Lowrey Butter Cookies are known for their rich butter flavour, delicate texture and distinctive red gift tins. But with several flavours available, which one should you choose?
This guide compares three popular choices: Original, Matcha and Black Sesame.
Although all three share Lowrey’s signature melt-in-the-mouth character, each offers a noticeably different flavour experience.
Lowrey Butter Cookies at a Glance
| Flavour | Main Character | Texture | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Original | Rich cultured-butter flavour with gentle sweetness | Delicate, crumbly and melt-in-the-mouth | Classic butter-cookie lovers and first-time buyers |
| Matcha | Earthy Japanese green tea balanced by butter | Fine, soft and delicate | Matcha drinkers and people who prefer less conventional flavours |
| Black Sesame | Deep roasted sesame flavour with a savoury edge | Light and crumbly with texture from sesame seeds | Black sesame fans and adventurous gift recipients |
What Makes Lowrey Butter Cookies Different?
Lowrey Butter Cookies are handcrafted in small batches in New Zealand. Rather than aiming for a hard or crunchy biscuit, they are made to have a soft, fine and exceptionally delicate structure.
The cookies begin to crumble easily when bitten and gradually melt on the tongue. This texture is intentional and is one of the main differences between Lowrey and firmer, mass-produced butter biscuits.
Lowrey uses New Zealand cultured butter, with the exact butter percentage depending on the flavour. Cultured butter contributes a fuller dairy aroma and a more developed buttery taste.
The cookies are presented in Lowrey’s recognisable red gift tins. Each tin contains one flavour only, allowing the character of that particular recipe to remain clear and consistent.
1. Original Butter Cookies
Lowrey Original Butter Cookies are the best place to begin if you have never tried the brand before.
The Original recipe is made with four simple ingredients:
- 42% New Zealand cultured butter
- Flour
- Corn starch
- Icing sugar
There are no additional flavourings competing with the butter, so the cultured-butter character remains at the centre of each bite.
How Do Original Butter Cookies Taste?
The first impression is rich and buttery, followed by a restrained sweetness. They are not designed to taste heavily sugared. Instead, the icing sugar supports the butter flavour and helps create a smooth finish.
Corn starch is also important to the experience. It reduces the firm, chewy structure that flour can create and contributes to the cookie’s fine, short and melt-in-the-mouth texture.
The result is a cookie that feels rich without relying on excessive sweetness or added flavours.
Who Should Choose Original?
Original is the most suitable choice for:
- First-time Lowrey customers
- People who love classic butter cookies
- Gift recipients whose flavour preferences are unknown
- Anyone who wants to taste the cultured butter clearly
- Pairing with black tea, coffee or unsweetened hot drinks
2. Matcha Butter Cookies
Lowrey Matcha Butter Cookies bring together New Zealand cultured butter and matcha from Shizuoka, Japan.
This flavour is noticeably different from the Original. Matcha adds an earthy, aromatic character and a gentle bitterness that balances the butter and sweetness.
How Do Matcha Butter Cookies Taste?
The matcha is intended to be recognisable rather than merely decorative. Its green-tea character develops alongside the butter, producing a flavour that is earthy, smooth and gently bittersweet.
The cultured butter softens the sharper edges of the tea, while the matcha prevents the cookie from feeling overly rich. This creates a balanced combination of dairy richness and Japanese tea flavour.
People who regularly drink matcha are likely to notice the contrast between the tea’s mild bitterness and the cookie’s delicate sweetness.
Who Should Choose Matcha?
Matcha is particularly suitable for:
- Matcha and green-tea drinkers
- People who prefer desserts that are not excessively sweet
- Gift recipients who enjoy Japanese flavours
- Anyone looking for a less traditional butter cookie
- Pairing with green tea, jasmine tea or a mild latte
3. Black Sesame Butter Cookies
Lowrey Black Sesame Butter Cookies offer the boldest and most savoury flavour of the three.
The recipe contains 10% black sesame seeds and 36% New Zealand cultured butter. Black sesame gives the cookies a deep roasted aroma, while the visible seeds add gentle texture.
How Do Black Sesame Butter Cookies Taste?
The flavour is nutty, toasted and slightly savoury. The butter remains present, but it supports the black sesame rather than dominating it.
Compared with Original, Black Sesame has greater roasted depth and a less traditionally sweet profile. The sesame seeds also produce a subtle contrast with the otherwise crumbly, delicate cookie.
Anyone already familiar with black sesame desserts is likely to recognise the flavour immediately. For someone trying black sesame for the first time, it offers an interesting alternative to chocolate, vanilla or other familiar cookie flavours.
Who Should Choose Black Sesame?
Black Sesame is a strong choice for:
- People who already enjoy black sesame desserts
- Customers who prefer nutty or roasted flavours
- Gift recipients who enjoy Asian-inspired flavours
- Anyone looking for something less sweet and more distinctive
- Pairing with oolong tea, roasted tea or unsweetened coffee
Shop Black Sesame Butter Cookies
How Do the Three Flavours Compare?
Choose Original for the Purest Butter Flavour
Original places New Zealand cultured butter at the centre of the experience. It is the safest choice when buying Lowrey for the first time or choosing a gift for someone whose preferences you do not know.
Choose Matcha for Earthy Bitterness and Balance
Matcha is ideal when you want the richness of a butter cookie balanced by a distinctive tea flavour. It is more aromatic and less conventional than Original without becoming overpowering.
