Sweet Milky Nostalgia - Calpis
Since its invention over a century ago, Calpis has been easily recognizable by the bright polka dots featured on its bottle and the white, milky soft drink inside.
Made from fermented lactic acid and yeast, Calpis has a slightly acidic yogurt-like flavor inspired by traditional Central Asian beverages made from cultured milk.
After visiting the Chinese province of Inner Mongolia, Kaiun Mishima formulated Calpis as a concentrate in the early 20th century and the drink became an instant success in pre-war Japan as it could be kept for long periods of time without refrigeration in its concentrated form.
Today, it remains one of the most popular beverages in Japan, being sold in vending machines and convenience stores across the country with a number of fruit flavors such as mango, peach, strawberry, apple, lychee, and grape.
Calpis Soda, a carbonated version of the beverage, is also very popular. The original formula is so iconic in fact that its unique taste has become a common flavor for candy and ice cream in itself [such as KitKat and Coolish].
Because of the lactic acid content, Calpis is also probiotic and is considered to be good for digestive health, thus making it highly nostalgic to generations of Japanese people who grew up drinking Calpis given to them as a child.
