Ohh, another giveaway? You're too kind! Yay! Count me in!

What interestes me about Japanese candy? Well, one thing is the flavors. Most of the flavors that I love you can't find in the US (like azuki, green tea, etc). I mean, even strawberry flavored candy is hard to come by here, and I LOVE strawberry chocolate! *sigh*

The other thing is the packaging. It's always so pretty!! I, again, especially love the strawberry ones because that highly saturated red they use is just so beautiful!

And, of course, there's the fact that the Japanese have Moomin candy. You just can't beat that. :)

Long time lurker here! I have never gotten to try any Japanese candy. However, the iced lemon tea chocolate just intrigues me.

oh boy! I can't pass this chance to maybe try new japanese candy, it's very hard to find around here :)

well, the one that intrigued me the most so far was this spongy banana sweet (http://www.flickr.com/photos/farruska/216185596/) , but from the ones 've come across on the internet are definetelly theakura, uji-kintoki, fruit parfait, azuki and wine kitkats :D but I'm actually eager to try any japanese candy :) preety please :)

I can't get the picture of last week's review out of my head. Soft candy, dripping goo, very curious!

I used to be able to try a few Japanese candies when a relative visited there. Lots of tea flavored things and some absolutely beautiful jelly candies that were terrible!! This strawberry looks very nice and I tried the Cubyrop which I liked very much. I'll try anything once!

I like the wagashi that you reviewed recently because they are so darn pretty! Almost too pretty to eat.

What a wonderful contest! But it's hard to decide which candy is best. I used to live in Japan and was a fan of the standard chocolate with nuts in it--individually wrapped. And koala no machi was a favorite of my kids. Of the ones you have written about, I am most attracted to the kinakomochi one. I love mochi and love kinako and am curious about how this one tastes. Kinako is so unknown in America but it is a wonderful food. Actually any of the wagashi ones look good. Thank you! I do love this blog....
Sara in Vermont

All Japanese candy intrigues me, to tell you the truth. I'm sorry, candy IN GENERAL intrigues me, but I've been wanting to try anything matcha flavored. mmmm... matcha Kit Kats

I've been lurking around here for a bit and am finally commenting because...well, come on, who'd turn down even the possibility of free candy?

I think I'm most intrigued by the wagashi, because they really, really don't look edible at all. I mean that in a good way; they remind me of the tiny, elaborate, oddly-textured erasers that all the girls collected when I was in elementary school.

Your Japanese Candy Fridays are always one of the highlights of my week. Thank you for taking the time to write such fun, colorful reviews! Everything always looks -- well, if not delicious, at least downright fascinating! (And thank you, too, for all your lucious photographs of Japan, and for sharing some of your experiences there. It really feeds my longing to shake off my own life and go do something really different -- and makes me believe it's possible.)

Anyway, back to the candy: All of them are so intriguing it's hard to call one 'most'. I do have a soft spot for the idea of the mochi candy you reviewed recently, but that's mostly because of the failed mochi-making experience I had with a friend this fall. Let me just say fresh-made mochi is both warm and extremely sticky, and wrapping it around ice cream? Is very hard. And very messy. He was scrubbing dried mochi off his stove for months...

Ahhh, I bet Rob is dying for some of that strawberry crunky! Have you tried Vessel in the Fog? Really delicious. My brother's favorite bar. I looked everywhere for it, though, and I didn't see it anywhere!

I am surrounded by Japanese candy and I so very rarely buy it. I`m the one on the plane coming from the states with a suitcase full of rootbeer barrels and licorice.... but the stuff that always makes me stop and laugh and give a thought to candy would be the CHOCO BABIES....(you don`t need to include me in the drawing but I just wanted to talk about CHOCO BABIES).

Hi, I'm glad to try my chance at getting some free goods. I've never tried any truly bad/disgusting Japanese candies before. But a candy that I have a fond memory of is one I haven't had since I was in my single digit years. I am currenly 26 so it has been a while. It was a hard candy, shaped like an icecream cone. It came in creamy flavors. I used to love these things but haven't seen them anywhere here (in Hawaii) for, well about 20 years! They used to be sold in Marukai (a Japanese chain store here). I have no idea who makes them or even what they are called.

Oh yeah! I have actually been reading your blog for quite some time, but only now got around to commenting (just in time for candy =D)
Hm, I haven't heard much about Japanese candy except from your blog, but of all that you have reviewed, the wagashi have always been my favorite. They are so darling and delicate looking. All of the others look nice as well, but the wagashi are so beautiful.
Oh yes, and of course Asse. Probably becuase I sometimes have the humor of a twelve year old and think that is the most hilarious name for candy of all time.

Okay, here goes.

#1. Mitarashi Dang-o Gummy... I first saw it I thought, Mitsubishi makes cars, electronics AND gummies??? Is there anything that they can't do.

Realizing this was an incorrect assesment, I then fixated on Dang-o...and for the next few days said "dang-o" everytime something didn't go my way.

