One thing I really appreciate about Japan is the incredible selection of beverages they have. With a convenience store (or two) on every corner, and a vending machine (or five) every hundred feet, just walking around town you’ll face an overwhelming number of choices on a hot summer day. Or a cold winter one for that matter, vending machines and convenience stores both dispense hot canned drinks in the winter. I’m limiting this list to sodas, but tea, coffee and energy drinks have an equally staggering variety available.
1. Kirin Mets Grapefruit
One of my favorites here for hot summer days. It taste’s a lot like a Squirt, but less sweet and a stronger, but very refreshing, grapefruit flavor.
2. Mitsuya Cider
I guess this would be the Japanese answer to Sprite. It’s clear, but not a citrus flavor. I don’t really know what to compare it to, tastes a little like a ginger ale, but less sweet, with a sharper bite and a distinctly different, slightly herbal flavor. I was a little taken off guard the first time I tried it, and it took some getting used to.
3. Melon Soda
OK, so there’s gotta be at least a dozen brands that sell some form of melon soda here. There are both standard melon and melon cream. I imagine the cream versions get their inspiration from the popular melon floats sold as dessert at many restaurants. Generally these are very sweet, very green, with a subtle honey dew melon flavor (though I did find a cantaloupe version once that was quite good) and I have a hard time passing one up anytime its available.
4. Pepsi Refresh Shot
I prefer Coke over Pepsi. But I kept seeing this and had to give it a try. It’s about the size of a Red Bull, and supposedly has something like twice the caffeine of a normal Pepsi. It tasted like a Pepsi. Probably won’t be getting many of them though as Japan has better energy drinks available if I really need a boost (not to mention a couple hundred variety’s of excellent canned coffee).
5. Plum Soda
Plum’s here are big in popularity, small in size. They make a sour plum wine out of them, as well as a refreshing summer drink, sort of a rough Japanese equivalent of lemonade. This is the soda version of those drinks, and it’s delicious. Has a really nice sour bite to it, along with an easily recognizable plum sweetness.
6. Oranamin C
Vitamin infused soft drinks are popular here. I’m not sure exactly why– no one seems to be fooled into thinking that they are actually healthy, but maybe the combination of sugar and vitamins just puts an energetic bounce to your step when you need it. Whatever the reasons, this little guy here is nonetheless one of my favorite sodas in Japan. It tastes a little like a cream soda, but with a slightly bitter, vitaminy after taste, which somehow pulls together the whole experience nicely. It’s very refreshing, and gives you a good dose of Vitamin C, a few of the Bs, some Royal Jelly, and all the sugar you would expect from a normal soda.
7. Yogurt Soda
It’s a soda, but with yogurt mixed in for flavoring. It’s carbonated, not any thicker in texture than a normal soda, and has a very creamy flavor. At first it taste like a cream soda (only more so) but then finishes with a slightly sour, yogurty after taste. It’s actually really good.
8. A billion different Fanta Flavors
Japan has more Fanta flavors available than anywhere else in the word. Naturally you’ve got your standard Orange and Grape Fanta pretty much everywhere. And of course there has to be a melon Fanta, because everyone who makes soft drinks here has to put out a melon one. But then it seems like throughout the year there’s always something new. I tried this Yuzu one last Summer. I’ve also had Lychee, White Peach and Nashi (Japanese Pear). I’m always on the look for one I haven’t tried yet.
