Originally Posted by
LapLap
Ito Kyuuemon ltd edition is a tie in with Itoh Kyuemon - a confectionary company who specialise in green tea flavoured products:
http://www.itohkyuemon.co.jp. I'd never heard of them before and now I have, thanks to the KitKat tie in, more specifically I know who they are now because they are at least partly responsible for matcha kit kats having a better taste than usual. How these tie ins work, if Itoh Kyuemon are partly subsidising the increased cost of the higher grade powdered tea, if they supply it themselves, etc... I truly have no idea.
I have no idea either how involved these shinise tea shops are in the making of these matcha chocolates bearing their logos. I just know that the Ito Kyuuemon type was far better than the regular matcha Kit-kat.
There're other shinise tea shops collaborating with other chocolate companies. Like this one:
http://www.kabaya.co.jp/campaign/ind...se_view&pk=118
Not a fan of Kabaya chocolates usually, but this one is really solid. Got these in Japan last spring and loved them, but unfortunately I couldn't find them at all anymore on my two trips back home since.
The two of my favorite maccha-flavored chocolates that you can find in konbinis all over Tokyo right now are:
http://mognavi.jp/food/744358
http://catalog-p.meiji.co.jp/product...129/11456.html
The ultimate maccha-flavored chocolates, though, are nama-chocos. There're different companies making nama-chokos out there, but my favorite is the one by Monloire. To me, this is the king of all maccha chocolates.
https://www.monloire.co.jp/?mode=cat...t&lct_id=L0001