[REVIEW] Mitsuya Cider

Just a quick entry “asides.” I updated the about section (ADRIATASTIC?) in a more condensed section. More to be added later but this is it.

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Mitsuya Cider

Item Type: Clear Carbonated Soft Drink
Variations: Regular, Diet (“All Zero”), Fruit Flavors (Grape, Lemon, Orange (mikan), White Peach), White Cider series
First Release: 1884
Manufacturing Label: Asahi (famous for their beer)
Country: Japan
Source: Wikipedia

For all the Arashi fans out there, this isn’t a review about Sho Sakurai‘s appearances in the product’s commercial clips you’ve seen on YouTube. This is a review about the drink itself— Mitsuya Cider. Keep note to some of you that the cider in the name does not mean that this drink is a “clear”-colored version of a sparkling apple cider, which many always think of apple juice when someone mentions the word “cider.” The “cider” only refers to the drink being carbonated, but not necessarily alcoholic.

Depending on where you live, Mitsuya Cider is another type of carbonated beverage almost similar to Sprite or 7-UP, except that it’s less sweet, no traces of lemon and lime flavoring, and I guess you could say that it’s definitely club soda, or carbonated water, with some subtle sweetness to it. In some ways you could say that it’s somewhat of a thirst-quencher rather than just an everyday soda pop (or soft drink, whatever you call it) for the young and the young at heart. The reason why I called it a thirst-quencher because it definitely quenched my thirst when I had my first bottle earlier today on a major heat wave. I’ll have to thank my brother and his girlfriend for buying the drinks from the local Asian groceries, knowing that we’re definitely going to need something nice, something cool, and something that will not make us worry about sugar content or getting fat and bloated from it.

I only had the opportunity to drink both the regular version and the ALL ZERO version (sadly there isn’t any of the fruit-flavored ones available in the store so we’re stuck with these two versions instead). Even with the regular version, it’s also somewhat diabetic-friendly (100 calories, 30mg Sodium, 26g Carbohydrates), but that all depends on the diabetes level as well. If that’s the case, go for the ALL ZERO type. It’s basically the same thing, but it tastes more like real carbonated water/club soda with a very tiny hint of sweetness. If you are not a fan of drinking water (or carbonated water in itself) as your thirst-quencher, then ALL ZERO may not be your type of drink. In my case, it’s still an acceptable alternate for me should I run out of iced tea to drink (sadly bottled iced teas are a lot more pricey than bottled soda).

As mentioned, it is quite refreshing. It’s not very heavy and it won’t give any “carbonated burns” on your throat as you swallow it down slowly. But the neat thing about it is that you can still feel the icy cold sensation in your throat if you drink it super iced-cold. That’s what makes the drink a lot refreshing and an ultimate thirst-quencher. Obviously available in Japan at every local grocery store or vending machine, you can even find them at a local Asian (or more specifically Japanese) groceries near you, but of course, that also depends on where you live. My brother bought the Mitsuya Cider bottles from Marina Foods Market, which is one of the very few Asian groceries located in our town. They’ve got a wide selection of Japanese snacks and drinks as well as food products equal to the other types of Asian foods (Chinese, Taiwanese, Hong Kong, Thailand, Philippines, Korea, etc.). But anyway, I was fortunate that I was able to get one of each kind.

If you’re a major soda fan, try Mitsuya Cider. If you’re not a major soda fan, try it anyway. It’s surprisingly crisp and light, mildly sweet, and tantalizingly refreshing, especially ice cold!

And now… the STUFF!

As for your daily stormy eyecandy, here’s the Fly Guy and his Mitsuya Cider. Just watching those clips seriously made me truly imagine how refreshingly light this soda really is. And well… it is! How he reacts there, I reacted the same. :P

Ah yes, the weather in this clip is pretty much the same as the weather here in California… and my brother and I have to wash cars tomorrow too…

Sho-kun here seriously demonstrates that baseball is life! Otherwise you won’t get to enjoy the crispness of fresh, ice cold Mitsuya Cider. :P