Coca-Cola Tic Tacs

Six years. That's how long it's been since I posted a Tic-Tac review. It was the 2017 Minions re-release, because they were finally banana-flavored. (The 2015 version was passion fruit for reasons I will never understand.) So to say, "It's been a minute," would be an understatement. 

Like most millennials I grew up with a pack in my pocket, and pretended they were medicine, a totally normal and healthy thing for a child to do. But as the early 2000's obsession with all things minty-fresh ended, I found myself reaching for them less and less. It's time to check in and see what they're up to. 

Marshmello's Limited Edition Coca-Cola - Watermelon Strawberry Flavored

Coca-Cola Creations has been busy. We've already had four different flavors: Starlight, Byte, this collaboration with Marshmello, and Dreamworld in under a year! That's one flavor per season. 

New flavors are fun, but if you don't do it right, it leads to burn out. After a decade of blogging, and countless limited edition products from well known brands, I feel qualified to say, Coke is doing it right.

 

While Creations hasn't had enough time, or flavors, to be a proper one-to-one comparison to Oreos...I'm going to compare them to Oreos anyway.

A Trio of Tangy Treats! - Crazy Candy Co. from Aldi

I'm known by all my friends for having a copious amount of junk-food in my house, and they're not wrong. Crazy Candy Co. seems to be an Aldi exclusive line of candy, and I've had their Rainbow Belts before, which were amazing, and these back to school themed gummies. So far, this brand seems to do no wrong. And at a great price point! So, why not try three more of their products? 

I Don't Know If I Need You - Pepsi-Cola Soda Shop Black Cherry

Pepsi Cola Black Cherry Soda Shop - Wawa

Maybe it's because I was a rebellious teenager in a Coke-household, but I prefer Pepsi. 

I'll drink Cherry Coke when I visit my mom (who usually keeps a few cans for me), but when I'm buying soda for myself, I always go Pepsi. I feel like Pepsi tastes a bit zippier, bolder, and their Generation-themed ads in the 90's with the Spice Girls continue to take up space in my brain all these years later. (Move over, yeah! Don't do it over!~) 

Cherry cola is my go-to drive-thru beverage. I prefer Pepsi, but I'll take Coke when needed and if neither is available it's good ol' Dr. Pepper. (BUT If there is a Coke Remix machine, it raspberry Coke, 100%) Basically, I love fruity colas. So when I saw Pepsi launched this semi-retro Soda Shop line I headed straight for the cherry flavor. 

Blue are the feelings that live inside me - Pepsi Blue

Pepsi Blue - 7-Eleven

I wanted to introduce this as a "taste from my childhood" but I was in high school. So it's more accurate to say it's a taste from frizzy-haired-awkward-teens.

I remember getting this from gas stations from time to time, so I was excited for it's return. Just looking at it brings back every lyric to Eiffel 65's, Blue (Da Be Dee.) I had their CD back in the day and used to stay up watching MTV2 on the weekends so I could see their weird music video with CG aliens (along with other animated videos like Daft Punk and Gorillaz.) 

Without further ado, let's drink some Windex Da Ba Dee Da Ba Di!  

Strawberry & Cola Licorice Sticks - Lidl

Strawberry & Cola Licorice Sticks - Lidl

Most Lidl products are variations on name brands, I was able to suss out the Skittles, Croco's and Mousey dupes right away, but these? A quick google search reveals nothing. I mean we've seen plenty of licorice brands, and tons of strawberry flavored ones in particular, but cola is more rare and a combination of cola and strawberry? I had never seen it before. Maybe they're a truly new and unique-to-Lidl combination? 

And what a combination is it, cola and strawberries? Not exactly peanut butter and jelly. I think it sounds awesome, but I am well aware that my tastes don't always align to the general public and what's popular. Still, I love cola flavored gummies, and strawberry licorice, so this must be the best of both worlds, right? 

Was this a mistake? - Dark Blend Coffee Coca-Cola

Dark Blend Coffee Coca-Cola - Aldi

We heard you like caffeine, so we put some caffeine in your caffeine. (Any of you out there even remember Pimp My Ride?)  Anyway, Coke released a new line of sodas blended with coffee. There are three flavors available: caramel, vanilla and dark blend. That said, my opening line is true, these do have more caffeine than normal Coca Cola, but it's still far less than a typical espresso drink or any of the energy drinks on the market. So their angle  is less about energy boosting, and more about flavor.

