I’m not a stranger to “healthy” candy, nor are my views on it anything but direct: there really isn’t such a thing. So if you’re looking for a candy that’s going to be something I recommend you add to your diet, you can stop reading now.

That said, I do believe there is a difference between candy and candy that is better for you. And with childhood obesity on the rise, more and more parents are looking for these sorts of confectionery avenues. Kids are always going to want to eat sweets, so you might as well buy them the ones that are not as hard on their bodies.

Recently, I have reviewed products from companies that share this vision for candy, namely from Surf Sweets and BrightSpot, so it’s not all that surprising to hear of more and more companies adopting this mantra. The latest comes from Yummy Earth, who proudly boast a tagline that their candy is “The best stuff on earth.” Hmm… Snapple anyone?

The idea for this company is steeped in genuine love of both candy and children; the founders are two fathers who teamed up develop a candy for their children that didn’t rely on all the additives, preservatives, etc. that are common in most American candy.

There are certain traits each of their products share, including all being certified USDA organic (the first of its kind for gummy bears or gummy worms), manufactured without corn syrup, and stamped with a variety of allergen-free ingredients. Note that the Parve (a specific designation of Kosher) certification displayed on their website applies only to their hard candy, as the gummies contain gelatin (presumably an un-Kosher gelatin), which is also why the hard candy is certified vegan and the gummies aren’t, so you’d do best check the specifics on each bag for the slight variances.

Organic Candy Drops: All these pieces were shaped at about a half-inch diameter. The bag I received came in fourish flavors, which all remind me of hard candy sticks in terms of flavor and smooth surface.

Wet-Face Watermelon: is the pink piece. It bears a refined watermelon taste with a slight burst of tartness. It’s not really watermelon, and as someone who dislikes watermelon in candy, I enjoyed that.

Mango Tango: this piece is half-orange, half-yellow. The citrus here is zestful, but more indicative of lime, lemon, and orange than mango. I am not sure what flavor is doing the tango with the mango, but it’s very confusing in a delicious and flavorful way. Not really mango, but tasty.

Cheeky Lemon: this piece is the full yellow drop. The lemon flavor is more tart than zestful, but in an understated manner that lets you appreciate the charm of a lemon. I don’t really notice the cherry notes hidden under the potency of the lemon flavor.

Pomegranate Pucker: is the deep-purple piece. I have to say I enjoyed the other flavors, but wasn’t bowled away until this one. Wow! The pomegranate juice notes are strong with an alcohol base flavor profile that is robust, complex, and deep like a woodsy wine. Notes of black currant and grape juice reveal themselves, and I am reminded of the black currant piece in Rowntree’s Fruit Pastilles, a product I lauded to no end. Of all the things the kind folks at Yummy Earth sent me, this was the best.

Organic Lollipops: come in eight different flavors, including three of the flavors found in the candy drops. Each lollipop is about an inch in diameter and labels its flavor on the wrapper (the candy drops did not do this, hence why I mentioned their colors).

In terms of the repeating flavors (Wet-Face Watermelon, Mango Tango, and Pomegranate Pucker), each resembles the flavor and smooth consistency found in the candy drops, except the pomegranate is not as bold here.

Strawberry Smash: like the watermelon, this is comprised of a muted strawberry flavor, relying on the taste of strawberry in an altered state, such as a jam or fruit leather. It too reminds me of the strawberry piece in Rowntree’s Wine Gums. This piece refrains from being to sweet and lets the flavor speak instead of sugar. Very delicious.

Sour Apple Tart: I believe this piece is more tart than it is sour, the way a Granny Smith apple isn’t really sour. The apple flavor is reminiscent of freshly squeezed juice and is spot on for what it is trying to convey to your taste buds.

Very Very Cherry: there are so many types of cherry flavors, and this one is more along the lines of a cherry juice or the tart quality found in sour cherry pie. Those who are fans of that sort of cherry will enjoy this.

