I’m a candy aficionado. One of my favorite things about taking a lengthy road trip is that I can stop in convenience stores and see what candy is available there that can’t be found at home. Things like Mint M&Ms. Goo Goo Clusters. Abba Zabba. Strawberry Charleston Chew. Skybar. The legendary Valomilk.
The candy industry is loath to experiment. Years have gone by in which I have not spotted a single new candy bar. Instead, they produce things like Butterfinger Crisp. ReeseSticks. Milky Way Dark. The Snickers Almond replacement of the vaunted Mars Bar. This ridiculous “Bites” line. There are hundreds of perfectly good flavors in this world that could legitimately be used in a candy bar, but the increasingly-monolithic candy industry hasn’t had the balls to try something new.
But then Hershey went out on a limb late this summer. They turned Kit Kat into an entire (limited edition) line, adding varieties including White Chocolate, Coffee, Extra Creamy, Mint and — get this — Orange Creme. There have been a lot of Kit Kat varieties around the world — strawberry, lemon cheesecake, blood orange, apple, passion fruit, azuki bean, green tea, red wine — but we Americans haven’t been so fortunate. I greatly regret that I have not yet encountered Mint or Orange Creme, but I did snap up a coffee Kit Kat last month.
As author Steve Almond lamented in “Candyfreak : A Journey through the Chocolate Underbelly of America,” it is coffee that is the great underused flavor in candy bars. I wasn’t entirely convinced when I read that a few months ago, but then I tried Kit Kat Coffee.
Damn. All I had to do was open up the package and I was immediately enveloped in the thick smell of fresh-ground coffee beans. It was nearly overwhelming. It tasted just as good. I became an immediate convert to coffee candy bars. And I don’t even like coffee.
I was in Kroger yestoday, and saw Kit Kat Coffee in their clearance aisle. Three for a dollar. Why? “Discontinued.”
Bummer.
Hopefully this marks a new phase of experimentation in the American candy industry. It’ll never be like it once was — you’ve got to read “Candyfreak” if you’re interested in the topic — but perhaps they’re finally coming out of their thick candy shell.
Canada sports a wide array of candy options. I was floored by the choices of Nestle products alone! I bought quite a few to try – one of each that struck my fancy. I was underwhelmed by quite a few of them – particularly when it came to the coloring and texture. A few were so unnatural in color and texture that they made me queasy just looking at them – things like nearly neon green “mint” & chocolate candies. I had never realized that a culture so nearly like our own would have such dramatically different food products. A visit to the grocery store was like an adventureland all its own!
I absolutely agree with Olvia: Canada has us beat hands down in the candy department! In particular, I always come back with cases of a bar called “Coffee Crisp.” I’m not a coffee drinker, but I love coffee flavored candy and ice cream, and Coffee Crisp is one of my favorites. There also must be different regulations here regarding the chocolate making process, because there is no chocolate here that comes close to the run-of-the-mill varieties available in Canada and Europe. For example, Cadbury in the latter two have a totally different taste/consistency than Cadbury made in the US. Obviously, some deep conspiracy keeps us confectionarily deprived!
This is one of the most entertaining posts I have ever read in the blogosphere. Nice job.
That’s nice of you to say, Ben. This is the sort of thing that I particularly enjoy writing about. Much moreso than politics. With the election over, I intend to devote a smaller percentage of my posting time to politics and a greater percentage to Portishead and Kit Kats. :)
saw Kit Kat Coffee in their clearance aisle. Three for a dollar. Why? “Discontinued.”
I’m not a candy industry executive, but reason would suggest that it didn’t sell well enough to continue manufacturing it.
It’s funny — I found the candy choices in China and Europe much more diverse and interesting than what’s available here. But when friends from China, Malta, Australia and Ireland have visited here, they say exactly the opposite. Maybe it’s a grass is greener kind of thing.
Never thought I’d ever meet anyone else who’d ever heard of Candyfreak. Small world.
Well, they did say up front that it was a limited edition bar, so I can’t be too surprised. Still, a guy can hope…
Ok — my turn to contribute to this thread.
My wife and I have a friend from Australia we met when she was working at UVa. She has us hooked on an Australian candy (again from Cadbury) called “Cherry Ripes”. They are chocolate bars with a gooey cherry/coconut center. She brings us a bag back each time she goes home. Yummy.
Take 5 = delicious heaven. Ridiculously good.
You know, I didn’t want to like Take 5 — it struck me as something closer to a granola bar in size and packaging — but any candy bar that includes pretzels has won my adoration.
Ah, I hate to hear that the coffee KitKat is going away. My co-worker and I have been buying them for each other for occasional treats at work. In fact, the last one I bought her is still sitting on her shelf! Hmm, I may have to figure out how to cut a deal with her. BTW, the orange one was also delicious. And I’m a big fan of Take 5 too.