Back home however, the festival is also unofficially revered by the general populace as the Mooncake Festival or the Lantern Festival, musing over the good old days when crowds of all communities would parade around town with lanterns, enjoying warm get-togethers over the festivals favourite delicacy – mooncakes as a symbol of unity we called ours.
With that parallel sentiment, FOREFRONT International decided to flex its creative muscle to come up with their own version of mooncake in the form of a highly artistic yet practical Mooncake Gift Set, along with its cheekily-titled campaign – Harmoonious Together.
Jeff Chang, COO when asked about the marbles behind the idea said, “For this year’s Mid-Autumn Festival release, we wanted to fuse festival traditions with contemporary flavours that will appeal to all,”
He continued, “These sets are perfect as gifts, but they also express the importance of time spent with loved ones.”
The set welcomes you with six highly alluring, aptly-sized mooncakes with a DIY Lantern Kit thrown into the mix that includes – a welcome card, a lantern tassel, tea candles and the box itself that doubles as a lantern.
Yes, a lantern.
Six Lunar Wonders, Six Luxurious Delight
One of the things that caught our attention besides the colour coordination and the visual concept is the size of mooncakes. Comparing this to some run-of-the-mill mooncakes off the market, these are not too colossal (a turn off to some) yet not too puny either for a good sit-down sharing session.
All six variants are made with baked skin crusts, reserving the need to keep them chilled. The thin tasty crust has either koi or crane prints (an ode to FOREFRONT’s restobar effort Forebidden), signifying the age-old belief of strength, luck, prosperity, longevity and peace while the round shape of the pastries symbolises peace and reunion. Let’s get close to what we found in the box.
1. Hojicha Almond Nut
A nod to the Creative & Digital Agency’s maiden F&B effort, Foremula, this variant mirrors the cafe’s crowd favourite – Houjicha Latte while the almond pairing lends hearty, nutty sweetness as a contrast to Hojicha’s light aroma.
2. Red Bean Matcha Mochi
The traditional red bean is elegantly matched with the complexity of matcha’s alluring oomph and mochi’s delicately consistent texture. When you have red bean and mochi together, you’re simply creating a (motchi) match made in heaven.
3. Charcoal White Lotus with Crushed Yolk
Don’t let the marketing designation fool you – it’s not as complex as it sounds. In fact, it’s as traditional as it gets when you have yolk in your mooncake, only this one with just a little twist as the blend of crushed yolk and lotus brings out the savory sweetness up a notch.
4. Lava Black Sesame
Sesame is a pivotal part of Oriental Asian culture, especially in its food. This variant however spells mellow piquancy and a stronger nutty flavour, delivered in oh-so-gooey goodness of the lava. Verdict – indescribable.
5. Sweet Potato Mochi
Another nod to Foremula, sweet potatoes are quite a popular pick with the cafe’s crowd and this mooncake variant intends to turn the fame into finely-crafted food. It’s a bit heavier on the palate though, thanks to the rich oriental texture of the mochi.
6. Lava Golden Butter Milk
By now it’s clear that Foremula’s menu is highly sought after as this variant sings the ballads from the cafe’s most popular squeeze – Butter Me Up, Chick. The deliciously rich buttermilk lava oozes delicately upon first cut, reminding you that the first cut is always the deepest.
Light Side of the Moon
One obvious ingenuity component of the mooncake set has got to be the nifty DIY Lantern Kit. The sleeve cover slides up to reveal a cross formation inside where the actual mooncake box sits in.
Take out a candle from the tea candle pack, attach it to the velcro at the bottom of the paper structure, facing up and light it up.
Slide the sleeve back in and there you go, a charming tanglung to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival!
The agency has always been about bringing joy to the public and with this offering, FOREFRONT according to Jeff, hopes to share the festive comfort to Malaysians, all walks of life especially with its halal-certified mooncakes – a warm welcome to mooncake fans contemplating a purchase. This gift set is priced at RM119 (introductory period) per unit (RRP RM149) and are available at Foremula, Forebidden, and Therefore.