Googly Grape: I’d wager that this is the most traditional of the flavors. The taste is approximately that of grape juice, but not nearly as sweet. It’s mild like a grape popsicle, but genuine in it’s flavor presentation.

Tooberry Blueberry: blueberry is a hard flavor to reproduce in a candy, and these guys do pretty well here for the most part. Like their other flavors, it tastes more like the fruit juice than the fruit itself. I am not quite sure what the white flavor swirling the blueberry is (cream perhaps?), but I would prefer this lollipop without it.

Gummy Worms: For those of you accustomed to eating gummy worms, please not that these are about half the size of a traditional worm. I would also say they look a little more snake-like than worm. Regardless of size or shape, they are highly fragrant and provide a 100% daily dose of vitamin C.

Sour Apple Tart: in gummy form, the sharpness of the apple flavor in the lollipop is muted—but this is a great thing. The taste is pure apple and works well with the firm, but easy to chew texture of the gummy. Best of the three flavors.

Pomegranate Pucker: oddly enough, this version of the pomegranate flavor differed from that of the candy drop and lollipop.

Tangy Tangerine: tangerine isn’t a popular gummy flavor, but I’m not sure why, since it works well here. The citrus component is far from subtle and has a great tangerine zest, but it does seem more like orange than tangerine.

Gummy Bears: these are akin to Haribo gummy bears in shape, but not as defined. Like the gummy worms, they too boast a 100% daily dose of vitamin C. I also noticed the gummy chew was a bit firmer in these, which is a nice contrast from your typical flabby gummy.

Sour Apple Tart: the gummy quality is definitely playing a role in reducing the same flavors that are in the hard candy. Even more so than the worms, these lost that tartness in the lollipops. I think the reduced intensity worked well in former example, but here it’s just too subtle.

Pomegranate Pucker: not really a surprise, but the pomegranate flavor here is completely different than any of its other manifestations reviewed so far. Had I not known these were pomegranate, I’d probably guess grape.

Strawberry Smash: this bear in particular stood out. More so than the others, the chew factor played out well. The strawberry flavor mirrors that of the green bear in the Haribo variety (yes, green is strawberry in Haribo land), but does so in a much more flavorful and natural way. Best in this bag.

Aside from offering a great array of flavors in some better-for-you ways, one thing I really enjoyed about these guys was that the hard candies came in resealable bags; not sure why the gummies didn’t as they would need it more, I would think.

For those of you who, like me, enjoy certain flavors more than others, you can purchase the majority of these in individual flavor bags, as opposed to the mixed variety I sampled.

All in all, I think these are actually tasty. I don’t say that in that “healthy candy” tasty way, but tasty for any type of candy. Certain pieces here are just spectacular, and I would easily purchase those on their own. In a testament to how good they are, I actually handed them out for Halloween and received a variety of compliments from my neighbors; in the better-for-you candy world, your toughest critics are kids, and Yummy Earth easily made them smile.

Candy Addict received this product as a sample from the manufacturer. No payment was received for this review and all opinions represent an unbiased view of the product.

• Yummy Earth Website

Chocri is a German company that plans to open for business in the US in the new year. Their website allows you to design your own chocolate bars – white, dark, or milk, with your choice of additions, which range from the normal (nuts, fruit) to the more exotic (gold balls, gummy bears, spices).

When they asked if I’d like to order some sample bars to review, I was all “heck yeah,” but as I delved into the site, I began to realize that I am not exactly the ideal customer for this sort of thing. Because A, I have very strong opinions about what flavors go together, and B, I am overwhelmed by too many choices.

So, on the one hand the only things I would be sure I would like were the totally traditional choices like milk chocolate with crispy rice. On the other hand I knew that was totally not in the spirit of the thing. What would be the point of getting a combination that I could get anywhere?

