Ever wonder, what does sakura taste like?

Most folks may already know that one of Japan’s most popular flavors is matcha, the powdered green tea of the iconic tea ceremony. Lesser known is the country’s love for sakura, or cherry blossom flavors. Available a few weeks before the first blooms, these are a must for enjoying the cherry blossom season.

Don’t mistake this flavor for its cherry fruit! Sakura is much more subtle: sweet with a hint of the flower’s fragrance. Heating it for tea or pickling brings out a light sourness. But, it’s most commonly found in sweet treats, like the ones below.

Sakura Manju

Many traditional Japanese sweets are made from a paste of adzuki, Japan’s sweet red beans. The large seasonally-designed, soft and sweet wagashi served alongside matcha tea is largely made from adzuki.

Take that same bean paste, wrap in in a flour dough, steam it, and you have manju! For the sakura variety seen here, include pickled and salted sakura blossom mixed into the bean paste. The final result is a treat with a complex flavor palette.

Sakura Mochi

Unadulterated adzuki paste fills the interior of these large wrapped sweets. Partially ground mochi rice cake, with some of the texture of the rice remaining, makes the Kansai style of sakura mochi known as domyoji, named for the Domyo-ji Temple in Osaka from which the style of preparation originates.

The Kanto-style of sakura mochi more resembles dorayaki, a sweet snack of two small pancakes sandwiching adzuki paste. This flour-based sakura roll is called chomeiji, named for the Chōmei-ji Temple in Tokyo, neighboring the wagashi shop that developed this popular sweet.

Both styles are wrapped in salted cherry leaves, which increased their shelf life. Eating the leaf is optional, but I certainly do!

Hanami Dango

Hanami dango are springtime balls of mochi in three flavors: plain, matcha or yomogi (young Japanese mugwort, a member of the sunflower family) and, of course, sakura. These colorful balls are the most commonly seen traditional sakura sweet. Beware that not all hanami dango are the same, as some may be colored but not flavored. Both plain and flavored hanami dango are enjoyed during the cherry blossom season.

Sakura Castella

Castella cakes are popular throughout the year, but special flavors are available seasonally. Not only is this fluffy and moist sakura treat covered in gold leaf—a Kanazawa specialty!—but cherry blossom and butterfly shapes have been cut into it as well, making it both beautiful and fun.

---

The sakura treats pictured here are from Urata and Mameya Bankyu stores in B1 level of the Daiwa Department Store, just 450 meters from Kaname Inn in the Korinbo shopping district!