Everything old is new again, I guess? New to me anyway.
The LIFE Ramune Notebook is relatively new, launching in the past year or two. But the old part is what’s on the inside, which is LIFE L Writing Paper, which we first reviewed back in 2018.
I didn’t think much more about it then because this paper was packaged as a letter writing pad. Wide lines, fancy borders on some models, traditional lattice pattern paper, etc. Great performance for fountain pens, to be sure, but not my idea of an every day notebook.
Fast forward to my discovery of the Ramune Notebook on JetPens, which not only caught my eye aesthetically, but was made with LIFE L Writing Paper. What is this magic of which I’ve never heard? Yeah, I’m slow sometimes. Eight years in this case.
With that bit of background out of the way, I am impressed with everything about this notebook. I ordered the A6 Graph (there are both A6 and B6 sizes, each in Graph or Lined,) which features wire binding that includes a wrist gap in the middle, making them slightly more left-handed friendly, I guess? Regardless, I like what it adds to the classic design aesthetic.
The Extra Fine Steel nib of the Keyno Fountain Pen.
What does “Ramune” mean in relation to this notebook? Well, I don’t see any liquid, so it’s not the Japanese soft drink, but it could be the bottle color? Another Wikipedia entry mentions Japanese tablet candy, which might explain the lighter shade of Blue. Honestly, I’m not 100% sure, but I’ll take either of those answers for full credit. At least the interior grid matches the light Blue of the cover. It’s a classic color for a grid, but a shade or two lighter than expected.
The super wide and wet Sailor KOP Broad nib.
Back of the above page.
Excellent aesthetics aside, the paper in the inside is the real star. Yes, I incorrectly assumed for a minute this is new LIFE paper. It’s obviously not, but it has been reimagined into more traditional formats, which is also seen in the Cinnamon variant of this model.
I had no issue with any fountain pen, nib, or ink I threw at it, from Extra Fine all the way up to the Broad (and wet,) Sailor King of Pen nib. The page is smooth (the lattice cannot be felt when writing,) and shows off ink color well. The only pen type even close to coming through the back of the page was the Schmidt P8127 Rollerball, and none of the inks feathered. Sharpies are excluded in all of this, but are always fun to throw down for reference.
What are the downsides of the LIFE Ramune Notebook? Two I can think of. One, the aforementioned spiral binding is not good in every situation. I personally wouldn’t want to be pulling it in and out of a bag all of the time, so it will either stay on my desk, or slide into a slim case, alongside some pens.
Secondly, they are slightly pricey. At $9.25 for A6 and $10.50 for B6, with 60 sheets in either size, they are nice as a one-off but could get costly as a go-to notebook that you might burn through. The B6 is a better value per square inch, all things considered.
The LIFE Ramune Notebook is a fantastic overall performer, and I’m glad I finally discovered LIFE L Writing Paper after all of these years. Recommended!
(JetPens provided this product at no charge to The Pen Addict for review purposes.)
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