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- 5 Best Tried and True Japanese Canned Coffee in 2023 (Barista-Reviewed)
5 Best Tried and True Japanese Canned Coffee in 2023 (Barista-Reviewed)
Canned coffee is everywhere in Japan. You might've seen canned coffees at supermarkets, convenience stores (otherwise known as conbini), in the many vending machines that can be found across the country, as well as online. What makes canned coffee great is how convenient and tasty they are - you don't need to wait for coffee to brew or have to pay top dollar for a tasty cup of joe, allowing you to just crack open a can of hot or iced coffee. However, with brands like Georgia, Fire, and Boss, to name a few, it might get pretty daunting to know which is the best Japanese canned coffee.
To figure this out, we bought 5 of the most popular Japanese canned coffees available on popular e-commerce sites in Japan like Amazon, Rakuten, and Yahoo! Shopping, and tried them all.
We tested for the following:
- How delicious the coffee was
- How many calories the coffee had for every 100 ml (for coffee with milk or sugar only)
Keep on reading to find out more about the 5 best Japanese canned coffees!
Mieko has participated in and won several awards at numerous barista championships and is now a judge herself. She won the 2006 Japan Barista Championship's Syphon Division and was runner-up for the 2013 Japan Coffee In Good Spirits Championship. While she's not training other aspiring baristas at her seminar Coffee Academy, she also supervises coffee-related books and produces coffee beverages.
mybest US' editing team consists of experienced members who have backgrounds in writing, editing, translation, and more. We are dedicated to researching what makes a product or service the best to users in the US in order to create top-quality articles. From skincare, to kitchen appliances, and to DIY supplies, our mission is to find the best ones for you.
The expert oversees the Buying Guide only, and does not determine the products and services featured.
What is Canned Coffee?
Before going into the 10 best canned coffees, here's a brief explanation of Japanese canned coffee.
Major Canned Coffee Brands
You might've been wondering what's unique about all these Japanese canned coffee brands. Well, here's a brief explanation of some major canned coffee brands in Japan.
Georgia: Georgia is Coca-Cola's brand of canned coffee, with its namesake taken from the company's home state in the US. One of Japan's biggest canned coffee brands, it's known for frequently collaborating with famous anime characters and coffee shops.
Fire: Fire is a canned coffee brand from the major Japanese beer company, Kirin. Fire is known for using coffee beans that have been fire-roasted, hence the name, and is known for its fragrant coffee.
Boss: Boss is a canned coffee brand from Suntory, and has recently made its debut in the US market. Boss coffee often uses dark-roast coffee beans, with special care taken in regard to its roasting methods as well.
UCC: UCC is one of the pioneers in the canned coffee industry, and was the first company ever to release canned coffee with milk and is a canned coffee brand with the longest history in Japan.
5 Best Japanese Canned Coffees (Black Coffee)
Products | Image | Click to purchase | Key features | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Muji Sugar-Free Original Blend Coffee | | A High-Quality, Bitter Coffee | |
2 | Tominaga Boeki Kaisha Kobe Kyoryuchi Black Coffee | | An Impressively Fragrant Coffee | |
3 | Kirin Fire Black Awakening Dark Roast | | Great Fragrance, but Slightly Lacking in Sharpness | |
4 | Kirin Fire Black | | A Great Balance Between Aroma and Bitterness, but Sharp Acidity | |
5 | UCC Black Unsweetened Full Body | | A Canned Coffee With a Prominent Bitterness, but Not Enough Fragrance |
MujiSugar-Free Original Blend Coffee
A High-Quality, Bitter Coffee
Muji's Sugar-Free Original Blend Coffee is a black coffee that comes in a resealable can with a volume of 270ml.
The coffee was easy to drink, with a refined bitterness and rounded profile. It balanced its natural sweetness well, providing a pleasant bitterness typically found in regular coffee.
On the other hand, some of our testers commented that it was a bit lacking in aroma and body. If you prefer your coffee to have a prominent bitterness, this might not be satisfying enough.
Tominaga Boeki KaishaKobe Kyoryuchi Black Coffee
An Impressively Fragrant Coffee
Tominaga Boeki Kaisha's Kobe Kyoryuchi Black Coffee comes in a stay-on tab can with a volume of 185 ml.
The coffee has a floral aroma and a refreshing taste. Its aftertaste lingers for some time, and the taste itself has the signature sharpness of black coffee.
However, as we continued to drink it, we felt like the bitterness became stronger, giving us the impression that the flavor was imbalanced. On the other hand, its fantastic aroma can be further enjoyed by pouring it into a wide cup.
