I only just discovered the existence of these new Limited Edition M&Ms released for the new Transformer’s movie on Tuesday. Mars had only announced them on Monday, so I guess I’m faster on the pickup than I thought. I wistfully pondered when I’d ever find them, as my area doesn’t get many first releases of candy and they show up a month or two later than everyone else. So imagine my utter delight when I find these in an display while grocery shopping that very evening. Luck was surely smiling upon me.
The bag is a little busy. It has a gray iron base with two versions of Mecha (or should I say Transformer?) Orange, who looks very nervous despite the fact that’s he’s now a killer robot. The M&M’s name is still the most prominent feature on the bag and the flavor is brightly listed above it. I kept re-reading the flavor title though: Strawberried Peanut Butter? It sounded very odd to me, I would have never guessed that sort of flavor combination in an M&M, it seems a little out of the box to me. Kudos to Mars for trying something so unique.
The size of these M&Ms are large, like the crispy and the peanut butter varieties. They come in three colors that fit the Transformer’s palate: red, brown and yellow with red flecks. They look similar to the Wildly Cherry M&Ms and the Limited Editions Indiana Jones IV version from last year. They smell lightly fruity, which is a little strange, yet inviting. It’s a little like how Skittles smell, but it’s much milder here.
Curious to see what’s makes up these M&Ms, I bit one in half to see the innards. As I suspected it’s made up of a candy shell, chocolate, then a peanut butter center. They break very easily in my mouth and are somewhat soft, not as crunchy as the other varieties of M&Ms.
The first thing you taste is a hit of strawberry flavor. It’s light, fruity, and pleasantly not artificial (like many found the Wildly Cherry M&Ms to be). Next you get the sweetness from the chocolate, followed by the nicely roasted and salty flavor of the peanut butter center. I’m guessing that the flavor of the strawberry is in the candy shell, since once I chew it and dissolve it, all I get are chocolate peanut butter flavors. The strawberry flavor doesn’t mix too much with the peanut butter center either. It tends to disappear before you get to it, at least that’s how it tastes when I eat them. I find that the flavor grows on me as I keep tasting more and more of them.
These are a little strange at first, until your taste buds and head recognize the flavor combo. That’s right, it tastes of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich in M&M form. It’s good, but not anything classic in my mind. Now I just gotta keep my eyes peeled for the Snickers Nougabot Bar!
Rating: Will Eat Again
Links M&Ms Website
I first heard of the Roca’s when I was sent a gift package from a friend in Seattle. They’re made by Brown & Haley, a company that’s local to the area and also manufacture the lesser-known Mountain Bars. Once I saw the packaging, I realized that I see these all the time in grocery and drug stores. I just haven’t paid them any attention until now. Sometimes all it takes is a nudge from a good friend to find something new.
There’s many different flavors of Roca: Peanut Roca, Cashew Roca, Mocha Roca, and the most popular is the Almond Roca. I’m sure I’m missing some.
The packet holds two little Rocas, and once the main packaging is off, you get the two pieces in separate wrapper, then again inside that they’re all rolled up in a nice coffee-colored foil wrapper. Each Roca looks like a little log, about the size of a chubby pinky finger. Taking toe foil off, it’s rolled in bits of nuts and chocolate and reminds me of the topping on toffee. The feel fairly solid in the palm of my hand too. They’re cute in a way, like little Wooly Bears caterpillars.
The pieces cleave easily when you bite down on them. The toffee has a smooth break and is very smooth. The flavor I found very odd as I haven’t tasted anything like it before. I first notice the nuts with the chocolate, then a strong buttery hit of the toffee. Yes, I realize I described most toffees right there, but that’s not the part that makes this a new taste experience for me. That’s when coffee comes in, and this is no mild coffee flavor. This is intense. So much so in fact that I really feel like I’m eating a cup of coffee with chocolate, whipped cream and nuts on top of the small dollop of whipped cream. It’s surreal, and very tasty. I like how this little thing has such a powerful, flavor packed punch.
