Matsue’s traditional Japanese confectionery (wagashi)

Matsue is one of the three major centers in Japan for traditional Japanese confectionery, and it is home to a large number of confectionery items that are famous throughout the country. Beginning with Yamakawa, which along with traditional confectioneries made in Kanazawa City and Nagaoka City is considered one of the nation’s top three confectioneries, traditional Matsue confectioneries that are still passed on today include Wakakusa and Natane no Sato. Other popular items include Yakumo Ogura, Kuro Ogura, Michishiba, Do Gyoretsu and Yubeshi, and it is fun to taste and compare them. Because Matsue’s confectionery is designed to be enjoyed with matcha (powdered green tea), in many cases, it is very sweetly flavored. However, in reflection of consumers’ changing tastes, more recently this sweetness has been reined in. Matsue is home to a large number of long-standing confectionery stores also. Remarkably, each of these stores continues to preserve its unique identity without being swayed by Western confectionery trends, and furthermore, continues to develop a succession of new confectionery products. Matsue’s traditional Japanese confectionery is popular with tourists as souvenirs. However, a notable characteristic of Matsue City is unquestionably the way that matcha and traditional Japanese confectionery are also closely linked to the daily lives of the local residents.