Japanese Summer Treat: Ramune

Nothing has permeated Japanese pop culture quite like ramune.

What is ramune? (Pronounced something like "rah-muh-nay")

Ramune is a carbonated drink that is bottled and sold in Japan. It is usually bottled in a special bottle that has a marble floating around in its neck. The marble usually is stopping the bottle, and it must be forcibly pushed in to open it, after which it rolls around freely in the neck. The name "ramune" is the result of an attempt at transliterating the word "lemonade" into Japanese.

As an American who grew up drinking pink, non-carbonated lemonade, I couldn't quite figure out why anyone would think this drink would have anything to do with lemonade.

As I got to know more English-speakers in Japan, however, I found out that "lemonade" doesn't exactly mean the same thing in every English-speaking country.

My Brit friends tell me that when they hear "lemonade," they think of what Americans would call a Sprite. Apparently, for Brits, "lemonade" is a lemon-flavored, carbonated drink.

Perhaps this is where the Japanese got their idea for ramune?

At any rate it is what it is.

Ramune has become such a part of Japanese modern culture, so much that it's its own flavor.

Ramune is associated with the summer, as it's a common cold drink served as a refreshment in the hot summer heat.

Something I've noticed in Japan, is that when the Japanese love a flavor, they go all out making that flavor everything.

This has happened with ramune.

There's ramune meltaway candy, ramune KitKats, ramune ice cream, and as you may have seen  in my last post, ramune yatsuhashi.

 Ramune candies

 Ramune KitKat

 Ramune Soft Ice Cream

Ramune packaged ice cream

Ramune Yatsuhashi

 Ramune yatsuhashi unpackaged

There are probably other sweets and things that I failed to mention here. I'm quite sure I've seen ramune sweet bread and donuts before.

Some of my readers who play video games may have actually seen a ramune bottle and never even realized it.

If you played the game PikMin, in the level of the Forest Navel, you will have encountered a derelict ramune bottle near some Wolliwogs, where you find the Anti-Dioxin Filter. 

Is that a ramune bottle? Yes, yes it is.

You can see a ramune bottle in the second Pikmin short movie, starting at 1:13