I guess there is an audience out there for such a product? Personally, I was really skeptical about the whole mash-up. I thought it would either be so lightly flavored you could barely taste the coffee, or it would be so over the top it would be disgusting. Needless to say, I ended up seeing a 4-pack at Aldi and decided to jump in with both feet. 

So, I have four cans of this stuff (three now that I gave one to my buddy Jared, @farbeyondsippin on Instagram), so let's see how it tastes and what I can do with it!

Tiny Burgers, Fries, and Fruits, Oh MY! - 4D Gummies

4D Gummies - Dollar Tree

I bought these because I wanted to photograph them. I mean, look at them! They're little 3D gummy shapes of fruits and burgers and stuff. It's like, my kryptonite. But, I know what I'm getting into. After my experience with 4D Gummies (which were also from Dollar Tree) I knew these would likely be more of a fun visual novelty than a decent candy. 

So I am going into this with a healthy amount of skepticism and very low expectations. (Kind of like dating in your 30's, am I right? Self-burn.) 

Let's jump right into it!

Moguchuu? I Barely Know You!

Yaokin Moguchuu Cola  - Rocket Fizz $1.49

These came from Rocket Fizz, which is a nifty chain of novelty shops that sell candies, wacky gifts, and tons of weird sodas. In fact, I think they carry pretty much every novelty soda there is, from Buffalo Wing to Apple Pie, to Grass. I was very temoted to get a bunch of weird drinks but, as fun as that is, weird sodas usually aren't that good. They're great for a, "wow! That was weird," moment, but after the initial novelty wears off, the drinks are rarely worth repurchasing. So, I opted for some quirky snacks instead.

I can barely keep my eyes open ('cause I'm getting old dying) so let's get right into this quickie review!  

♫ Buyin' Lots of Groceries, Gotta Drink A Lot of Peaches ♫

Georgia Peach Coca Cola - ShopRite 

Let's see if any of you former 80's-90's kids can help me solve a mystery while I sip on some fruity soda. 

Growning up we had a few PCs with...really bizarre add-ons? The first one I remember was a CRT monitor in my bedroom that was hooked up to...something. I can't remember the OS, but what I do remember is that it had several Duke Nukem games and some bizarre dungeon-shooter game where I murdered knock-off Beavis, Butthead, and Barney the purple Dinosaur. (I never did beat Barney. His singing killed me too quickly. Googled it. OMG little-me was playing some kind of modded Wolfenstien?! Kill Beavis and Butthead? Where did I even get this?!)

Eventually we worked our way up to a PC with Windows 95, which was bundled with Echo The Dolphin, and, for some reason, a CD with the music video for "Lump," by The Presidents of The United States of America. Why? I have no idea. I found this Reddit thread where two other people seemed to have gotten the same thing, while others got Weezer and a different game? Does anyone know why this was a thing? Why these particular songs? I've been spiraling down this nostalgic rabbit hole for at least an hour on Google and I have more questions now than I did when I started. 

Anyway...thanks to that CD, I was introduced to the band, and I fell in love with their quirky songs, like Peaches. Long story short (too late) let's drink some peach flavored soda.  

♪ Ooh, I want you, I don't know if I need you! ♪

Cherry Cola Oreos - Target $2.99

Obligatory link to Savage Garden's 90's hit, I Want You. One of the first CDs I ever stole from my mom's collection. (She has good taste.) Such an under appreciated band and song! 

If I ever review something cherry cola themed and do NOT link to that song, just know that I have been replaced with a robot or body snatcher. 

Now that the song-nostalgia-gods have been appeased, let's take a closer look at these Cherry Cola Oreos. 

Cola Fettuccine Gummi - Asian Food Markets

Cola Fettuccine Gummi - Asian Food Markets

Think last week sugared me out? Think again! Gummi candy is my absolute favorite! When I was in high school I would go to the mall every weekend, not to hang out and get cool clothes like the rest of my peers, but to stuff a plastic bag with various gummi creatures at the (now closed) bulk candy store. Back then I may or may not have "freed" some large gummi sharks into the food court water fountain. Ah, those were good times. (Especially for my dentist. Pretty sure my teenage cavities personally paid for his kid to go to college. You're welcome! Also, yes, I'm still stuck in a Maui-hole. Send help.)