Beyond that, I no longer remember exactly what went on in my mind as I clicked around the options on their site – so many that they claim that more than ten billion combinations are possible. So when the following bars arrived, I thought some crazy person had ordered them:

• White with red rice and mango cubes
• Milk with coconut shavings, candied rose petals and a marzipan rose
• Dark with pecans, sour cherries and orange pepper

Well, on the bright side, they sure aren’t anything you could walk into a store and buy, right?

The first thing I noticed about these bars is that they are larger than they looked to me on the website, and so this also meant that some of the toppings were surprising. Red rice is not small rice crispy things, for example – they’re rice crackers.

Another thing is that the toppings are really on top, not mixed in. (I guess this means if you really didn’t like something, you could pick it off the top. But this would also totally not be in the spirit of the thing.) They are also distributed beautifully but not necessarily evenly throughout the bar. You get big pieces of pecan decorating the top, not little pieces chopped up and thoroughly mixed in.

Now for a little rant: In America, companies that specialize in this sort of thing tend to let the quality of the underlying product slide, figuring it will get lost in the mass of toppings anyway. I’m thinking for example of certain places that specialize in letting you mix toppings into pretty lousy ice cream; pizza tends to be another good example of this.

I was hoping I could expect better of the Germans. I am really not interested in eating a lot of fancy nonsense mixed into mediocre chocolate. Happily, that is not what they are selling.

The white chocolate is particularly excellent, with a great creamy texture and no cheap off-flavors. If you think you don’t like white chocolate, please make sure that you’ve had some that’s as good as this before you give up on it.

As for the toppings I put in this one… the red rice crackers, OK they look cool, but are not really what I want in chocolate. That’s not their fault, it was my choice. The mango chunks are very small, dried and candied tasting. They are fine, and the combination is fine. I have to say though that what I like about this is the bites that happen to have no topping and are just really good white chocolate. Which is, yes, not in the spirit of the thing. So sue me.

The dark chocolate is also good. It’s just a hair sweeter than I like, but the texture is great – I prefer it not too hard and snappy. The pecans and dried cherries are good, and fortunately this one is not a totally insane combination. The orange pepper doesn’t make much of an impression on me one way or another, but that’s fine.

The milk chocolate is my least favorite, but I am very hard to please when it comes to milk chocolate. It has to be much darker than normal, which this isn’t. Candied rose petals add even more sweetness, which this doesn’t need. I’d love to try those with dark chocolate, though.

The marzipan rose is lovely, as are many of the other decorations they offer – these are going to make an interesting gift-giving option for the chocolate lover.

To sum up, despite the fact that they were ordered by a crazy person, I am kind of sorry I mentioned to some other people that I would share these samples with them, especially the white chocolate. I think I may have to temporarily lose track of where I put that one.

• Chocri Website (German)

When asked if I wanted a sample of these to review, I checked them out and the answer was an immediate HECK YES. This is definitely my kind of thing. On the other hand, that means I’m a tough customer. Like, to start, I was not all that excited about the Dark Chocolate Cocoa Beans, because I don’t really see any reason to eat cocoa beans. I mean, there must be a reason that humanity invented the elaborate processes that turn them into chocolate, right?

But wow, they were good. I wondered if it was just because the chocolate coating was good, but upon disassembling one and eating the parts separately, I concluded that although the chocolate is indeed good, it’s the whole combination of chocolate and bean that’s “wow.” It reminds me of the taste of good strong cocoa powder. I mean the good stuff like a soft chocolate truffle might be rolled in (not your Swiss Miss in an envelope with milk powder). If you like that flavor you’ll love these.

And the texture is OK. The bean is perfectly edible, not as hard as a coffee bean.

These actually caused some domestic unrest. (”Are you finishing those? Don’t you dare finish those. I don’t care if I said I was done writing the review, PUT THOSE DOWN.”) I would definitely consider buying them again.

