While the temperatures may still be chilly, once the month turns to March, the Japanese public inevitably begins to think about the coming spring, and of course, cherry blossom season.
This year, starting March 1, Japanese coffee chain Dotour will be offering customers an early taste (or smell, in this case) of spring — with sakura-scented coffee! Their new coffee product, the “Premium Roast Coffee Sakura“, will be a limited edition blend of high roast coffee using beans from several locations, to be available in both ground and drip coffee bag form.
More specifically, the blend will consist of Indian coffee as the base, with other coffees such as the fruity and floral Ethiopian Yirgacheffe and Brazilian coffee added as well, and scented with the aroma of sakura tree chips.
A “sakura powder” made from yaezakura (multi-layerd cherry blossom) flowers and Ōshimazakura (a cherry tree native to Izu Ōshima island and the Izu Peninsula) leaves will also be added, to create a coffee that should subtly and elegantly carry the scent of sakura.
According to the product description released by Dotour, while the sakura scented coffee is certainly flavorful tasted black, its distinct cherry aroma should become even more pronounced if you add some sugar.
Also, when the temperature of the coffee is still hot, the scent of the cherry flower should be strongly recognizable, while the scent of cherry leaves should become more evident as the coffee cools down, almost as if you can sense the change of the cherry trees from full bloom to their green, leaf covered state after the blossoms are over.
The Premium Roast Coffee Sakura will be available at Dotour locations across Japan for a limited time from March 1. If you’re visiting Japan and looking for a bit of Japanese spring to take home as souvenir, it may fit your bill perfectly!