Let's rack up more dental bills and munch on some cola candy!

Mike and Ike Throwback Flavors from Dollar Tree

Mike and Ike Throwback Flavors - Dollar Tree

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday weekend! Mine was great, but INTENSE. We're talking 4-days of non-stop family gatherings, cooking meals, and gift giving. It's fun, but I need a minimum of 2-days of no make-up and sweatpants to recover before the New Year festivities begin.

Since the flaming garbage heap that is 2016 is nearly over, I thought I should try and do a bit of stash busting to make room for new year goodies. First to the foodie chopping block? Some retro throwback flavors from Mike and Ike.

Pepsi's 1893 Ginger Cola - Rastelli's Market

Pepsi's 1893 Ginger Cola  - Rastelli's Market

A few days ago I reviewed the 1893 Original soda, and today I have the ginger version.

Ginger is a flavor I used to hate. I remember thinking that it tasted like a cleaning product and avoided it whenever possible, but after several years of food blogging I've changed my tune. In fact, I prefer my ginger snacks and sweets to be on the extremely spicy side these days. Will Pepsi's 1893 throwback make the cut? Let's find out!

Pepsi's 1893 Original Cola - Rastelli's Market

Pepsi's 1893 Original Cola  - Rastelli's Market

Before Pepsi started slapping emojis on their bottles, they came out with two retro-looking 1893-themed cans of soda in both original, and ginger cola flavors. I grew up in a strictly Coca-Cola household, but I've always liked Pepsi products more, so I thought it'd be fun to check these out and see how they differ from the normal cola. First up, the "Original."

TBT Fermented Rye Drink (AKA Cool Beard-Guy Soda) - Appetit Fine European Food Market

Fermented Rye Drink (AKA Cool Beard-Guy Soda) - Appetit Fine European Food Market

Some of you might remember this post from December when someone crashed into my car and totaled it. Not the best way to start off the new year, but thankfully no one was seriously injured. I had to get back to work ASAP, so I started shopping for used cars immediately and while I was out looking at dealerships I decided to make lemonade out of life's lemons and took this opportunity to visit a shop I've always driven by, but never had time to visit, Appetit Fine European Food Market!

Appetit is a small corner-store along the highway that specializes in Eastern European products. It's been around for a few years, and I've always wanted to see what's inside, but I never found the time to stop in, until now, and they have some cool stuff! I grabbed a few snacks, some activated charcoal tablets (to try some of the stuff I've seen on Pinterest) and this fancy Beard-Guy Soda.

Meiji Poifull Drink Mix - Asian Food Market

Meiji Poifull Drink Mix - Asian Food Market

Poifull may look like jelly beans, but the texture is completely different! The outside is sugary and kind of crumbly, similar to Jelly Belly style beans, but the inside is chewy, bouncy and soft. It's almost like a panned gummy, and it's absolutely delightful! Unlike a lot of American jelly beans, these are also flavored inside and out! The cores are each a different color to match their sugary exterior. For this mix in particular we have four soda-themed flavors, and I'm super excited to give these a try!

Play Bubble Cola Gum - Asian Food Market

Play Bubble Cola Gum -Asian Food Market

More old photos of products I never got around to reviewing! I was wandering around the Asian Food Market and I noticed they got a whole line of Taiwanese sports themed bubble gum! How can I resist a sparkly-eyed, bubblegum chewing, fire-pitching baseball player? (Plus it's cola flavored.)

Wax Cola Bottle Review

Back with a (really short) review of some nifty retro-ish candy!

Cherry Cola Pop Rocks - Michael's: Cherry Hill, NJ

Cherry Cola Pop Rocks - Michael's: Cherry Hill, NJ

When I saw these Pop Rocks, it made me think of one of my favorite songs from the 90's, so I HAD to buy it. Let's tear this open and have some poppin' chic-a-cherry cola! (I was able to make a Savage Garden reference on my food blog. My life is complete now. I've peaked. This is as cool as I'm ever gonna get.)