I also got a six piece assortment of their filled chocolates. They are large enough that six seemed like plenty, but then I discovered the heartbreak of the small collection of chocolates. The flavors I’d seen on the website that I was most excited to try – ginger, lemongrass, and passionfruit – were not included. I assume the selection is random and you have to trust to luck…

But, I know, shut up and eat your free chocolate…

Ecuador – 70% chocolate ganache filling. I didn’t like this at first. It seemed greasy and not all that flavorful. I wondered if it was affected by the trip – the package came from Florida, and in a week that was unseasonably warm for this time of year – and indeed, it was better the next day after a night in a cool dark house took the oiliness away. So, see where it says on the back of the box to store at 61-64 degrees? Take it seriously.

Le Citron – Meyer lemon – a nice herby-lemon hit at the beginning, almost like Japanese yuzu, although it kind of faded as I ate it.

Salted Caramel – This was not what I expected – not caramel inside, but “the finest caramel ganache,” which is basically a chocolate filling. I’m not sure if I would have identified a caramel flavor in this without a label, but the salt was obvious. I am not really a fan of salt-candy combinations (chocolate and pretzels strike me as an abomination) but this was surprisingly good. The bits of salt explode in your mouth here and there and then fade, making this an entertaining few moments of chewing.

Coffee – this is the mildest coffee flavor I can ever remember having in a chocolate.

Blackberry cobbler – blackberry puree and almond praline. OK, first of all, forget the whole ‘blackberry cobbler’ thing, when I make cobbler it has no praline in it. But setting that aside I still wasn’t crazy about this. Not a strong enough fruit flavor and there was some flavor in the praline part that I can’t pin down but that I didn’t like, kind of like hazelnut (although there’s no hazelnut in the ingredients list).

Amazon – “dark chocolate ganache with Ishpingo, a unique flavor from the Amazon, and a hint of cinnamon.” This was VERY good with a capital VERY. It was more than a hint of cinnamon, unless that was the Ishpingo, which, says the Internet, supposedly tastes kind of like cinnamon too. Chocolate and cinnamon is kind of old hat, but this was not boring at all. Maybe that’s the effect of the mysterious Ishpingo.

The conclusion? A couple of these were very good. The chocolate itself is excellent. The approach to flavorings in the fillings is a little restrained for my taste. I like a filled chocolate with a fruit (or something like coffee) filling to really punch me in the face with the flavor. I recognize that this is a matter of personal preference, so if you’re looking for something very high quality and you prefer not to feel like you’ve gotten a black eye from your chocolate bonbons, these are definitely worth a try.

• Aequare Website

Just in time for Halloween, the Twilight film franchise has released New Moon themed Halloween candies. The folks at the National Confectioners’ Association sent me three flavors to try.

Do you remember Sky Bars? For those of you who have never had the pleasure, a Sky Bar is a chocolate bar made of different sections, each of which contain a different filling. So in one chocolate bar, you got caramel, vanilla, peanut butter, and fudge fillings. Awesome.

Well this classic candy is getting a modern makeover. Instead of putting all the fillings in one bar, now some of the segments have their own, individually-wrapped candy bar with different Twilight New Moon characters on different flavors. I tried the Edward caramel and the Bella creme. Edward’s chocolate is etched with a family crest and says “Cullen.” Bella’s is shaped like a heart and says “Bella.” Both are good-sized chocolates.

It’s been a while since I’ve had a Sky Bar, so I can’t compare these to the originals. But I can say: yummy! The caramel flavor is loaded with a soft, sweet caramel that’s more liquid than chewy. The creme has almost the same consistency and the flavor reminds me of a Cadbury creme egg – really sweet but I somehow love it anyway.

Between the packaging, the cool shapes of the candies, the generous size of the chocolates, and the taste, I’d say these would be a huge hit with Twilight-loving Trick-or-Treaters.

