Whenever I dig into a package of mixed fruity flavored candies, I have an entirely predictable response: savor the purples first, then the pinks and reds. (And only after I’ve plucked out those flavors will I offer to share what remains.) Even though artificial grape receives the full measure of my devotion, I’m awfully fond of red candies, too. It doesn’t even matter to me whether the reds are cherry or strawberry or something else; I like them all. So, during a recent meander through a gas station candy aisle, I was thrilled to note that the Starburst selection included a variety called FaveReds. The company describes the candies this way: “Like a mixtape of your favorite songs, the FaveReds bring your favorite juicy red flavors–strawberry, fruit punch, watermelon, and cherry–together in one pack.” A package of nothing but reds?! How could I resist?

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On a recent vacation in southeastern Tennessee, in which I must have wandered starry-eyed through at least a dozen fudge and candy shops, I kept bumping into these Lollipops from Blanton’s Candies. When I’m on the prowl for new sweets, lollipops don’t often register on my “intriguing candy” radar, probably because I prefer to chew my hard candies rather than suck on them. I find the crunch much more satisfying than the dissolve. But these lollipops caught my attention because of their beautiful, shiny appearance.

I loved the bright, cheerful, whimsical colors. When I picked one up for closer inspection, I noticed that all of the sticks were printed with the name and address of a local Tennessee candy company, Blanton’s Candies. I always like to try locally made treats, so I decided to sample a few of these lollipops. I had my choice of perhaps twenty varieties, but I picked only four: grape, orange cream, cotton candy, and candy corn.

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When it comes to candy, decision-making is not my forte. On a recent visit to Target, I stood in the candy aisle, dazzled with options, and ended up leaving with not just one of their store-brand Choxie truffle bars, but four. Choxie has been around for a while, but I hadn’t tried anything in this line. I chose two milk chocolate bars and two dark chocolate bars: a dark chocolate raspberry lemon biscotti truffle bar, a dark chocolate mint cookie truffle bar, a milk chocolate crème brûlée truffle bar, and a milk chocolate peanut butter pretzel bar. The shiny, colorful packaging and the descriptions of what those packages contained rendered me (and my wallet) utterly helpless. I couldn’t wait to get home and discover how nearly $10 of Target candy products would taste.

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Okay, fellow Candy Addicts®, it’s time for a road trip! If you live near Greenville, South Carolina, or plan to travel there before June 2, you should plan to stop by The Children’s Museum of the Upstate to see what appears to be an incredible art exhibit. Eight famous “paintings,” including the Mona Lisa and The Starry Night, are on display. The catch? The paintings are made out of Jelly Belly jellybeans — more than 10,000 jellybeans each! Even if you don’t consider yourself an art aficionado, I guarantee that you’ll recognize most of these pictures. And if you visit the museum, you’ll even get a chance create a jellybean mosaic of your own.

Jellybean art is nothing new, but I’ve never had the chance to see it up close and in person, and it weren’t for the minor complication that I live on the other side of the country, I’d have been to see this display several times already. Fortunately, for those of us who are forced to be armchair travelers when it comes to this display, Jelly Belly has an art gallery section on their website that lets you see more images of the jellybean replicas. Check it out!

• Children’s Museum of the Upstate
• Jelly Belly Bean Art Collection

When it comes to jellybeans, it’s hard to compete with Jelly Belly’s multitude of flavors and all-around deliciousness. Still, each year at Easter, jellybean assortments start popping up all over the place. When I spied the display of Trader Joe’s Gourmet Jellybeans, which are made “with colors from fruit & vegetable sources,” I knew I had to try them out. After all, how can I claim that Jelly Belly is best unless I’ve personally sampled all the competing brands?

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