plum'. They have a white chocolate ganache filling instead of the marshmallow/jam centre. The packet smells amazingly melon-y on opening, but the individual packaging opens to a much more subtle scent. There's also a very obvious hole where the ganache was inserted - at least, I assume that is what made the hole. The vanilla flavour of the ganache really help to smooth and elevate the melon. The individually wrapped packets have the same frosted plastic as the plum ones, but are smaller (?) which means the mochi are flattened. Like the plum mochi, I was going to make a cocktail for them (ginger beer and midori liqueur - surprisingly good - would recommend for Harry Potter Party [with mochi] as 'pumpkin juice'), but I figured that as the mochi would sink, and the elements weren't clear, it probably wouldn't look that good. Instead, I decided to toast the mochi on a skewer, after remembering something similar in my mochi research. BOY! Am I glad I did! I gave up on the cocktail and just ate mochi crispied over a gas burner. It's like a weird sibling of a toasted marshmallow.
I cooked it over a gas flame, but a candle is more photogenic
Yawaraka Rum Raisin
So here we have our good friend the biscuit, masquerading as a sable again. I don't think her parents hugged her enough as kid or something. Again, there is a dark looking centre, which looks like it should contain a large concentration of filling, but doesn't. The rum is definitely present, but not overpowering. It's a delightful soft-but-slightly chewy treat. The raisins have been pulverized, and there is certainly no way to tell the difference between the two types that the tasting guide tell have been used. The packaging is pleasantly functional.
What more do you want me to say? It's a biscuit.
Hokkaido Grilled Corn Senbei
Another savory item - simply packaged but the subtle, almost water-mark like corn adds a subtle elegance as well as a hint to any ignorant foreigners. It's clearly a sweet-corn; the scent is unmistakable, along with roasted elements, but it's just a smidgeon too sweet for what I'd classify as a savory food. It reminds me a little of (what I imagine) the corn cakes in Little House on the Prairie would be like - that you would dip in molasses or maple syrup. They're a chunky crunchy puffed rice texture.
Ubari Melon Jelly
I'm going to be honest here: I liked the idea behind this jelly more than the jelly (nope, have not changed my mind about melons, despite this aversion therapy). As we all know, our pretty blue home is rapidly going down the toilet because of our misuse, over use and selfishness. Vast quantities of usable food are chucked out because they fail to meet the consumer's ideal shape for a carrot or apple - and in a trade such as the yubari melon, where that pair sold for FIVE MILLION YEN - where quality is valued over quantity (normally a good thing) where the scarcity of the product drives up the cost, an otherwise perfect melon is unsalable due to the attentions of a little bird - there has got to be a lot of wastage (although 'a lot' is still comparative, since only 2/3 in ten fertilised blossoms is allowed to develop). Because of this "37 years ago Hokushin Foods was approached by ... Yubari City Agricultural Cooperative ... looking for a solution [to wastage] that would utilize their delicious fruit". Reduce Reuse Recycle.
I also really like the flower shaped pot the jelly comes in (duely recycled) - when it's turned out it totally looks like one of those 1950's jellys you see in pictures of children's birthday parties.
The jelly is clearly chock-full of melon, being almost opaque with itty-bitty flakes of melon. It smells like melon. The first taste is a sweet floral/fruitiness and then on to musky melon. For me, melons always taste overripe, but that's probably sacrilegious to suggest in this case!
I think if I had a Japanese housewarming I would rather people turn up with these jellies, a million yen melon. Gosh the pressure would be too much! Where do you cut it? Do I cut it now? What do I do with the leftovers?
I don't even cut the cakes I decorate!
Milk Mochi
Made by the same company (Tengudou Takarabune) as the Kibi Dango, it seems appropriate to display them next to each other (plus more excuses for Kibi Dango wrapping...) and quite frankly, the contrast is not flattering. My guess is that they are going for a modern 'shiny-churns-Luis-Pasteur-hygienic-vibe" and it just looks a bit joyless and sterile next to the Kibi Dango adventurer. Just a bit
Swiss (not that there is anything wrong with being Swiss. My neighbours were Swiss). Like the Kibi Dango, this milk Mochi is wrapped in corrugated plastic and oblaat (I like to think these ramblings contributed to having that label included). Unlike the Kibi Dango, this reaches the full edge of the wrapping. Taste-wise: it's pleasant. It has no real smell but a simple milky-caramel taste: think condesed milk or a 'Milko Chew' that's actually chewy.
That's all Folks, the Box is done, and I give it 9.5/10, for taste, satisfaction, beauty, value for money, all those good things. I wanted to deduct points for melons, but that doesn't seem like the act of a rational adult (a character I try to play around strangers) - so I deducted a half point for spending FIVE MILLION YEN on a MELON!
It was a pair of melons
That makes it OK, does it?
No, I suppose not.
This time the box had savories, which was very nice but (still) no Sakuraco Exclusives.
Once again, there was a good number of doubles. I've been slowly snacking my way through them (one melon mochi left), But I'm saving the Peach Tea for warmer weather so I can try it iced
For happy lively time with your friends, let's relax with confectionaries
See you in August!
~ Steph