I also tried the Twilight Sweethearts “Forbidden Fruits” conversation hearts. My box said “2 of 3″ and featured Edward. They are a bit glittery, and say things like “Soul Mate,” “With You,” “Live 4 Ever,” and my personal favorite, “Bite Me.”

For me, conversation hearts have always been more about having fun with what they say than how they taste, and this box was no exception. These still have the same chalky consistency I remember, but the flavors are much stronger. Flavors include orange obsession, tempting apple, passion fruit, and secret strawberry. They all tasted very sweet, very artificial, and, oddly enough, vaguely medicinal to me. I can’t say I enjoyed how these tasted. Fun to play with, yes. Fun to eat, not so much.

Since these come in a big box, they are not really suitable for handing out at the door on Halloween. But they’d be a lot of fun in a candy dish at work or at a party.

Given a choice, I definitely would choose the Sky Bars over the Sweethearts. Either way, enjoy your Twilight New Moon Halloween goodies!

Necco makes both the Sky Bar treats and the Sweethearts.

Candy Addict received this product as a sample. No payment was received for this review and all opinions represent an unbiased view of the product.

• Necco’s Website

It’s almost time for Halloween again and that means yummy treats for everyone.

The folks at the National Confectioners’ Association were kind enough to send me some treats to try, so I’m sharing them with you. I figured we’d start with the healthier treats, in case any of you want to add something healthy to your Halloween splurge.

First up,the bag of Florida Natural Au’Some Fruit Healthy Treats, which contain a mix of sour strings, nuggets, and stiks. I actually enjoy them all. All three styles come in orange, strawberry, and grape flavors and I like the strawberry the best. Since I love sour stuff, I particularly enjoy the sour strings, although I should warn you that they aren’t terribly sour. I was surprised at how much I enjoyed the stiks – they are really tangy and nicely chewy without sticking to your teeth. The nuggets are fun, too, but I thought the orange flavor, in particular, could have a wee bit of vitamin taste to it.

Given that the nuggets and strings are only 50 calories a pack, and the sticks are only 35, these are a guilt-free treat, surprisingly tasty and satisfying. As a bonus, each candy has vitamin C and other vitamins and minerals, so these actually have a health benefit! Since these come in nifty little packets, you can hand them out to your Trick-or-Treaters, or take ‘em to work yourself.

While I was delving into the fruity, chewy goodness, I decided to try Welch’s Island Flavor Fruit Snacks. One serving boasts 100% of your vitamin C DV, and 25% of your A and E. And, at 130 calories per serving, this definitely qualifies for my “healthier Halloween” motif. I’m sorry to say I didn’t enjoy these nearly as much as the Au’some Fruit treats. The flavors were much more bland and had a weird, waxy taste to them. And the texture was odd: not very chewy and kind of powdery. Plus, my sample came in a bag that was too big to share with Trick-or-Treaters, although you could just eat ‘em yourself. If you’re into tropical punch flavors, maybe you’ll dig this, but it wasn’t really my thing.

Last on the list, Candy Coated Sunny Seed Drops by the Sunflower Food & Spice Co, Ltd. Back in June, Nico reviewed the regular Sunny Seed Drops Chocolate Sunflower Seeds, but mine came in Halloween colors with a Halloween-themed tube. Same flavor, but seasonal packaging. How do these stand up to other Halloween treats? Well, I love chocolate and I love sunflower seeds so these made me do the happy dance. The only bad thing I can say about these is that I had a hard time not eating the entire tube. The brightly colored candy shells are incredibly inviting, just begging you to have another handful. These are a little like sunflower M&Ms. I will say the chocolate is quite sweet, but somehow it works with the sunflower seeds. Oh yum! How did I go my whole life so far without having these?

According to the package, sunflower seeds are an excellent source of a number of vitamins, minerals, protein, and fiber – healthy! There are 130 calories per serving – if you can manage to stop at the serving size, which is 2 tablespoons. Since this came in a good-sized tube, I’m not sure if you’d want to get enough tubes to share with Trick-or-Treaters or not. But I sure do recommend treating yourself because these rocked.

