When you think of dark chocolate additives, spicy chocolate isn’t so far-fetched. Cranberries with chocolate is not uncommon, but chocolate+chili+cranberries is definitely unique. Jersey Devil Chocolates boast a 54% cacao dark chocolate bar that includes dried cranberries and chipotle chili. Why cranberries? Because New Jersey (where the company is based) is the 2nd highest producer of the fruit, and the legendary Jersey Devil reportedly lurks in the South Jersey Pine Barrens where the cranberries are grown.
Candy Review: Jersey Devil Spicy Chili Chocolate
Categories: Candy,Candy Reviews,Chocolate Candy,Gourmet CandyCandy Review: Wolfgang Chocolate-Covered Blueberries and Cranberries
Categories: Candy,Candy Reviews,Chocolate CandyIt’s now three months since the All-Candy Expo, and I’m still getting reviews out of my dwindling candy stash. (It helps that I’m the kind of person who saves candy rather than scarfing it all down as fast as possible.) But the further I get from the expo, the more further removed I get from the context of these items, most just grabbed on a whim from a sample table and given no more thought.
Take these chocolate-covered blueberries and cranberries from Wolfgang Chocolates, for example. Anonymously wrapped in pink and blue foil pouches that totally disguised the contents, they could have been anything from Raisinet-style pieces to chunky clusters.
(It turns out that Wolfgang Candy has nothing to do with Wolfgang Puck, the first Wolfgang who comes to mind – the company was founded by the Wolfgang family from York County, Pennsylvania, who have been making candy since the early 20th century.)
Candy Review: Cranberry Raisinets
Categories: Candy,Candy Reviews,Chocolate Candy,New CandyRasinets are a candy that is completely lost to me. That’s not to say I don’t love chocolate-covered raisins, because I do, but rather that I don’t like to spend my money on them. I get plenty as gifts, and for some reason my Jewish family always has them in bowls for the plucking when we gather for the holidays. I consume enough of them without having to pay for them.
So when I was a kid and all my friends bought Rasinets at the movies, I went for the Sour Patch Kids and never really ventured past that comfort candy. I can easily claim I have more fingers than the number of Rasinets I have eaten in my lifetime.
Flash-forward to this year’s All Candy Expo, and lo and behold Nestle is debuting a new product – Cranberry Raisinets. Well, my first thought is it would be far catchier and there’d be fewer syllables if they were called “Craisinets.†My second thought is that these might actually be worth trying.
Candy Review: Surf Sweets Sour Berry Bears
Categories: Candy,Candy Reviews,Gummi/Gummy Candy,New Candy,Sour CandyI previously reviewed all of the products from Surf Sweets, the gummi candy company that produces an assortment of organic, “healthier†candies that are also vegetarian and vegan friendly. At least, I thought I had reviewed everything they produce.
At the All Candy Expo, I approached the Surf Sweets booth and began chatting with the people there. It wasn’t long before they spotted my expo badge, clearly stating who I was and the publication I worked for. Being a writer for Candy Addict is like being a character on Saved By The Bell… some people will recognize Dustin Diamond and be amazed, but there are also a lot of people who will ask you to repeat exactly what’s the big deal.
Thankfully, the Surf Sweets people viewed me as the former. They put two and two together and realized I was the Robby who had reviewed all their products. Though it can be awkward interacting with people when you’ve written a negative review, I actually really enjoyed their products, and so it was a friendly chat.
Somewhere in our conversation, the mention of a new product came up. “A new what?†I asked to confirm I heard correctly. Yes, apparently between the time I had reviewed them and the ACE, they had released Sour Berry Bears. Because I could no longer claim I had eaten and reviewed everything they manufactured, I felt it essential to get my hands on some, which in reality was fairly easy since they gave me a complementary bag.
Candy Review: Jelly Belly Superfruit Mix
Categories: Candy,Candy Reviews,New Candy,Soft CandyIn case you’ve been living under a rock for the past year or so, the latest big food fad to hit grocery stores is… No, not bacon. Darn it all, why do you people always want to talk about bacon?
The OTHER big food trend of the past couple of years is the so-called “superfruit.†The theory behind superfruits is that certain fruits like pomegranates and goji berries contain high levels of nutrients such as antioxidants, which just might help to prevent cancer and other diseases.
Though there’s considerable debate about whether superfruits are really the disease-fighting powerhouses the companies marketing them claim they are, I guess any trend that encourages people to eat more fruit can’t be a completely bad thing. (That argument probably doesn’t hold water when applied to fruit-flavored candy, though.)