Mintia Breeze – Clear Yogurt

Mintia is a pretty big deal in Japan, and it’s one of my favourite “mint” brands. I put mint in quotations because the exact definition of a mint will vary depending on who you ask. To me, most of the flavours Mintia comes out with are refreshing and have a nice menthol cool to them, so it’s good enough for me to consider them a mint. I’m sure some mint purists out there would argue against my logic, but that’s what I’m going with.

This isn’t the first time I’ve had a yogurt flavour from Mintia, but I saw this pop up, and it had an intriguing name – clear yogurt. What makes a yogurt clear? Is it the flavour? The appearance? I don’t really know, but the marketing around it was enough to make me pull the trigger. It certainly doesn’t hurt that I quite enjoy Japanese yogurt flavours. They usually remind me of my childhood and my love for Yakult and Calpis.

Similar to the typical flavour profile of yogurt flavoured snacks in Asia, this is more of a sweet, tangy Calpis or Yakult flavour than a traditional yogurt we find in the Western hemisphere. The little tablets have a strong Calpis flavour that has a bit of sweet, a bit of tang, and a nice refreshing menthol sensation in the back. While it carries a nice refreshing minty sensation, it doesn’t carry the flavour of mint. Through and through the flavour of yogurt is ever present and the sensation it leaves behind is that of a mint, but without the “spice” or “strength” that a mint has. Just the pleasant after sensation.

Texture is not much of a concern hear, as it’s basically a tablet of mint that’s designed to help keep your mouth and breath feeling fresh. Unlike the standard mini tablets that regular Mintia comes in, these are chonky pieces that were at one point marketed to last for about 5 minutes in your mouth if you simply leave it there to dissolve. My general experience is it lasts more like 3 minutes, but it’s still quite a bit longer than the tiny regular sized pieces last. Maybe my saliva is just more caustic and dissolves them faster?

Suffice to say, I am a fan of these. They are not overly strong mints but are still refreshing, and have a nice tangy yogurt flavour to it. It’s like the best of both worlds being a yogurt hard candy and a refreshing mint. These being sugarless are just a bonus, and you can bet your bottom dollar I would get these again.