Overall, if you’re looking for a healthier Halloween but don’t want to make your Trick-or-Treaters or yourself feel deprived, I recommend you try either the Au’some Fruits or the Sunny Seed Drops. Yum!

• Au’some Treats Website
• Welch’s Website
• Sunflower Food & Spice Company’s Website

Taza to Go is a ready-to-drink chocolate extravagance from Valor, the renowned Spanish chocolatier founded in 1881. The name comes from getting chocolate “a la taza” in Spain, which means in a small white ceramic cup. It’s an amazing, thick, rich dark chocolate drink served hot. I would call it hot chocolate, but that’s like calling the Casa Milà in Barcelona an apartment. It’s only hot chocolate in the sense that it’s chocolate, which is hot. It’s more like a melted dark chocolate bar with just enough milk added to make it into a thick, drinkable liquid. It’s especially popular at breakfast, but also as a dessert treat.

Okay, great, but what will it taste like when it comes, not from a freshly melted chocolate bar and milk from your master chocolate barista, but from a premixed, imported pouch? Extremely delicious, if properly prepared.

As I sit down with my third cup of Taza to Go, I’m struck by how making this the right way really pays dividends. Let me explain.

When you first open the pouch and pour this dark goodness out, it looks more or less like pudding. Of course I took a spoonful. It was good, but not crazy good. The chocolate side of it was fine, but the reconstituted milk was a little weird. Since it was so thick, I then decided that I should add enough milk to make it like regular hot chocolate. I did that. It was very good hot chocolate, but something was still a little off.

So, finally, I took the pouch directions seriously and simply heated up the thick pudding. Specifically, I put three tablespoons in a small-ish coffee mug (Ikea 365+, you know the one) and heated it for 25 seconds. Removing the mug, I saw that the chocolate had risen about 3/4 of the way up, so 35 seconds probably would have made a molten lava mess. Twenty-five seconds (1000 watt oven) was perfect. The heat had liquefied the Taza to Go, and I gave it a stir.

Time for a sip of this premier drinking chocolate, as it’s intended to be enjoyed. Wow. Now we’re talking. And sipping. Then slurping, then licking of mug. Then making of another mug. This is a wonderful treat. It’s a very strong chocolate flavor, but smooth and with several flavor notes to keep things interesting. There’s also a tinge of cinnamon. You can really taste the quality of Valor chocolate in this Taza to Go super drink.

So, you may not be used to drinking hot chocolate like this – very thick, and very rich. But once you try it, it’s good times all around. It’s like the bottom of the mug in normal hot chocolate where the chocolate has settled. Except this is nothing but thick and rich, and it’s got just an exceptional chocolate taste – not that junky flavor you get from low cacao content, cheap fillers, or corn syrup.

Although a bit pricey ($12 for 900 ML/30.43 oz), this big pouch makes many delicious, concentrated servings. I highly recommend this fantastic chocolate drink, especially as fall leaves begin to fly.

Candy Addict received this product as a sample from the manufacturer. No payment was received for this review and all opinions represent an unbiased view of the product.

• Valor Website

Did you know that houses with black shutters are 77 percent more likely to hand out Kit Kats than other houses? Yeah, me neither. Weird. If I had a black shutters (or even a house, for that matter), I’d be compelled now to ensure that I didn’t hand out Kit Kats. That’s just how I roll. But that and other rather odd facts can be found in a press release issued by Hershey’s.

They’re also happy to announce that this year will also see a variety of new snack sized candies (including Hershey’s Kisses) for trick-or-treaters. Apparently nobody bothered to read my scientific (ahem) study of smaller sized candies. But I will admit those Reese’s pumpkins are really darn cute.

