Small candy with a slightly hard exterior and a soft, chewy interior are called scotch mints, a name derived from the specific mint plant Mentha x gracilis. Who knew? They’re more commonly known as Mentos who describes them as ‘chewy dragées’. These here are Mentos Matcha, a flavour produced for the Japanese market.

Each piece is an oblate spheroid ~2 cm in diameter with a smooth pale green exterior.

The Mentos has a faint matcha aroma that developed in prominence on chewing through the crisp exterior into the softer interior. A sugary sweetness characteristic of Mentos emerged briefly mid-bite as the white centre melts with the bright matcha flavour — sweet and vegetal — following closely as the green centre also dissolves, leaving a mellow sweet matcha flavour lingering shortly on the palate. Overall, these Mentos have an enjoyable matcha flavour with the same mouthfeel — crisp exterior with a chewy interior — as the ones from Australia.

This Mentos Matcha contained 35 g or 15 pieces. It was produced in Holland and purchased in Ōsaka, Japan in 2018.