Coca-Cola Spiced - DISCOUNTINUED - A Calculated Flop? (My rants are back!)

I LOVED raspberry Coke. It was a flavor that was only available in Remix machines and I'm not the only fan, raspberry was selected so often that Coke decided to make it a permanent addition to the line up. I was excited until I realized they added a stupid misguided twist when it was finally released in February 2024.

Coke added spices to the formula, which were mild, but notably changed the end product from the beloved machine-only raspberry blend, and THEN they called this concoction, "Spiced." A name that mismatched it's raspberry-forward flavoring and completely confused the public. No one knew what to expect, so no one bought it. To make matters worse, they took raspberry Coke out of the remix machines completely!

The original is gone. The replacement is a poor imitation no one understands. A recipe for failure. 

As of September 2024, Coke Spiced has been discontinued. Shocking no one, but me. Kind of. 

Triple Snaps - A Cookie Trilogy

Ginger Snaps, both the movie and the cookie, are underrated. 

If you've never seen the movies, they're a female-lead, body-horror, werewolf trilogy from the early 2000's. If that sentence alone doesn't excite you, here is a very brief synopsis: Ginger and Bridgette are teenage sisters who have a morbid sensibility, making them social outcasts at school, but they don't really care because they have each other. One night, while out, Ginger experiences her first period, a milestone she has been dreading, and the blood attracts a werewolf. Though Ginger survives, Bridgette notices her sister behaves a bit differently after the attack, is it just puberty? Or something more sinister? 

I've seen all three, but the first one is the strongest in the series. (Although 2 isn't that bad.)

As for the cookies, they're a classic that has been around for ages, but, with more popular (and heavily advertised) competition like: Oreo, Chips Ahoy, Keebler, and Pepperidge Farms...Ginger Snaps are going to be the last one picked for the kickball team. They have staying power because they're a classic, they're well executed, and there's no one else out there quite like them. In fact, we even get seasonal variations now! 

I decided to pick them up and give them a try to see if the old-school Snap is still my favorite, or if one of these variants can steal my heart away. Will it be like the movies where the OG is the best of the bunch? We shall see. 

Chai-Boy, Chai-Boy, Wanna be your only Bev(rage) - Trader Joe's Spicy Chai Mix

Confused by the title? It's referencing a song that has been stuck in my head for over 20 years! I swore that I must have heard it on the radio. Nope! It was actually from a 1991 Barbie cassette tape! I FOUND IT! (I freaking love YouTube!) I even found the full album, including the She's got the Look cover, 19:17!

Anyway, I love chai, and was actually looking into buying some spices and making it at home from scratch, which is fairly easy to do, but I spotted this at Trader Joe's and thought I would treat myself to a little laziness. 

I'm hoping that this will be good!

Fierce Cinnamon Flavor? Don't be Chicken!

Hot Tamales Peeps - CVS

I haven't had Hot Tamales in ages, but you know what I have had? Red Hots. And no offense to Tamales fans, but I think they are the superior cinnamon-based candy.  

Red Hots are tiny dot-shaped candies with a glossy exterior and crunchy, sugary, interior, both packed with bold cinnamon flavoring. Think Big Red, but with a crunch. 

This might just be a me-thing, but my favorite way to eat them is when they are stale. When Red Hots have been sitting in your pantry for a while the first layer of candy softens and gets kind of chewy, while the interior stays crisp and crunchy. It's the best. I like to add them to holiday baking, so I always have some on hand and the older they get, the better they are for snacking. Just like Peeps! When those little bunnies and chicks get old, and a little shriveled, that's when Peeps are at their prime. (Bunny shape is vastly superior thanks to it's ears! Why can't fancy flavors come in bunny-shape?) In my opinion they get more similar to Mar-bits aka freeze dried marshmallows. I used to stab a bunch of holes in the clear window of the Peeps package and leave them on the counter for a while.  

So, when I saw these new Hot Tamales Peeps, I was excited because it's the best of both worlds, but skeptical about how "fierce" they would actually be. 

Let's get (hopefully) spicy! 

Ghirardelli Pumpkin Spice Chocolate Square - Target

Ghirardelli Pumpkin Spice Chocolate Square - Target

Here's another quickie pumpkin review! I still think that chocolate and pumpkin spice might not be the best combination, but maybe this will be able to change my mind. Just like my last review, there's not much to this packaging, so I'll get through this really quick.