Kishiri C Lemon Candy

The Japanese can be a tad obsessive about vitamin C. Head into 7-Eleven or Lawsons and you might find dozens of soft drinks, gum, and candy containing the stuff. So it should come as no surprise that the Candybowl came across another novel Japanese Vitamin C candy.

This treat comes to us from the candy superheroes at Kanro. Although the packages say VC3000, this candy is neither a mouth-puckering 3-gram lump of ascorbic acid, nor a harbinger of Vietnam's tri-millenial plan for world domination. Instead, it refers to the total quantity of vitamin C, in milligrams, in the entire bag of candies.

Each morsel is comprised of two layers. The outer ring is lemon candy, a simple boiled sweet. The center (labeled "Kishiri C Candy" -- anyone?) is a bit more chalky and has a slight medicinal flavor.

The initial taste impression is sweet lemon, followed by a flavor reminiscent of Halls lozenges. It's a very suckable candy, and Candybowl really didn't want to bite into it. But duty calls. The boiled sweet breaks away first, leaving little residue. The center is not so easy on the teeth. Meessage to readers: suck it!

One more good thing about this candy; no high fructose corn syrup. It's mainly millet jelly and palatinose, with some xylitol and lemon juice mixed in for good measure. And some herb extract, which may account for the medicinal flavor.

Kanro has done it again. Candybowl is unsurprised, but deeply impressed.