Today I was quite shocked to find not one, but two unexpected packages containing delicious candy treats. One was from Jelly Belly (look for that review coming soon) and the other was from our friends at Licorice International (who, by the way, have a beautiful new site). Intrigued, I ripped open the box to see what treasures it might contain.

Inside I found two packages of Australian Waldov Liquorice, one raspberry flavored and one black, as well as two “Irish Potatoes” and a nice note informing me that these were newly stocked items. Well, I’m always up for a new kind of licorice to try, so I immediately tore open the black licorice bag.

I could smell the delicious scent of black licorice even before the bag was fully open. Gingerly pulling out a piece from the bag, I noted that they were sticky but soooooo soft. I’m talking butter soft here, people. No, seriously, softer than you’re imagining. Firm enough to hold their shape, but just barely. These are arguably the softest licorice bits I’ve ever tried. In my book, that’s a good thing.

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“To share or not to share, there is no question” declares the side of my chocolate truffle Nestle Heaven bar… and I have to say no truer words were spoken. These three flavors – chocolate caramel, chocolate truffle, mint truffle – are among the most delicious, addicting, totally fabulous chocolate bars I have ever tasted. It took precisely one bite for me to come to the conclusion that this range of chocolate bars qualified for the CandyAddict.com Awesomely Addictive Candy Award.

Every single part of these bars is lovable, and awesomely addictive – from the funny yet elegant packaging, to the feel of the chocolate, to the taste of each piece. Each of these is gold foil wrapped and then completely contained by a cardboard box. The box opens at one short end, so you can slide out your chocolate bar and then slide it back in if you manage to stop yourself from eating the whole thing. The boxes are covered in funny sayings, like “If I have to choose between you and my chocolate, you won’t like the answer.” The descriptions on the back are edible enough without even getting to the chocolate, with brilliant copy like this: “…the delightful mint truffle center oozes through your mouth…” Oozes, people. It oozes!

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When I’m at the local mall and I feel like a sugar fix, I can almost always find a Sweet As store to run wild in. A vast majority of my reviews here are done from candy I bought there, as Sweet As is one of the biggest (if not the biggest) candy superstore here in Melbourne. The stores all have a Great Wall of Sweets which literally reaches from floor to ceiling and is jam-packed with new and classic candies. With seven stores operating and two more on the way, this is some serious candy loving going on for the people of Melbourne. Recently I had the opportunity to interview Cheree Smith, one of the family members who run Sweet As. Considering that Australia is often described as “America in the 1950′s” it was interesting to see if this applied to candy trends as well.

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This month, I’ve decided to combine two months’ worth of Licorice of the Month Club fare into one big happy post. The reason for this is twofold – first of all, with the holidays I’ve been absurdly busy, and second, the two candies I’m profiling are red versions of black licorice I absolutely love.

First up is Black Opal Real Australian Raspberry Licorice. As I’ve mentioned before, I love Black Opal’s black licorice. The raspberry, however, is a different beast all together. Like its black brethren, this candy is very soft and not at all sticky, but there the similarities end. Where the black licorice has a fairly mild yet intriguing taste, the red seems to scream “I am raspberry, hear me roar!”

To be entirely honest, I’m not sure how true to an actual raspberry taste it is; I’ve avoided the fresh berry ever since I was a kid and had a mild allergic reaction to them. However, I can tell you it’s very sweet, almost to the point of overpowering. It doesn’t have that icky waxiness so endemic to Twizzlers and other such candy, though, so if you really like red licorice, this would probably be right up your alley.

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