• Hershey’s Dresses up Halloween with Frightfully Delicious Treats Press Release

I’ve been on hiatus from the candy world ever since I relocated to Montana for graduate school. My days seem to be riddled with homework and the correcting of grammatical mistakes made by the students in the freshmen composition course that I teach. Have you ever tried reading 24 essays for split infinitives, misuse of appositives, and the lack of proper semicolon use? Let’s just say it makes for a very draining experience.

Luckily, the kind folks over at Bubble Chocolate knew just how to perk up my day by mailing me a sample of their chocolate. In what world is free chocolate not a good thing?

I had never heard of this company, which makes sense considering they are new and based on the East Coast. But I have heard of and consumed similar products. Aerated chocolate, the candy term for such a confection, is something I first discovered in New Zealand with Nestle’s Aero, but have seen in many forms since.

For those of you not familiar with aerated chocolate, my best equivalent is to compare crème fraiche to meringue: they are both similar in consistency and appearance, but the latter is much lighter. Bubble Chocolate comes in two varieties: milk and dark chocolate.

Milk Chocolate: The chocolate bars are smartly wrapped in 3″x6″ box designed to appeal to a playful quality, but still retaining an air of elegance. Unwrapping this one, my bar had been broken in a dozen places, most likely due to shipping and handling. Aside from this minor defect, the chocolate looked beautiful.

Once broken or bitten into, a cross-section reveals a sponge hidden beneath the full chocolate shell. The “bubbles” are half-bubbles since once you see them it’s only because you have eaten the other half of it.

As for the chocolate itself, it was highly fragrant, denoting fruit essences. The taste is reminiscent of dairy milk bars by Cadbury and other European confectioners that avoid sour milk, oils, and corn syrup in their production, *cough*Hershey*cough*. Despite the fact that the bar broke in transit, the chocolate is far from flimsy with a firm, but not hard snap. The ingredients are simple: sugar powder, cocoa butter, whole milk powder, cocoa mass, and vanilla.

Unlike other aerated bars I’ve consumed, this one doesn’t really carry all the trademark textures. You can’t really taste the pockets directly, most likely because the bubbles are pretty small and densely packed. Their presence evokes a somewhat grainy consistency, almost as if you were eating a moist slice of cake; however, the bubbles make the piece incredibly light on the tongue in terms of fullness and in turn easy on the throat, which is a smart move because this milk chocolate is a bit richer than your average bar.

Dark Chocolate: Coffee, cherry, and rum notes waft from this bar, which set up a hard-to-fulfill expectation of how it should taste. Like the last bar, this one was damaged in transit. I have made my affinities for dark chocolate over milk chocolate known, but every once in a while I find a product where the balance of flavor favors milk chocolate; this was such an instance.

The dark chocolate piece was a lot chalkier, with a bitter taste carrying that coffee essence, but no fruit or alcohol traits that would have complemented it. The taste was very filling in a robust way, but the texture didn’t quite mesh with the velvety or crisp expectation I have for dark chocolate. Clearly, some milk aids in the smoothing out of the aeration quality.

Overall, I think these are two fine products, but it’s the milk chocolate bar that really steals the show. It offers a delicious and novel twist on a classic candy, and it will pleasantly surprise you with the textures and tastes contained within, most likely due to the fine list of ingredients and quality it is made with. All-in-all, much better than the standard Aero bar.

Candy Addict received this product as a sample from the manufacturer. No payment was received for this review and all opinions represent an unbiased view of the product.

• Bubble Chocolate Website

I haven’t posted a review here for a while, but it’s not because I haven’t been eating candy. It’s because I made the mistake of saying that I would review these Target chocolates, and I have been unable to face up to it. It’s just too depressing.

I have prided myself on always being able to get something to write out of a candy – if it’s terrible, at least finding something funny to say about it. But there’s nothing funny about how bad these are.

It’s just totally depressing that Target thinks they can fool us into thinking that these are ‘artisan truffles’ just because they have fashionable flavor names and are visually a poor imitation of the most high-end sort of chocolate, and that it doesn’t matter that as something to actually eat, they’re totally awful.