I enjoyed these, and I like how they come in a variety of package sizes so you can get a whole tin of them, or just a small packed of two like I bought here. They go wonderfully with a hot drink and make a good sweet snack. The only thing is that so much of it gets stuck in my teeth, it may be too annoying for me to get again. We’ll see.
Rating: Might Eat Again
Links Roca Website
Mason Crows are a classic/retro candy which, unlike most of genre, are actually pretty easy to find. You’d think I’d had tried them sooner because of this. Especially since I love black licorice. Sadly, you’re mistaken. I don’t know what took me so long to finally try these. They’ve been on my “to buy” list for such a long time, and I blame the fact that I mainly saw them in the large movie boxes in the 3-$3 bin in Walgreens. I didn’t have anything else I’d want to buy in the bunch though. I finally took the opportunity when the new Mike & Ike Alex’s Lemonade Stand mix appeared in the bunch.
Crows have quite the history. They’ve been around since the late 19th century and were originally called “Black Rose”. A typo at the manufacturers change the name to “Crows” and has remained that way ever since. They appear black at first, but upon closer examination and the right lighting, they’re actually a very dark green. These licorice gumdrops are very similar to Dots, dome shaped and squishy.
Since Crows look so much like Dots, I was expecting them to be the same texture: so hard and chewy that I’d be picking them out of my teeth for the next couple of day (yes, I exaggerate…a little). So imagine my surprise when I bit into one and having it be terribly soft and supple. I must have gotten a really fresh box and lucked out. Chewing them is so luxurious: they deliver and chew that’s substantial yet so silky smooth. It’s heavenly. The flavor is sweet of molasses at first, then a subtle licorice and anise flavors comes through. But it’s never strong, as it’s a mild flavor and it’s really wonderful. The aftertaste is nice and herbal, like good licorice should be.
I honestly didn’t expect these to be so good. The theater sized box I had went really fast and I expect to be stocking up on them again really really soon.
Rating: Will Buy Again
Links Mason Crows Webpage
This twist of the Starburst was complete news to me when I saw it on the shelf in the store. A Sour & Sweet mix? Where did this come from? Poking around on the Starburst website, I noticed that they’re now listed under the “Sour” tab. It looks like these are the new replacement of the pre-existing Sour variety. I can’t see a reason for this, but then again I’m not a product developer or am analyzing sales figures. It just seems like it’s a change that’s more of a gimmick than anything.
The package is attractive with a nice red/green color scheme going on. The flavors are listed with nice illustrations on the side showing each of the fruits. I always chuckle at the image of the blue raspberry. The whole idea of this mix is that half of the flavors are sweet and the other sour. I found myself checking the flavors again because they don’t specify which are the sour ones and which are the sweet ones. Each flavor could be either in my opinion, and I’m not sure how I feel about not knowing which is which before actually eating them.
Sweet Strawberry (maroon): The chew itself is light pink, like cotton candy. It smells fruity, plastic and medicinal. It’s comes across as very odd to me. The flavor is fruity, jammy and red strawberry. It’s a little floral and has a subtle tart edge to it.
Sweet Blue Raspberry: This chew is bright neon blue. Kinda scary! It smells sour and not much else, it’s very odd. Isn’t this supposed to be sweet flavor? The flavor is immediately zesty and not berry-like at all, at least not at first. It tastes like a zesty lemonade at the start, then the flavor mellows and becomes more berry. I’m reminded of pink lemonade.
Sour Apple (green): The color is light celedon green. This one smells very faintly of fake apple. Taking a bite, and whoo! This baby is really tart! My saliva glads really kicked into gear with this one. It’s tastes intensely of that artificial green apple. Jolly Rancher’s look out.
