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Yes, people all over the world love cola, and once again, we can look forward to a new cola beverage coming onto the market in Japan. We’ve already told you about the fat-busting cola which came out in April. This time, the new cola has an exotic twist with ingredients from the tropical islands of Okinawa Prefecture.
Japan Tobacco Inc (JT) recently announced that they will be selling the “Okinawa Brown Sugar Cola” (Okinawa Kokuto Cola) starting June 4. The new cola contains precious high-quality brown sugar from Hateru Island of Okinawa, with a dash of mineral-rich salt from Ishigaki Island, also located in Okinawa, added to bring out the refreshing taste of the drink.
Okinawa has always been a popular travel destination for Japanese tourists, and in terms of consumer appeal, it can’t hurt for the drink to be associated with the beautiful islands. The package of the drink features a picture of the blue skies and ocean of Okinawa, and the bright red Hibiscus flower on the side is a nice touch that enhances the image of the islands as a tropical paradise.
JT also mentioned in their press release that as a partner corporation involved in the “Food Action Nippon” project, which is a movement to keep both tradition and creativity alive in Japanese food and cooking and also improve Japanese food self-sufficiency, they are hoping to promote and open new possibilities for Okinawa food products.
The cola will be sold at 140 yen for a standard 500ml bottle. The combination of Okinawa’s island allure and the sweet taste of brown sugar definitely sounds appealing and is bound to make it a perfect summer drink. It will probably make you want to visit Okinawa, and more importantly for JT, it may turn out to be a big hit.
© RocketNews24
28 Comments
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Probie
Sounds like it could be nice.
kurisupisu
Is it cancerous?
electric2004
Does it contain co(l)lagen?
kaminarioyaji
No real point in drinking this... You'll have a few, get to like it, maybe even love it, and then, in a few short weeks, it will be gone forever; just another item in the long line of the Japanese "gourmet" carousel.
Foxie
That fat busting cola must be only available in Honshu again and so will this one again probably. The label looks very good, excellent job by their marketing team. All that is missing now is Lavender Cola from Hokkaido.
Maria
@kaminarioyaji - crikey! that's very fatalistic of you...there's no point doing anything then, because eventually everything changes, ends, dies, disappears... That said, I still pine over the long-gone Haagen-Dazs frozen yogurt more than I do over a lost love...
I wouldn't but this because it's owned by Japan Tobacco, and I bet Okinawa won't see a yen of the money JT makes from the exploitation of their land!
smithinjapan
Beats some of the concoctions they've put out over the years, but it'll likely still be dodgy.
"The new cola contains precious high-quality brown sugar from Hateru Island of Okinawa, with a dash of mineral-rich salt from Ishigaki Island, also located in Okinawa, added to bring out the refreshing taste of the drink."
BS. It'll be the same sucrose/corn syrup as always, with a couple of drops of brown sugar flavoured chemical. Cola is bad for you any way you try and slice it.
ThonTaddeo
I think this is a typo; there's no "Hateru Island"; it should probably be Hateruma, which is the southernmost of the Okinawan islands (and indeed means the last bit of land; it's 果て + うるま). It's a very quiet island that's hard to get to, but well worth a visit.
Pukey2
maria:
Yeah, I also make it a point to avoid buying ANYTHING associated with that cancerous company.
nandakandamanda
ThonTaddeo, the J blurb says: 波照間島（はてるまじま） Hateruma Jima.
Stuart Walden
American influence...still destroying Japanese culture....
kurisupisu
Why would you drink this?
If JT believes sweeteners and colorings with preservatives are beneficial for the body then I'll pass............
Thomas Anderson
So a tobacco company is releasing a cola product... hmm... right.
Serrano
"precious high-quality brown sugar"
I buy a kilogram of brown sugar at the supermarket for 230 yen. I guess the quality is good.
"Cola is bad for you any way you try and slice it"
I would never try to slice cola.
bass4funk
@stuart
I had no idea America was forcing Japan to drink Okinawan cola.
Elbuda Mexicano
@Serrano, best come back of the week! I WOULD NEVER TRY TO SLICE COLA! LOL!! Brown sugar in my book is just as good if not better than white sugar and not that crap they put in those horrible DIET colas, that nasty horrible after taste it leaves in your mouth after making the HUGE mistake of paying for junk like Pepsi Nex, Diet Coke etc..I would not even give those diet drinks to my dog! I would surely give only my best friends and my dogs good old REAL COCA COLA and in this case Okinawa Kuro Zato Cola!
Elbuda Mexicano
I do not want to sound like an alcoholic but with a bit of RUM this may make a very nice Cuba Libre with a twist since instead of using regular coca cola, it is made with brown sugar??? Mmmmm....yummy!! Viva Cuba Libre!!
Yubaru
As opposed to what? Is this supposed to mean that the sugar cane from other islands of Okinawa is "less" precious? I have to say this is the FIRST time in my life that I have ever heard of brown sugar as being my precious!
KariHaruka
Nice bit of advertising there. Lets see if it actually does contain real sugar (you could taste the difference with pepsi throwback to normal pepsi). Still even if it does I doubt it could effect my love for Coca Cola.
Yubaru
I think you'd be surprised, the like American's a heck of a lot more than American's like Japanese people I'd bet.
Yubaru
Just talk to the average Okinawan about what they think of Americans....
Yeah ask them, they like American's and cola just about as much as American's like Okinawan's!
bass4funk
@Smith
Exactly! I hate the stuff so much, I honestly can't tell the difference between Coke and Pepsi, it all tastes like nasty motor oil to me anyway. So, I am not sure if this cola will be any different. I'll drink it if there is absolutely nothing else to drink as a last option, but IMO nothing can beat the taste of ice cold fresh filtered water, period!
garomakaikishi
personally i wouldnt buy any drinks made by a tobacco company. its just a dumb idea anyways. sugar is sugar and whats the point brown sugar in a black coke?
Elbuda Mexicano
If you know nothing about Okinawa and the Okinawans, then you will also not know that they LOVE A & W Rootbeer, I do too and we I get a chance to go down to Okinawa I get my fill of root beer since up here in Tokyo it is not easy to find and the last time I gave root beer to my Tokyo amigos, they said it smelled like shipu, those menthol pads that you put on your neck or back if you have muscle pain, so root beer then off to this new Okinawa cola with Okinawan brown sugar, it may be a hit!!
Laguna
I am waiting for results of comparative studies regarding which is best for removing tar from the side of my car. Until then, I will stick with Coke.
choiwaruoyaji
How come you taste so good?
Kiskipuich Vilaboa
Hopefully doesn't contain the ASPARTAME poison!
Interac Kellan
Brown Sugar is different for those of you who do not think it makes a difference. Brown sugar, granulated sugar, confectioner's sugar all have a different taste and can be used for different things. Brown sugar has a warm sweet taste due to the molasses on the sugar crystals. Where the sugar is grown also has an effect on the taste. Even Japanese granulated sugar, which is finer, tastes different from, say, American granulated sugar. I do wonder how brown sugar adds or detracts from the cola taste but sadly I will likely be unable to. Knowing is only the beginning, knowing how to use said sugars is the real battle.