Maneki Yuzu Houji Milk Tea (招き柚子ほうじミルクティー) – Gong Cha

I’m back in Japan! Gong Cha came out with a new seasonal on 12/28 for the new year: the Maneki Yuzu Houji. I suppose it’s maneki as in maneki neko, the beckoning cat beckoning the new year. I will say I am typically not a yuzu person, but I was willing to try this out and how it would pair with the houjicha.

The drink includes their original houjicha, yuzu jelly, yuzu sauce, yuzu crunch and milk foam. Pretty standard for one of their specialty seasonals.

Upon first sip the drink was…very citrus-y, which I guess would be great for yuzu fans. However, I am not, and for an entire first sip, I got a bunch of the crunch bits. It was very tart, sour, and slightly bigger, which was not fun. Even though I stirred it in, the bottom was very syrupy, and the drink is mostly yuzu. I can’t taste the Hojicha at all…boba is fine, but the strong yuzu overpowers it that makes me not want to drink it much. Quite sad. I did finish it, but very slowly (maybe because I was also full from lunch), and it was tolerable…it helped that the crunch pieces, which were basically dried peel pieces, became softer as they soaked into the drink.

Details: Maneki Yuzu Houji Milk Tea; less sugar; pearl; from Gong Cha (Akarenga Terrace)