Butter Castella, Tigre Coffee, Tigre Framboise and Financier Beurre Noisette (Brown Butter Financier) by Yatsudoki (Chateraise's premium brand)

I bought a small haul of various Japanese-style French pastries from Yatsudoki, which is the premium range of popular Japanese patisserie Châteraisé. These were their Butter Castella, Tigre Coffee, Tigre Framboise and Financier Beurre Noisette (Brown Butter Financier). 
Butter Castella, Tigre Coffee, Tigre Framboise and Financier Beurre Noisette (Brown Butter Financier) by Yatsudoki
Their Tigre range seems to be their imitation of Gateau Festa Harada's Tigresse, because besides the similarity in the name, it is also essentially a moist financier with ganache in the middle. What is good, however, is that they explored different flavours from Gateau Festa Harada (which I believe doesn't quite have a coffee or raspberry Tigresse yet).

I also found it nice that they sold their castella as an individual slice (see photo of packaging below), so I did not have to buy a whole loaf.

First, I'll review the more classic items first.

Butter Castella
Butter Castella by Yatsudoki
While this might seem like a flavour of castella that you might find elsewhere, such as Fukusaya, Yatsudoki seems to be one of the top brands for this cake. I also found it interesting that the top crust was not smooth like every other Japanese castella I've tried, but rather had these bubbles, so they must be using something quite different in the ingredients.
Butter Castella by Yatsudoki - bubbly texture on the crust or skin
Taste-wise, I found it unusual because I was expecting a rich butter pound cake flavour, but instead of that, it felt like a rich buttery cake that was sported a moderately intense cheese flavour. It was like the cheese flavour of breads topped with melted parmesan cheese. It was not too acidic, salty or pungent, and was something between a cheddar and edam cheese taste, and very butter-forward as is expected. 

And more than other castella cakes, the umami stood out a lot more, which might have reinforced the impression of the cheese flavour.

Looking at the ingredients list in the photo below (click to enlarge), there's actually no cheese listed at all, so I am guessing that it must have been something between the acid in the meringue powder, the rich creaminess of the butter and the umami of the extra egg yolk powder added that produced that overall impression of cheesiness. The use of honey instead of the normal mizuame probably also contributed some taste notes that overlap with cheese, such as nutty, woody, caramel or earthy notes.
Butter Castella by Yatsudoki - ingredients list
Because of the richness of the butter and savoury combination of ingredients, the sugar level was also much less cloying compared to most other castellas I've tried, which I find to be a tad too sweet. So This is possibly one of my favourite castellas in terms of the overall balance in the experience. It could be also that they used a variety of sweetening ingredients such as honey and inverted sugar, so perhaps they all contributed a broader variety of sweetness rather than a single concentrated taste. I hope it's not overall sweeter however, as that would make it less healthy.

Also, it was interesting to note that they used a few other ingredients not usually found in traditional Japanese castellas, such as konnyaku powder (so there's technically some fibre in there) and syrup powder, although this last one doesn't seem like a very healthy ingredient.

Financier Beurre Noisette (Brown Butter Financier)
Financier Beurre Noisette (Brown Butter Financier) by Yatsudoki
This is probably my second brown butter financier I've tried, with the first being the Brown Cultured Butter Financier by Noix de Beurre, another Japanese patisserie.

I was expecting a rich woody taste due to their use of hazelnut powder for this one and my previous experience with the Noix de Beurre one, but instead, it was mostly like a very nutty butter financier, which was super interesting. The nuttiness leaned towards a bean taste. It kind of reminded me of mild notes of broadbean or chickpea sitting on the buttery financier, unlike woody hazelnut.
Financier Beurre Noisette by Yatsudoki - inside texture
If you like the taste of beans and nuts, you might find this nicer than the standard financier. But in terms of special butter financiers, I still preferred the one by Noix de Beurre and the Cultured Butter Financier by Chihiro Sweets Shop.

The texture was good, retaining a firm and slight crunch on the crust that is expected of financiers even without reheating. But if you prefer it slightly crispy, you should reheat it briefly. Inside, it was decently moist and I didn't find any issue with it.

I wonder if the bean-like taste was due to their use of egg white and wine, which are not normally used in other financiers. Here's the photo of the ingredients list. (Click to enlarge.)
Financier Beurre Noisette by Yatsudoki - ingredients list
Tigre Coffee
Tigre Coffee by Yatsudoki
Now, on to the more unusual pastries. This is essentially a coffee financier cake with what seemed like chocolate ganache on top. 

It turned out to be surprisingly good. The coffee taste was more of a smooth and dark espresso coffee flavour which I like rather than a toffee-like instant coffee one. 
Tigre Coffee by Yatsudoki - texture close-up
The interesting thing about the chocolate ganache is that it blended into the coffee's taste so I couldn't taste it separately, which makes sense because the flavours are complementary and help each other pop, as coffee powder is often used in a lot of intense chocolate cake recipes. I think the cocoa butter it helped to make the coffee seem smoother (less acidic) and richer in its nutty notes. And perhaps the sweetness of the ganache also helped the bitterness of the coffee to stand out more by contrast. So overall, it was a very thoughtful pairing.

But I felt that the texture did not quite hold up compared to other financiers or Gateau Festa Harada's Tigresse. Unlike financiers and the Tigresse which retain a firm and slight crunch on the surface due to the almond powder, this one was completely moist even on the surface, like a normal pound cake. Perhaps the ganache threw off their ability to achieve that texture after packaging. So I recommend reheating it briefly if you prefer some firmness or crunch on the outside.

Finally, this is the ingredients list (click to enlarge). Once more, they have wine and inverted sugar. It's interesting that they used coffee paste instead of powder, which may explain its smoothness. And unlike most other financiers, they also used cream instead of only butter.
Tigre Coffee by Yatsudoki - ingredients list
Tigre Framboise
Tigre Framboise by Yatsudoki
This was a chocolate financer cake base with a raspberry-flavoured ganache. While the ganache wasn't an obvious raspberry colour, it was a reddish hue of dark brown and similar to the raspberry fillings of chocolate truffles where they blend the fruit flavour into the chocolate paste. 

I quite enjoyed this as well. The raspberry flavour was prominent, but it was balanced well - not too sour or sweet. 
Tigre Framboise by Yatsudoki - texture close-up
The chocolate cake base was like a dark chocolate cake, so it grounded the fruity tang with a nice earthy and slightly bitter base that was rich and creamy.

The texture was similar to that of the Tigre coffee, so if you prefer a mild crunch or firm exterior, do reheat it first.

Finally, this is the ingredients list (click photo to enlarge). Nothing too out of the ordinary this time around.
Tigre Framboise by Yatsudoki - ingredients list
Packaging

Here is how they were individually wrapped, which makes them great for personal consumption and sampling, if you don't want to buy a whole lot or give them as gifts. (There's also a florentine also from Yatsudoki on the top right corner which I didn't find particularly interesting to comment on.)
Butter Castella, Tigre Coffee, Tigre Framboise and Financier Beurre Noisette (Brown Butter Financier) by Yatsudoki - individual wrapping

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