Shinkansen too hard ice cream
{{Short description|Type of Japanese ice cream}}
{{Tone|date=March 2025}}
File:Meiraku's Sujahta High quality super premium ice cream in Shinkansen 2014.jpg
Shinkansen too hard ice cream ({{langx|ja|シンカンセンスゴイカタイアイス}}) is the commonplace name for a type of ice cream sold mainly on Japanese shinkansen trains. The term first gained popularity on the internet, being used as a nickname on Twitter since about 2013.{{R|J-CAST_20210705}} Since 2021, it has been adopted as the official sales name.{{Sfn|JRCP-shop|loc=2022-09-16}}
Overview
The ice cream is produced by Sujahta, a Japanese dairy manufacturer. Due to storage methods and quality, this type of ice cream sold on trains is colder and harder than most. This is done so that passengers can enjoy the ice cream slowly on long-distance trips. Nonetheless, it still became known for the fact that it usually cannot be eaten when it is first received.{{R|J-town_20211114}}
The product's official name is "Sujahta Super Premium Ice Cream,"{{R|"ねとらぼ_20190101"}} although JR Tokai Passengers commercialized it with the name Shinkansen too hard ice cream on its set sales packaging as of 2021.{{Cite tweet |author=名古屋グルメ探偵 アスカイ |user=gourmet_nagoya |number=1439220178835836936 |title=#シンカンセンスゴイカタイアイス 新幹線に乗らなくても名古屋駅のお土産売り場で買える |date=2021-09-18 |accessdate=2022-09-17 }}
Hardness and how to deal
There is no refrigeration equipment in the train car where the ice cream is kept, so dry ice is used as a refrigerant in in-car sales to maintain the quality of the ice cream. In addition, the low air content and high milk fat content, designed to be luxurious, make this ice cream incredibly cold and solid.{{R|"乗りもの_20160821"}} A plastic spoon is included, but that is too hard to stick in the ice cream in its immediate state of purchase.{{Cite web |title=#シンカンセンスゴイカタイアイス「硬さ」「美味しさ」の3つのヒミツ |url=https://www.jr-cp.co.jp/special/shinkansenicecream/ |publisher=ジェイアール東海パッセンジャーズ (JRCP) |accessdate=2022-09-17 }} Sometimes the lid cannot be removed.{{Cite news |author=花澤瑠衣 |date=2022-05-14 |title=カッチカチ！「開けるだけで一苦労、新幹線のアイスは難易度高め!?」のツイートに対処法集まる |url=https://otona-life.com/2022/05/14/118974/ |publisher=メディアソフト |newspaper=オトナライフ |accessdate=2022-06-02 }}
The manufacturer, Sujahta, explains that one needs to wait 10 minutes before eating it.{{R|"ねとらぼ_20190101"}} If purchased at train station kiosks where commercial freezers are available, they can be purchased in an easy-to-eat condition.{{R|"ねとらぼ_20190101"}}
Consumers have experimented with various measures and posting them on social networking sites. One method that has been devised is "sticking a stick into an ice cream and pulling it straight out of the cup to eat it like an ice cream stick".{{R|"ねとらぼ_20190101"}} Some people have tried pouring hot coffee over it to make a sort of ad hoc affogato, but according to reports, this did not work as the coffee froze on top instead of melting the ice cream.{{R|"乗りもの_20160821"|J-CAST_20210705}}
= Dedicated spoon =
File:Shinkansen N700S design tumbler and icecream spoon.jpg design]]
The sale of metal spoons suitable for this ice cream had long been considered, but at the time, pre-washed metal spoons were not available and were not suitable for in-car sales, where they are supposed to be used immediately on the spot.{{R|"乗りもの_20210503"}} However, in 2020, spoons pre-cleaned with pure water were found and commercialized for the Shinkansen.{{R|"乗りもの_20210503"}}
In 2014, the Shinkansen N700S Ice Cream Spoon, made of aluminum with high thermal conductivity, was launched.{{Cite news |author=あれすーぱ |date=2017-07-10 |title=体温でアイスを溶かす魔法のスプーン？ 15.0%アイスクリームスプーンの人気が止まらない！ |url=https://macaro-ni.jp/3951 |publisher=株式会社トラストリッジ |newspaper=macaroni |accessdate=2022-09-17 }}
When it was first released, it created quite a stir and sold out in just three days.{{R|"乗りもの_20210503"|ITmedia_20220607}} Subsequently, variations were made that were not originally planned.{{R|"乗りもの_20210503"}} Several new products with modified patterns are being developed.{{R|"乗りもの_20220916"}}
History
There was Shinkansen ice cream in the 1970s, and even then it was expensive and its ice cream was hard. In 1991, Sujahta began producing ice cream for sale on Shinkansen trains. The percentage of milk fat was increased in order to create a luxurious taste, so the product became hard.
