Tag Archives: mockolate

Candy Review: Banana Tootsie Pops

Posted on by
8

Banana Tootsie Pop

Since joining the Candy Addict staff, I have found my usual proclivities for candy changing. One such change has been an added addiction to lollipops. I typically find myself inundated with so many candies that it’s nice to retreat to a lollipop, a candy that is small, filling, and pleasant if only for the fact that your hands can’t get sticky or gooey from consuming it.

At the All Candy Expo, there was an assortment of lollipops to sample, but one piqued my interest more than any other: the new Banana Tootsie Pop. I have long been a fan of Tootsie Pops, and banana seemed like a great flavor. I mean, who doesn’t like chocolate/mockolate and banana together?

So I grabbed a handful of the suckers each of the three days knowing that not only I, but also many of my friends would be delighted to see what the folks at Tootsie had whipped up for us.

Continue reading →

Retro Candy Flashback: The Little Debbie Nutty Bar

Posted on by
6

Nutty Bar

(Image from hades at Flickr)

Is there anything to rival the innocent sweetness of a Little Debbie treat? From the extreme simplicity of their classic goodies to their chemist-friendly ingredient lists to the cute little girl whose portrait adorns every box, the brand embodies pure, sugary nostalgia. Ever since the 1960s, when the CEOs of McKee foods decided to name a line of snack cakes after their granddaughter, this line has brightened many a day.

Crossing paths with Debbie at the supermarket or gas station always brings a smile to my face. These chance encounters bring to mind lunchtimes in preschool and kindergarten, during which Debbie and I became acquainted. Those years were simpler for us all, and whether or not we could expect to find something so tasty in the day’s lunchbox seemed an important issue. Too often, the presence or absence of a Swiss Cake Roll would determine my mood for the afternoon.

Yet for whatever reason, my relationship with Little Debbie has become less intimate in recent years. We see each other, sure, but we don’t touch, or (most importantly) taste. I feel at times that the freckled, curly-haired youth and I have grown estranged. So it came as a pleasant surprise one recent evening when my boyfriend arrived carrying an armful of Little Debbie’s beloved Nutty Bars.

Continue reading →

Candy Review: Cadbury Micro Mini Eggs

Posted on by
Reply

Micro Mini Eggs Bag

As we discovered in our recent review of Popping Mini Eggs, Cadbury seems willing to go to some pretty darn strange places in order to “improve” a candy that many would argue is already the pinnacle of Easter candy perfection. I like to imagine the conversation went kind of like this:

Cadbury Executive 1: Yeah, Mini Eggs are pretty darn popular.

Cadbury Executive 2: No kidding – they’re our top-selling Easter candy. But you know what’s wrong with them?

Cadbury Executive 1: No, Bob – what’s wrong with them?

Cadbury Executive 2: They’re just not MINI enough!

Cadbury Executive 1: By George… I think you’re on to something!

And thus, Micro Mini Eggs were born.

Unsurprisingly, they look just like mini versions of the regular ones, with their pale pastel colors speckled with brown. (In the picture below, the bigger eggs are regular-sized Popping Eggs.) However, they do only come in four colors – purple, yellow, blue and white. If you want to believe the bag, Purple is the chick, Blue’s the cool dude, and Yellow’s a dead ringer for my Aunt Marge. Maybe White’s the pasty nerd who never leaves his basement, thus explaining why he didn’t show up for the photo shoot.

Continue reading →

Candy Review: Butterfinger Buzz

Posted on by
4

Butterfinger Buzz package

Package disclaimer: “Not recommended for pregnant women, children, or persons sensitive to caffeine.” (This includes YOU, weird pregnant guy expecting your second kid in June!)

Huh? This is just wrong: A candy bar aimed straight at the shaved heads of wacky, Jack-Ass-style twenty-somethings. In this fast-paced and hectic age, do we really need more buzz? I guess someone thinks so.

The Nestle advertising blitz and buzz (can you sense the trend here?) features online videos of highly energized male and female actors playing the part of young adults shaving one another’s heads and spray painting stencils of the Butterfinger Buzz logo onto their freshly revealed scalps. The ads seem to shout: THESE COOL YOUNG PEOPLE ARE CRAZY AND YOU NEED TO HANG OUT WITH THEM RIGHT NOW!! A paintball gun is even used – that was crazy sick YO! No, just stupid. All this for a candy bar? And not a very good one? Come on.

At the very least, the campaign seems forced. Certain candy icons should never be messed with.

Continue reading →

Retro Candy Flashback: Baby Ruth

Posted on by
4

Baby Ruth

Butterfinger and Crunch are the stars of Nestle’s confectionery lineup. They get more advertisements on TV and have each undergone various spin-offs over the years. Whenever I hear those candy brands, I think of a grouping of candy rather than an individual piece of candy. Their ubiquitous nature has rendered them undefined and associative.

In contrast, there is a Nestle product, easily my favorite Nestle product, which exists as the unacknowledged sibling to these candy bars. I am talking about the one and only Baby Ruth.

There isn’t a crisp variation, theater-sized box, or even dark chocolate counterpart to this classic. In fact, it hasn’t ever been redone (at least, not with any lingering spin-offs). You also don’t see commercials for this candy too often. But I believe I know why.

Continue reading →