These chocolates have a flat surface on top, on which are the kind of decorations that look like paint, with geometric patterns in primary colors, that you see on some brands of very fancy handmade filled chocolates. They’re cheap-looking but you can tell that they’re trying to imitate something like – no, actually, I’m not even going to link to the other chocolates I’ve reviewed here that do this kind of thing, because it would be a complete sacrilege to mention them in the same review as these.

They also allegedly come in exotic flavors, at least as far as the labels on the side of the box claim: pear caramel, cardamom, chile, Thai coconut, mango, and key lime.

I say “allegedly” because the fillings bear little resemblance to any decent version of those flavors. The key lime is reminiscent of the smell of lemon dishwashing liquid. The mango is probably some kind of fruit. You get the picture.

And the chocolate itself is perfectly awful. The texture is waxy, the flavor is bland and vaguely stale. I’d rather eat a Hershey’s bar, and just so you know, in my book that’s a pretty terrible insult.

I guess this is not surprising – what do you expect from “artisan” truffles that cost five dollars a box? But it’s depressing that Target, which is a brand that so many people have a sort of inexplicably good feeling about, should mess this shamefully with their reputation – and our palates.

Gilliam Candy Company has been around since 1927 but it’s only been under the Quality Candy banner since 2003. Lucky for me Gilliam joined the Quality family because I got to try their Stick Candy.

I remember these hard candy sticks from when I was a kid. The tantalizing colors and stripes would glisten from the shelves and they all looked so luscious it was really hard to pick just one.

I’m afraid you may have the same problem with these sticks. I sat ogling my stick candy in gluttonous glee before I finally chose a few to sample. For those of you who don’t like trying to guess what flavor the stick will be, they’ve got the names of the flavors printed on the ends of the sticks. But if you want to go for the mystery and choose by color, just don’t read the wrapper!

You won’t have a shortage of colors and flavors to choose from – here’s the list of flavors I got a look at: banana, blackberry, blueberry, bubblegum, cherry, cherry cola, chocolate, cinnamon, clove, cotton candy, grape, horehound, island punch, lime, orange, orange pineapple, passion fruit, peaches & cream, peppermint, pina colada, pineapple, raspberry, root beer, rum & butter, sassafras, sour apple, spearmint, strawberry, tangerine, tutti frutti, watermelon, and wintergreen.

Obviously, it’d take me a month to try all these so I narrowed it down to five: bubblegum, horehound, rum & butter, sassafras, and sour apple.

I tried the bubblegum because just the thought of it made the kid in me giggle. This flavor tastes like bubblegum with some barley sugar and a little bit of fruitiness thrown in.

I tried the horehound because I didn’t know what “horehound” meant. Miriam Webster said it’s a kind of minty plant or a candy made out the plant, but this wasn’t minty at all. Mostly it tasted like barley sugar to me and I found it really mellow and pleasant to eat because it was just the right amount of sweet. I had trouble putting this one down.

I tried the sassafras because I think the name is fun. I know that many root beers say “sassafras” on them, but this tasted kind of like black licorice to me with some root beer in the finish.

I LOVE butterscotch so I couldn’t wait to try the rum & butter. This stick isn’t actually a butterscotch wannabe. It has its own, distinct sweet rum flavor with some buttery flavor sneaking in here and there. I found it light and enjoyable.

Finally, I tried the sour apple. While this definitely had a mild apple flavor, I wouldn’t call this sour. I prefer my sour apple flavor to be strong and quite tart, but if you like your apple flavor on the light and sweet side, you’ll enjoy this.

Overall, these were way fun to eat – the flavors were satisfying and the colors and shape evoked a sense of nostalgia that just added to the fun factor. As a bonus, they last a good long time so they should keep you occupied for quite awhile.

• Quality Candy Company Website