Around 2000, a piece of vanilla ice cream cost 260 yen (around $1.75 USD in 2000), which was expensive for ice cream.
File:Sujahta Super Premium Ice Cream vending machine.jpg
In February 2021, due to Covid-19, in-car sales on Shinkansen trains were suspended. However, due to many requests to buy them, it was announced that they will be sold online from March while in-train sales are suspended. It was so well received that it sold out immediately after its sale.{{Cite news |title=Shinkansen ice cream sales suspended on board train; sell out online |newspaper=JAPANTODAY |date=2021-03-06 |url=https://japantoday.com/category/features/food/shinkansen-ice-cream-sales-suspended-on-board-train-sell-out-online |accessdate=2023-08-13 }}
In July 2022, this ice cream began to be sold in vending machines at Tokyo Station.
As of December 2022, the product is available on the Tokaido Shinkansen, San'yō Shinkansen, Tōhoku Shinkansen, Yamagata Shinkansen, Akita Shinkansen, Hokuriku Shinkansen, and limited express trains Azusa and Hitachi, as well as at some station kiosks and the SCMaglev and Railway Park.{{Cite web |url=http://www.jresc.co.jp/pdf/service/wagon.pdf |title=車内販売のご案内 |access-date=2023-03-07 |publisher=JR東日本サービスクリエーション |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221229232400/http://www.jresc.co.jp/pdf/service/wagon.pdf |archive-date=2022-12-29}}
As of 2023, Shinkansen trains traveling between Tokyo and Shin-Osaka carry two ice cream carts of 22 pieces each, for a total of 44 pieces per train.
In August 2023, it was announced that onboard sales on Tokaido Shinkansen trains will be discontinued on October 31 due to a shortage of labor and declining demand.{{Cite news |title=No more ice cream with Mt Fuji: Japan train line phases out snack carts |newspaper=Reuters |date=2023-08-08 |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/no-more-ice-cream-with-mt-fuji-japan-train-line-phases-out-snack-carts-2023-08-08/ |accessdate=2023-08-13 }}
Internet slang
The name Shinkansen too hard ice cream ({{langx|ja|シンカンセンスゴイカタイアイス}}) was not originally an official name, but was first used on Twitter around 2013. It became popular to post a picture of the attached spoon stuck into the ice cream.{{R|J-CAST_20210705}} The origin is speculated to be the Marunouchi too high Building, a structure that appears in the novel Ninja Slayer.{{R|J-CAST_20210705}}
Note that "スゴイカタイ (凄い硬い)" is grammatically incorrect as formal Japanese. The correct word should be "スゴクカタイ（凄く硬い）", but the misuse of "スゴイ" is used by 59% of Japanese.{{Cite web |author=文化庁 |year=2022 |url=https://www.bunka.go.jp/tokei_hakusho_shuppan/tokeichosa/kokugo_yoronchosa/pdf/93774501_01.pdf |title=令和３年度「国語に関する世論調査」の結果の概要 |accessdate=2023-08-14}} Both expressions can be found on Twitter.{{R|J-CAST_20210705}}
References
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External links
- {{Cite web |title=シンカンセンスゴイカタイアイス |url=https://www.jrcp-shop.jp/shopbrand/icecream/ |publisher=ジェイアール東海パッセンジャーズ |website=JRCP Onlin Shop |accessdate=2022-09-16 |ref={{SfnRef|JRCP-shop}} }}
Category:Railway culture in Japan