Still In The Festive Spirit? - Merry Mash-Up Mtn Dew

Merry Mash-Up Mtn Dew - Walmart

Can we take a moment to appreciate Mtn Dew, their marketing team, and their limited edition products? 

It's Always Tea Time - Pomegranate & White Tea Gummy Pandas

Pomegranate & White Tea Gummy Pandas - Gift from Work

Another tea-themed candy! This time it's a gummy candy, which is my favorite kind of candy, so I'm pretty excited. 

The packaging is really simple, it's another gusseted plastic bag, but this time it has a shiny finish and it's resealable. Instead of the faux vintage look of the hard Tea Candies I reviewed yesterday, this product is going for a  crisp, but colorful, design that lets the product do all the foot work. (Along with some nice fruity imagery.) The outside is really appealing, but there's something inside that I wasn't prepared for...

Pomegranate & Pear Jelly Fruit Slices Part 3 - The Fudge Factory: Wildwood, NJ

Pomegranate & Pear Jelly Fruit Slices Part 3 - The Fudge Factory: Wildwood, NJ

Here's the last if my Jelly Fruit Slices! Check out the citrus flavors Here, and the exotic Chili Mango and Pineapples ones Here.

So far, the Chili Mango and Pink Grapefruit were the best of the bunch and I plan on buying more of them next season, but will either (or both) of these flavors make their way onto my re-buy list?  I guess we'll find out!

I don't think I ever blogged about it but, a few years ago, I was quite obsessed with Pomegranates. I'd buy pomegranate candies, juices, and anything else I could get my hands on. The last few years my fruity obsession has shifted to bananas, but I love the tangy flavoring of this ruby-red fruit. I've never seen this flavor offered in jellied-slice form, so I have high hopes for this candy.

The candy slice has a ruby-red rind with a tiny bit of the white candy pith-like coating separating the two layers.  The white portion for this flavor is no where near as thick as the one on the Grapefruit slices, but it's still visible, and the center is a extremely dark berry color. Just like the Pineapple slices, the candy doesn't have any distinctive scent.

I took a bite, and while the texture is the same as the rest of the fruit slices, this specific flavor is impressively rich and very different from any of the other slices I've reviewed. While this is way too sweet to ever be mistaken for a real pomegranate, the fruity flavoring for this candy is rich and berry-like, almost as if pomegranate juice was reduced into an insanely sugary syrup. There is a hint of some tangy and slightly acidic fruity flavoring towards the end, which is really enjoyable and slightly authentic, but I wouldn't say that this fruit slice really tasted like actual pomegranates. Even so, the richness of this candy did leave me wanting more, so I think this will be re-buy-worthy next summer.

Last, but not least, Pear!

The pear slice is a bit different from the others. The center "fruit" portion is a milky opaque color, so it really stands out from the rest of the candies in my bag. To be honest, I'm not sure if this flavor has a layer of white confection or not. I'd assume it does because all of the other flavors had it, but I can't really see it against the milky pear-flavored filling.

I might be crazy, but this flavor felt like it had a much softer bite than the others. Maybe whatever makes the candy opaque also makes it softer? A far as the flavoring goes, this was pretty intense. It started out with intense sweetness of the gritty sanding sugar coating, but once the white jellied candy hits your tongue it's rather tangy. To me the flavoring is like a mixture of Granny Smith apple and Goya Pear nectar. It's really sweet, there is some green-apple-like tartness, and throat burningly sweet pear-y aftertaste. Again, this doesn't taste like biting into a real pear, but as far as jellied fruit slices go, it was really different from everything else I purchased. At first I wasn't sure how I felt about it, but I was actually pretty sad when I finished my two little pear slices. I might order one or two of these slices next summer, but I don't think I could see myself ever wanting a bag of this flavor exclusively.

Both of these flavors were really interesting and different, and while I enjoyed the variety, I may only buy 1-2 slices each next summer. I still feel like the Grapefruit and Chili Mango slices are definite re-buys, and I plan on getting a full bag of those next summer to share with friends and family. If you're ever in the Wildwood Area, stop by The Fudge Factory and check out their impressive fruit slice variety. Check out the photo above to see the rest of their fruity flavors that I didn't review!

© Maria Smith http://poison-and-antidote.net

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Shane Confectionery #3 - Philadelphia, PA

 Shane Confectionery - Philadelphia, PA

This is my last post on Shane Confectionery. (Until I go visit the Oh Sugar exhibit in Philadelphia.)

I have already reviewed 6 classic butter-cream chocolates, read those posts HERE and HERE, which were all made on site in Philadelphia using classic candy making equipment. Today I'll be reviewing this gourmet lollipop and showing you a few photos of the store itself. 

