菓匠花見「白露宝」 Confectioner Hanami "Hakuroho [Impression]
鷺の卵を模した銘菓、武蔵野「白露宝(はくろほう)」。埼玉ではとても有名らしいが、これまで全くそのことを知らず、今回私は初めて頂いた。見てのとおり、まわりはホワイトチョコレートでコーティングされているが、中身は白餡などが入っている。そうした意味でとても繊細な作りである。
実際に食べてみると、品のある甘さと白餡の食感が調和していてとても良い。なるほど人気がある理由が良く理解出来た。
こうした銘菓は作り出すのもとても苦労するだろうし、さらにそれをずっと維持することも大変なことだろう。
人口減少で市場規模が縮小して行く日本において、「ブランド」は今後ますます大事になると感じた。
Musashino "Hakuroho" is a famous confectionery in the shape of a heron's egg. It is said to be very famous in Saitama, but I had never heard of it before and this was my first time to taste it.
As you can see, the outer layer is coated with white chocolate, but the inside is filled with white bean paste and other ingredients. In this sense, it is very delicately made.
When I tried it, I found that the elegant sweetness and the texture of the white bean paste were in perfect harmony. I could understand why they are so popular.
It must be very difficult to create such a famous confectionery, and it must also be very difficult to maintain it for a long time.
In Japan, where the market is shrinking due to population decline, I felt that "brands" will become more and more important in the future.
