If you’re a tea fan, the chilled section of a Japanese convenience store can be a surprising paradise, filled with wondrous cold tea options. This includes green tea, black tea, milk tea, oolong tea, and even some very Japanese seasonal options to try out.

For example this year, Lipton released a sakura tea latte carton drink, which was limited to only the spring season. Now that spring is coming to an end and we welcome summer, they’ve got another seasonal treat up their sleeve, which also makes use of distinctly Japanese flavours and ingredients.

This new tea blend, in suitably bright and summery packaging, is the ‘Green Tea Hyuganatsu Mix’.

The hyuganatsu is a little-known fruit, which is named after Miyazaki prefecture where it was likely first discovered. Miyazaki’s ancient name is ‘Hyuga’, and ‘natsu’ means summer, making this Japanese citrus fruit the perfect treat for the season.

But it’s not the only fruit juice involved. Lemon and green apple juice have also been added to the iced green tea base, resulting in a sweet and refreshing beverage.

The drink will be released in Japanese convenience stores from 19th May, but will only be available during summertime, until around July.


By - Jess.