Sour Watermelon (pink): Light pink in color, practically identical to the strawberry flavor. It smells of that standard fake watermelon flavor with notes of raspberries, cantaloupe, and some flowers. Again, the taste is really juicy and sour. The flavor has a little sweetness to it, but I do taste more sour. Maybe that’s what the name is getting at? Each flavor is a bit of both?
So it’s hard to say what I think of these. I’m a big fan of the traditional Starburst, and sometimes I’ll opt for the Baja California and Tropical flavors. I never really went for the Sour ones though, so as much as I’d like to say I’d miss them, I really don’t. This roll is tasty, but not tasty enough to get me to stray from my favorites.
Rating: Might Eat Again
Links Starburst Website
My sister over in Queens is always telling me of these cool fellows she sees when she visits one of the many flea markets in Brooklyn. When she mentioned that one of them was Mast Brothers, my interest was immediately piqued and did my best to accompany her on one of her trips as soon as I could. I’ve heard of Mast Brothers before, and to be fair I had acquired these bars and had tasted them this past November. At the time there was only whispers about Mast Brothers on the internet, as they sold exclusively in Williamsburg, Brooklyn at the time. As of now they’re found in select shops in the Five Boroughs with no online sales yet.
In recent months they’ve gotten lots of attention, one of the most notable was a write up in the New York Times. The Mast Brothers started from humble beginnings that they remind faithful to. They’re New York City’s only bean to bar chocolate maker, with each bar hand crafted by Rick and Michael using cacao beans acquired from small family coops. Needless to say, their ideas and processes are certainly heartfelt and full of quality.
When I was at their table at the flea market. I was immediately torn between the selections. Firstly, they have a lot to offer, and it was difficult deciding on which to try to get a good idea of their range and flavors. The other factor is the packaging. It’s simply gorgeous. I felt the pull to try a bar that I wasn’t as interested in, tasting wise, because the paper that it was wrapped in was just too beautiful. That’s a good problem to pose to your customers.
I finally narrowed it down to three bars:
70% Dominican: Dark in color with a nice gloss and red undertones. The snap is hard and the break is clean with only intermittent air bubbles. I can tell there’s lots of cocoa butter here, as it melts easily under my fingers as I hold up a piece to examine. The bar smells very fruity: berries, tart cherries, cranberries, coffee, cocoa, vanilla, coconut. It breaks nicely when bitten into. The flavor starts off cool and dry with light cocoa notes, then blooms with a tartness of red berries and coffee. Those tastes linger and fade away to leave a somewhat tannic flavor of cocoa powder and cream. The aftertaste is extremely clean. Love it.
80% Fleur De Sel: This bar’s color is deep, dark brown with blue/gray undertones and a subtle sheen. The snap is hard with a nice solid break. The bar smells strongly of cocoa, coffee, caramel, and strawberries and coconut. The flavor is dry at first, but quickly opens to light flavors of cocoa, red fruits, coconut, and green coffee. I’m pleased as this chocolate is quite mild, especially for an 80%. There are only a few slight dry/tannic notes at the finish. Thankfully it’s not sour at all. The salt is barely noticeable, as I taste them more as grit in the bar. If I really pay attention, I do notice a little saltiness, but it’s not terribly noteworthy. A great bar.
60% Salt and Pepper: A nice medium brown color with only a very light gloss. There’s flecks of pepper and salt easily visible in the bar’s backside, and it’s really beautiful. The chocolate smells lightly of chocolate (of course!) with notes of berries and coffee. The bite is soft and the chocolate is very creamy and smooth. You notice the light saltiness right away, and it really compliments the milky, caramel flavors of the chocolate. The pepper shows later, about halfway through the flavor. It tastes sharp and floral, but not overly so, it makes a great, spicy addition to the chocolate. Again, I love this, as it’s unique and very tasty.
Needless to say. I’m impressed. I’m floored. This is some unique and tasty chocolate and I can’t wait to get my hands on more.
Rating: Hoard
Links Mast Brother’s Website