Finally, I love that they sent a press release. The old PR major in me gave 'em a kudos for effort, and I think we should reward good intention and effort...even if it is masked as capitalism.

#2 - Colon
Because Jon doesn't believe me.

#3 - Kit Kat Bitter
It sounds like a girl band, very Josie and the pussycats.

And here, we never get "special edition" Kit Kats. It's like the Kit Kat Company is having an affair with the rest of the world...with it's exotic flavorings...and like a jilted lover, I want the proof. And again like a jilted lover, I think when I have that proof in my hands, I'll be bitter.

Maybe that's more than you bargained for, but it's what I've got.

Another giveaway! Yay! Well, I still love every and anything matcha flavoured. Any sort of special edition KitKat (most intriguing is the Adzuki bean one), and anything with a fantastic name like Meltykiss, Coffee Rhumba, or, well, Asse.
Oh yeah, and I can't get Pocky here in Austria. But I loved the Coconut Pocky some friendly person once sent me. Mhhhh Pocky... :)

Unusual kit kats like green tea, dark chocolate, passion fruit. Cubyrop seems tasty. I got a delicious matcha hard candy with a superbuzzy order. I need to search for Japanese candy in San Francisco.

I loved your post on on kinako-mochi choco - the kinako part intrigued me so much that I started searching for it down here in Melbourne (Aus) - no luck. I like the thought of the nutty surrounds with the chewy mochi filling - sounds so delicious!

Hey - this may seem incredibly selfish but the reason I would love your leftovers is that I am going to Japan at the end of March and need to prep. Oh, yes, Coffee Rumba we will finally meet. At the very least, I will definitely will have to review all your entries before I go. Sorry Rummy, I've been warned about you!

Umaibo: Teriyaki Flavor

So insubstantial, so satisfying.

P.S. Meiji strawberry chocolate is delicious, as well. Just thought I'd share, in case you haven't tried it. It's a bit smoother than Crunky. A little classier as well :3

Oooooh I love Japanese candy. I think it's the packaging that gets me the most. I could look at the packages for days ... Thank you for doing the reviews because often times all I get to do is look at the candies. Your reviews are good enough to taste!

I don't know if I can say I have any one favorite. So instead I will say that the Mitarashi looked really ... um... intriguing... heheheeh (~_^)V

After reading your post on kurozatō nodo-ame, I started looking for it here in KS. Hmmm...I found Okinawan black sugar, plain and with ginger and black sesame. It was delightfully resistant to melt in my mouth, and lasted a l-o-n-g time, so I can see why it's good for a sore throat. It also wasn't all that sweet, I mean by that, not as sweet as I'd expect something called "sugar" to be, anyway. It's super good in coffee, adds a molasses-y tang. I'm still jonesin' to try kurozatō nodo-ame if I can find it!

I'll gladly take your leftovers if chosen. I think what I like is that I can find Japanese candies that aren't terribly sweet, but are very flavorful. Being a dark chocolate, molasses, and licorice eater, that has appeal.

Well, I have never tried Japanese candy but visit your blog regularly - I really like your candy reviews and photographs! I'm a chocoholic, so I'd love to try Japanese chocolate... thank you for organizing the giveaway!

My most recent favorite post was the special wagashi post. Look here to see how special I thought it was: http://flickr.com/photos/modadimagno/365070236/

The priceless penguin comment "Something terrible happen in your personal life that you want to forget about for a couple minutes? Hey, me too!" puts that post in the running.

Your thoughts on Strawberry Quik ruining "strawberry flavor" is spot on!

All of this plus your insightful and painstaking chocolate research is why Giant Jeans Parlor was my nominee for a Webby.

I think the most interesting to me is the black sugar candy. Being in the states, it's something I've never seen, heard about or tasted. I did I little research online about it after reading your review. It is just intriguing and would love to try some!

Mochi combined with candy gets my mouth watering. Though the kinako-mochi choco sounded much more yummy than the gummy version of mochi. But perhaps the most memorable part of your recent posts for me was your description of heading into the office to work without sunshine. I was starting to romanticize the easy nature of the work at my old secretarial job, but you snapped me out of it right quick.

I hope I'm not too late!!
Well, I'd still like to give it a shot :D

Thank you for offering this fun contest; I'm drawn in because I love receiving mail let alone CANDY! Thank you!

All right, here goes! My favorite Japanese candy has got to be Meiji's Gummy Choco! I guess the american equivalent would be chocolate covered gummy bears, which I've adored as a child, so when I came across Gummy Choco I just about fell over. I like the whole...gummy fruit candy mixed with chocolate taste. And, the soft pastel hues of pink and green make it somehow yummier.

Thanks for reading! I hope I get picked >_

hi anjali! fun contest! I must admit that I *adore* the chestnut kit kats... of course, they're probably long gone now, but they are by far my favorite. Matcha Pocky is a good second-runner-up, and a great standby when those darned seasonal flavors disappear!