Sometimes Foodie: Otona No Miruku Pocky - Asian Food Market: Cherry Hill, NJ

Otona No Miruku Pocky - Asian Food Market: Cherry Hill, NJ

The box clearly shows that this chocolate Pocky has something to do with milk, but I am not entirely sure what this flavor is and how milk comes into play. I assumed this was milk chocolate flavored because the label on the back of the packaging says " Otona Milk Choco," but I looked this box up online and I found two different explanations. One link claims that this is "adult milk" flavored Pocky, which is only mildly horrifying, and another says that this is "rich milk pie" flavored. Now, neither option sounds all that appealing, what is a milk pie anyway? And what exactly makes milk "adult?" Welp, there's no going back now. I guess we'll find out when I open the box.

As always, the packing is really appealing. The black, white, and gold color palette is bold yet sophisticated, which makes me think this flavor might be targeted at adults (1 point for "adult milk"), but I think the chocolate aspect would still appeal to children. Pocky boxes always have really detailed designs that are informative and visually appealing, and this box is no different. There is a guide showing how to open and reseal the box, as well as a detailed diagram of the Pocky stick (which I am guessing has milk powder in it?) that explains the flavoring.

Sadly, I can't read any of it. ~~If any of you can translate, please let me know this flavor's true name and it's description.~~

Update: THANK YOU tumblr user kitsunenomen! For now, all I have to go on are context clues. From the looks of this diagram, I think this is a semi-sweet-to-dark chocolate coated Pocky with a milk flavored biscuit stick, but that is just a guess from the imagery on the box.

Since I have the awesomeness that is the internet at my disposal, I Googled this box to try and find some answers. I ended up finding descriptions that varied so much, that I'm still confused as to what this is meant to be. Most accounts say that the stick is meant to be flaky like a pie crust, which sounds interesting, but what would be "adult" about milk and pie crust? Are milk pies a popular dessert in Japan for adults? Are milk pies even a thing? (Google seems to think so, but they look entirely different from what you'd expect.)

Enough guessing, time to open the package and see what's inside. Even the plastic bag inside has a handy guide on how to open it.

Once opened, the biscuit sticks look a lot like the normal milk chocolate Pocky you can buy at any Asian food store. (Even Walmart and Target carry chocolate Pocky these days.) The chocolate might look a bit lighter than usual, but the overall look and aroma are the same. These smell sweet, slightly bitter due to the cocoa powder, and that's really all there is to it. No especially milky aroma, but I guess all of that milky flavoring is inside the stick.

I took a bite, and the stick was a lot crunchier than usual, but the chocolate coating tasted the same as it always has. I think the only thing that makes this flavor different is that cookie/biscuit stick. Instead of it's bland bread-stick-like texturing, this was like a mixture of crackers and the crunchy filling from a Butterfinger candy bar. It was crunchy, without losing it's dry cracker-ness, and it tasted like a normal Pocky stick mixed with powdered coffee creamer. The flavoring wasn't bad, but it took a little getting used to. Towards the end of the package I found myself a little sad that they were gone, but milky biscuits aren't a flavor I see myself craving very often.

This wasn't dramatically different from the other chocolate Pocky flavors that are available, but it was worth trying once, and I enjoyed them a lot more than I thought I would.