How Japan sees American Coffee

I have always loved creamy canned coffee - and although it is not found easily, the kind from the Asian markets always taste light years ahead of what you can find at 7-11s. I was always impressed with the quality of the brands from Japan more than any place else - as they seem to lack the baking soda residue preservative and bland weak watery flavor that so many American and Mexican canned coffees have. That is why this amazingly detailed can of "American Coffee" is so attractive - all the cliche glamor of an All American Can, filled with everything the iconic sleazy american lives for! Bad taste? check. Sexy stripper grls? Check! Cool classic car? Check! There is even the american flag with groovy 60's lettering!

Fortunately, the coffee inside is far superior to what I was expecting. The coffee itself is high-grade, the texture was creamy, and it was just sweet enough without being overkill.

The Japanese know their canned coffee. They have been doing canned coffees since the 60s, usually found in vending machines throughout Japan. This market is so huge that even Coca-Cola has gotten into the act by coming out with a very popular line of them under the name "Georgia".

Packaging:8
Canned coffee is completely a Japanese creation. Even the term "can coffee" was created in Japan as a way of distinguishing it from a typical can of, for instance, Yuban or other packaged coffee grounds that come in huge canisters.

In this case, the sexily hooded Chrysler Pacifica adorned can is worth keeping. It is a hard steel can, not even bothering with the cheap aluminum found in Monsters, Starbucks and all the rest. I found an old style design for this drink - and was shocked! This new can is by far the Coolest coffee can I have seen in a very very long time.

Nutrition:8
While monsters have HFCS and baking soda fills most others, this can is sweetened with plain old sugar. There is not much to this can, leaving out the dozen or so preservatives expected. There are 120 calories in the 12oz can, so about as much as to be expected for any creamy coffee drink. The buzz was minimal - about as much as you would get from a normal coffee drink - my guessis around 80mg of Caffeine. The milk in here adds a bit of protein (2g) and fat (1g), but not enough to enhance or detract from it.

Taste:8
There is No Syrupy flavor and no preservative-y flavor, which is hard to find in coffee drinks. This is a smooth delicious can of some really flavorful coffee that is complemented by the cream and sugar, rather than the cream and sweetener used to hide the poor quality of the coffee.

Fantastic review at cannedcoffee.com
Wikipedia on Canned Coffee