KirinFire Black Awakening Dark Roast
Great Fragrance, but Slightly Lacking in Sharpness
Kirin's Fire Black Awakening Dark Roast comes in a resealable canned coffee with a volume of 275ml.
The coffee itself has a prominent fragrance and richness. Some of our testers commented on its bitterness, noting that was similar to authentic, pour-over coffee.
However, where it fell behind was how it was lacking in sharpness in its aftertaste as well as how it had a bit of a green sourness to its taste. Those who want their coffee to have a clean and refreshing taste may find this a bit difficult to drink.
KirinFire Black
A Great Balance Between Aroma and Bitterness, but Sharp Acidity
Kirin’s FIRE Black comes in a is a stay-on tab can with a volume of 185ml.
Our testers noted that this black coffee managed to balance its sweet fragrance with its bitterness. We also noticed that this black coffee has a clean and refreshing aftertaste, resulting in a sharp flavor overall.
However, we felt that it initially has a strong acidity to it, which ended up unbalancing its overall flavors. We also feel that some might find the difference between its sweet aroma when you first open the can and its acidity upon drinking it may be too jarring for some.
UCCBlack Unsweetened Full Body
A Canned Coffee With a Prominent Bitterness, but Not Enough Fragrance
UCC's Black Unsweetened Full Body comes in a resealable can with a volume of 275 ml.
Overall, this coffee has a strong bitterness to it, making it a great choice for those who prefer coffee with a distinctly bitter flavor.
Where it felt short though, was because of its weak fragrance, sweetness, and its astringent aftertaste. Adding milk or sugar can mellow out its aftertaste and make it easier to drink.
How We Tested the Canned Coffees
To figure out what the best Japanese canned coffee is, we purchased 10 each of the most popular black coffees as well as 10 of the most popular low-sugar coffees for a total of 20 coffees on e-commerce sites in Japan and tested them all.
We tested each product for the following:
- 1. How delicious the coffee was
- 2. Calories per 100ml (low-sugar coffee only)
Test ① Deliciousness
When choosing a canned coffee, deliciousness is arguably the most important aspect.
We taste-tested low-sugar coffee based on whether it is well-balanced, not too bitter, and not too sweet. We rated the coffee on a scale of 1 to 5 based on the quality of eight factors: fragrance, sweetness, bitterness, acidity, richness, tanginess, aftertaste, and balance, and whether or not the coffee tasted good based on these factors.
Black coffee, on the other hand, was taste-tested based on whether it has a sharp taste and if it is similar to that of authentic, pour-over coffee. The scoring was calculated based on the eight categories: fragrance, sweetness, bitterness, acidity, richness, tanginess, aftertaste, and balance, with the same scale ranging from 1 to 5.
Test ② How Many Calories There Were
Low-sugar canned coffee often contains sugar and milk and has a moderate sweetness that makes it easy to drink way too much of it. If you plan on drinking these frequently, you may want to choose a product with fewer calories. In this test, we calculated the calories each coffee had per 100 ml and ranked each product based on how few calories they had.
※Note that while there are some low-sugar black canned coffee available on the market, low-sugar canned coffee (微糖缶コーヒー) usually includes dairy or dairy-based ingredients, so take note of this if you can't consume dairy products. All of the low-sugar canned coffees we tested contained dairy or dairy-based ingredients.
A Tip on How to Reheat Canned Coffee
Chilling your canned coffee is easy, all you need to do is leave it in the refrigerator for a couple of hours. But how do you heat up canned coffee?
The best way to heat up canned coffee that's gone cold is by placing it in a pot of hot water. Let your canned coffee warm up in a pot of water with a temperature of roughly 194°F (90°C) for about 10 minutes to heat your coffee up to the right temperature.
Warming a can in a microwave without the lid open is dangerous. Moreover, metal should never be microwaved because of the possibility of sparks, which could lead to an electrical fire. When using a microwave, always transfer the coffee from the can to a separate container before heating it up.
How Much Caffeine Does Canned Coffee Have?
While it depends on the product, on average, black canned coffee has about 65mg of caffeine per 100ml. The FDA states that healthy adults can have up to 400mg in a day, so make sure you're not consuming too much caffeine and only have up to two to four coffees in a day.
On average, a cup of regular coffee has about 40mg of caffeine on average. Canned coffee has more caffeine in it, so be sure to not drink too much.
More Articles for Coffee Lovers
If you consider yourself a java junkie that wants to start making your own delicious coffee at home, check out our links below for more coffee-related articles.
Top 5 Japanese Canned Coffee
When you purchase products mentioned in the article, part of the sales may be returned to mybest.
The descriptions of each product is referenced from the content available from the manufacturer, e-commerce sites etc.
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