Welcome to the first installment of what is to become a regular feature of this blog: Kit Kat Reviews! I’m a bit crazy for different flavors of Kit Kats, and I want to share this joy with the world. There are so many creative and ridiculous flavors of Kit Kat in Japan, and I can’t help but try to collect them all. They don’t last forever though, so I’ll try to make this collection live in digital form here on the internets. And away we go!

As I mentioned the other day, we recently purchased a kotatsu, the low heated table that is such a part of the Japanese concept of winter. When I mentioned our new kotatsu on twitter, specifically that I was snuggling under the futon and watching the Sumo tournament, a good friend said that all I needed was mikan and I would be all set.

This mention of mikan then set off an epic twitter discussion about Japanese citrus fruit, the names and variety of which are seemingly endless. There’s the yuzu, of course, sometimes called a citron or Japanese lemon, with an appearance like an ugly grapefruit but a taste all of its own. There’s the chikuwasa from Okinawa, the sudachi from Shikoku, the dekopon and the ponkan. And of course, there is the mikan.

Mikan are small, orange-colored, and very sweet. They seem most like clementines to me, or perhaps mandarin oranges, but with their own distinctive, subtle flavor. They are seedless and the skin is thin and loosely attached to the fruit it holds. You might know them as satsumas in English, but I haven’t seen them in D.C. before. Do you have them in your neck of the woods?

They are also an integral part of the Japanese winter imagery, belonging with a kotatsu almost as much as the blanket on your lap or the cat (or little brother) peaking out from under it.

So, when I found a special, seasonal edition of Kit Kat that was Mikan flavored, I was excited. I don’t usually care for the bags of “Big littles”, or little square chunks of Kit Kat, but for mikan I would make an exception, and I’m glad I did.

They are delicious. Absolutely, totally delicious. A delicate orange scent permeates the milk chocolate, and compliments the crunchiness of the wafers. It’s like the cross of a Terry’s chocolate orange, the Christmas classic, with bite sized pieces of Kit Kat. If you enjoy the mixing of orange and chocolate, or like the taste of mikan, then you will like this Kit Kat.

In fact, I’m going to go out on a limb here and say it might be one of my all-time favorite flavors of Kit Kat that I’ve come across, and I’ve come across many. Some of the crazy flavors of Japanese Kit Kats seem really forced, more focused on the crazy factor than the success of the actual flavor. But chocolate and orange are a classic pairing, and they really suit each other well here, as well as being delightfully seasonally appropriate.

My only complaint is that there were so few in the bag! Only nine pieces for ￥120 just feels like a bit of a rip off.

I’ve heard reports that this one might be quickly disappearing, which might be a sign of how good it is—only the really gross ones seem to hang around forever. The special edition flavors usually seem to be done in limited batches, only meant to be on shelves a month or two, never to be seen again.

If it is flying off the shelves in record time, then perhaps the general populace agrees with me as to how ridiculously tasty these are. Still, if it’s true, I think I’ll stop by the shop on the way home and see if I can stock up on this deliciousness! What do you think, does it sound tasty? Would you try it? And do you want me to pick you up a bag if I find some? 🙂