Choose Black Sesame for a Roasted, Nutty Character
Black Sesame is the boldest of the three. Its roasted aroma and subtle savoury quality make it especially suitable for people who already appreciate black sesame or less traditional desserts.
Are Lowrey Butter Cookies Crunchy?
No. Lowrey Butter Cookies are not designed to have the hard, crisp texture commonly associated with many packaged biscuits.
Their texture is deliberately delicate, crumbly and melt-in-the-mouth. They may feel soft and fine before gradually dissolving on the tongue.
This also means the cookies can be fragile. A small amount of crumbling or occasional breakage may occur during international delivery or travel, even when the tins are carefully packed. This reflects the delicate structure of the cookies and does not necessarily mean they are stale or defective.
Are Lowrey Butter Cookies Handmade?
Lowrey Butter Cookies are handcrafted in small batches in New Zealand. The cookies are made with an emphasis on flavour, texture and careful presentation rather than perfect industrial uniformity.
The finished cookies are packed into Lowrey’s red gift tins. The lid may feel firm when first opened because the tin is designed to remain securely closed during storage and transportation.
Do Lowrey Butter Cookies Contain Eggs?
Lowrey Butter Cookie recipes are made without egg as an ingredient. However, anyone managing a diagnosed food allergy should always check the current product label and allergen declaration before eating.
Ingredients and allergen information can vary between flavours, and product labels provide the most current information for the specific tin being purchased.
Do All Lowrey Flavours Use Only Four Ingredients?
No. The four-ingredient recipe applies specifically to Lowrey Original Butter Cookies.
Matcha, Black Sesame and the other Lowrey varieties have individually developed recipes containing the ingredients needed to create their particular flavour. Always refer to the relevant product page and product label for full ingredient and allergen information.
Which Lowrey Flavour Is Best for Gifting?
Original is generally the most versatile gift because its classic butter flavour is familiar and widely appealing.
Matcha and Black Sesame can be more memorable choices when you know the recipient enjoys green tea, roasted sesame or Asian-inspired desserts.
Each tin contains one flavour only. If you want to give several flavours, choose a multi-tin set containing separate tins. Different flavours are not mixed together inside one tin.
The red presentation tins are suitable for occasions such as:
- Birthdays
- Thank-you gifts
- Family visits
- Christmas and seasonal gifting
- New Zealand food souvenirs
- Corporate and client gifts
How Should You Serve Lowrey Butter Cookies?
Because of their delicate texture, Lowrey Butter Cookies are best enjoyed slowly rather than eaten as a hard, on-the-go snack.
Serve them directly from the tin with tea, coffee or another warm drink. Their rich butter flavour works particularly well with drinks that are not heavily sweetened.
After opening, reseal the tin carefully and store it in a cool, dry place. For the best experience, enjoy the cookies within four weeks of opening.
Final Verdict: Which Flavour Should You Buy?
There is no single best Lowrey flavour because each one is designed for a different preference:
- Choose Original for the clearest cultured-butter flavour and the most traditional experience.
- Choose Matcha for an earthy green-tea flavour with gentle bitterness.
- Choose Black Sesame for a bold, roasted and slightly savoury alternative.
If you are new to Lowrey, Original is the natural starting point. If you already enjoy matcha or black sesame desserts, the corresponding flavour will offer a more distinctive experience.
For sharing or gifting, a selection of separate tins allows everyone to explore the different recipes while preserving the individual character of each flavour.
Shop All Butter Cookies View Multi-Tin Sets
Lowrey delivers to more than 60 countries. Free DHL shipping is available on eligible international orders over NZ$169, subject to the current shipping terms and destination availability.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which Lowrey Butter Cookie flavour is best for first-time buyers?
Original is usually the best starting point. Its simple four-ingredient recipe allows the flavour of New Zealand cultured butter to remain at the centre of the cookie.
Which Lowrey flavour is the least traditional?
Black Sesame is the most distinctive of these three flavours because it has a deep roasted aroma and a slightly savoury character. Matcha is also less traditional than Original and offers an earthy green-tea flavour.
Are Lowrey Butter Cookies hard and crunchy?
No. They are deliberately delicate, crumbly and melt-in-the-mouth rather than hard or crunchy.
Why can Lowrey Butter Cookies break during delivery?
The cookies have a very fine and fragile structure. Although they are packed carefully, a small amount of crumbling or occasional breakage can occur during long-distance transportation.
Are Lowrey Butter Cookies made in New Zealand?
Yes. Lowrey Butter Cookies are handcrafted in small batches in New Zealand using New Zealand cultured butter.
Do all Lowrey Butter Cookies contain 42% butter?
No. The butter percentage depends on the flavour. Original contains 42% New Zealand cultured butter, while Black Sesame contains 36%. Refer to each product page or label for the exact recipe information.
Does one Lowrey tin contain several flavours?
No. Each tin contains one flavour only. Multi-flavour gift selections are made up of several separate single-flavour tins.
Are Lowrey Butter Cookies egg-free?
The recipes are made without egg as an ingredient. Anyone with a food allergy should still check the current label and allergen declaration before eating.
How long should Lowrey Butter Cookies be kept after opening?
Reseal the tin and store it in a cool, dry place. For the best quality, the cookies should be enjoyed within four weeks of opening.
Does Lowrey ship butter cookies internationally?
Lowrey delivers to more than 60 countries, subject to destination availability and current shipping conditions. Eligible international orders over NZ$169 receive free DHL shipping.
