Bokksu Subscription Box Review + Coupon – January 2017

Bokksu is a premium Japanese snack subscription service. Each box includes an assortment of authentic Japanese snacks as well as a tea pairing chosen to complement and enhance that month's flavors.

The snacks are selected around a cultural theme, and each box contains a Tasting Guide that describes the items and how to best enjoy them.

This month's box was packed with snacks!

This box was sent to us at no cost for review. (Check out the review process post to learn more about how we review boxes.)

The Subscription Box: Bokksu

The Cost: $39.00 per month + free shipping

The Products: 18-20 premium Japanese snacks including a tea pairing.

Ships to: Worldwide

Check out all our Bokksu reviews and the Food Subscription Box Directory!

Keep Track of Your Subscriptions: add Bokksu to your subscription list or wishlist!

January's theme is Maru, which means "circle" in Japanese.

Baumkuchen

Baumkuchen is a German roll cake first introduced to Japan in the early 20th century. In my recent trip to Japan, I spotted Baumkuchen cakes everywhere, both in artisanal shops in Kyoto and in convenience stores all around Tokyo. Bokksu included two flavors: Plain and Chocolate. The texture is somewhere between muffin and cornbread. Because it is on the drier side I ate mine in small bites with tea.

Here is the Plain Baumkuchen. It tastes like vanilla cake.

Here is the Chocolate Baumkuchen. The flavor is like semi-sweet cocoa powder. 

Ka No Michi

I saw these cookies in artisanal Kyoto shops and souvenir stores at the airport. Ka No Michi consists of two wavy cookies with flavored cream sandwiched in between. Bokksu included three flavors: Vanilla, Matcha, and Cocoa. 

The cookies aren't only delicious-- they're works of art!

The cream filling has a whipped consistency and is mildly sweet. It complements the crunchy sweetness of the cookies.

Gaufrettes

These are thin wafer sandwich cookies with light cream filling on in between. Bokksu included three flavors: Vanilla, Strawberry, and Chocolate.

Here is the Strawberry Gaufrette. Because the wafers don't have a lot of flavor, most of the sweetness and flavor rely on the cream filling. This is great as a pick-me-up snack.

Cheese Manju Okashinai

Manju is a traditional Japanese confection made with flour, rice powder, and buckwheat. This manju contains white bean and cheese instead of the traditional red bean filling. As much as I enjoy red bean products, I know it's a bit of an acquired taste. I think this flavor may be more universally appealing, not to mention the cheesy undertones are really unique and delicious! Spoiler alert: I love this snack.

The outer shell is light and crumbly, while the filling consists of a denser white bean layer and a creamier cheese core.

Kaisen Usukeshi Kasen

These are twice baked shrimp senbei. Don't underestimate how crispy they are! Each bite is chock full of shrimp flavor. The taste is like a concentrated version of shrimp crackers.

Natural Yeast Bread Hokkaido Cream

This is a delicious, soft, creamy, and aromatic dessert bread. This is everything I love in a sweet bread. It contains cream from milk from Hokkaido.

I expected to see a cream filling inside, but actually, the cream is infused into the bread! I would love to eat this for breakfast every day.

Gyokuro Green Tea

According to Bokksu, Gyokuro tea leaves are regarded as one of the highest grades of Sencha, or Japanese green tea. Due to the harvesting process, they contain more theanine and alkaloid caffeine, which results in a richer flavor.

Gyokuro tea is steeped in warm water (160 degrees Fahrenheit) instead of in boiling water. It does taste stronger and more bitter compared to other green teas. I sipped this tea with Ka No Michi cookies, Baumkuchen, and the Cheese Manju. All three snacks paired great with the Gyokuro.

Verdict: This is one of my favorite snack boxes of all time! I love literally everything that was included. There were 19 items total for a cost breakdown of $2.05 per snack. I also like that Bokksu included different flavors of each type of snack! It allows me to appreciate having multiples of one snack while still getting variety.

What do you think of Bokksu?