Shane Confectionery is a little candy shop that makes you feel as if you've gone back in time. Advertized as the oldest continuously-run candy store in America, it has been producing sweets for a little over a century! The current owners have done their best to recreate a candy eating experience worthy of the early 1900's, and they have done a splendid job. Looking around the store you can see that everything, from the decor, to the cash registers, is vintage.

Pomegranate Hard Candies -??? : Chinatown, Philadelphia, PA

Pomegranate Hard Candies -??? : Chinatown, Philadelphia, PA  

Time for another, potentially yummy, Chinatown goodie review.
I don’t remember which little shop I purchased this from, but it was somewhere near Arch Street.

This time the packaging is very simple, even more so than the Airheads, but I think it is visually stunning. I love the bold red on white design and the photograph at the top of the bag is absolutely gorgeous. (Look at that splash of juice!) It is rare, but I actually have absolutely no complaints about this design. This bag is simple, functional, and beautiful. (It’s resealable to boot!)

I’m pretty familiar with the gummy candies made by Kasugai, which are amazingly delicious, but I have never had their hard candies. (I can’t imagine they’d be bad though…)

Sparkling Ice - ???

Sparkling Ice - ???

My uncle actually brought these over, so I have no idea where these specific bottles came from. (I’m pretty sure you can buy this brand at any grocery or convenience store in America though.)

I have a lot of flavors to review, 7 to be exact, but I’ll be mixing these in with other reviews to keep things fresh and interesting. (Personally, I know I don’t want to drink this stuff for 7 days straight, and I can bet that none of you would want to read 7 of these reviews in a row. )

All of the bottles and labels are clear, so the product provides a nice pop of color. (I had way too much fun lining up the flavors/colors for the first photo. I did a few arrangements and this was my favorite. I tried to balance out all the “red” flavors.”)

As you can see in the group shot, the label design is very consistent. (The strawberry lemonade version has black text and “lemonade” on the label, but it still looks like the rest of the line.) The typography for this label is really crisp and clean, and I like the minimal imagery used at the top of each bottle to visually indicate the flavor. Design-wise, this is a really nice product, but how will it taste? I’ve been burned by good designs before. (I’m looking at you Neuro.)

Fresh Ginger, Ginger Ale (with Pomegranate and Hibiscus) - Asian Food Market: Cherry Hill, NJ

Fresh Ginger, Ginger Ale (with Pomegranate and Hibiscus) - Asian Food Market: Cherry Hill, NJ

I am taking a break from the Sakuma Drops Candy because they are tearing the roof of my mouth apart. ;_; I’ll post the last two flavors tomorrow.

I have seen this beverage line at other stores, and around the web, and I was pretty curious about how this flavor would taste, so I decided to pick it up during my last trip to the Asian Food Market. (I might try to film my next trip there and make a video post, but my camera doesn’t do HD video.)

Overall the packaging is very simple with a natural, organic, feel. The clear glass bottle it topped with a plain metal cap without any image or text, and the label is a creamy off-white with a black typewriter-esque font. These vintage-y fonts can look a bit awkward or forced at times, but I think it matches the aesthetics that the brand was going for.

Since this is a natural, unfiltered, beverage there are some separation issues and the label suggests a gentle shake to mix everything back up. I’m just not comfortable shaking a soda. (I don’t want it to explode!) So I gently rolled the beverage back and forth to combine the flavors.

Yummy Earth Vitamin C lollipops - Home Goods: Moorestown, NJ

Yummy Earth Vitamin C lollipops - Home Goods: Moorestown, NJ

Next up, Pomegranate Pucker.

In my last Yummy Earth post I mentioned that there are 4 different “red” flavors (raspberry, cherry, strawberry, and pomegranate) and how that can be a little confusing/frustrating. Here is a perfect example of what I meant, this Pomegranate Pucker looks JUST like Razzmatazz Berry. Both flavors are the same exact shade of red, and the wrappers are both printed in the same red ink.

Since it is literally the exact same color as the previous flavor I reviewed, my photo looked the same as last weeks. (Which is why I left it out.) So if you were seeking out a specific flavor… the similarities could be a bit annoying.

This time the candy has a tangier, sour, smell. The scent reminds me of cranberry juice more than pomegranates, but it was still very appealing.

From the smell I was expecting the candy to be sour, but it was actually very sweet. The candy tastes more like a sweetened pomegranate cocktail than real pomegranates, but it is a very sophisticated. There are deep berry notes that actually make this taste more like a jam than a lollipop, and overall I was really impressed with the flavor.

So far this is my favorite of the bunch. This pomegranate lollipop has a deep, rich, flavor that I think a lot of adults would really enjoy.

© Maria Smith http://poison-and-antidote.net

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