Wasanbon
Japanese sugar perfection
Japanese confection. A handmade sugar sweet called wasanbon. /Shutterstock
At first glance, the item looks like merely sugar—or perhaps it could be called cane sugar. So what could be so unique and incomparable about it? But when perfectionists like the Japanese get involved, the result is wasanbon sugar. It is only produced in the Tokushima and Kagawa prefectures, located on the island of Shikoku, where the most proper variety of cane called chikuto grows, from which an incredibly fine sugar of the highest purity is obtained. Only wasanbon sugar is suitable for making traditional Japanese dry confections called wagashi.
Its particles are slightly larger than those of powdered sugar, but each granule remains uncrushed, a whole crystal, which gives it properties distinct from powdered sugar.
In addition, wasanbon sugar itself is a delicacy. It is moistened with water and pressed into special molds to create figures, which are highly valued desserts served with tea. The wasanbon figures are so beautiful and renowned (and quite expensive too as they cost around 1 USD per gram) that a small package of these is considered an exquisite gift, demonstrating the refined taste of the gift giver.
