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April 2010

Thursday, April 8, 2010

Wonka Fruit Marvels

Wonka Fruit Marvels TinsNestle is going full-tilt to reinvigorate their stagnant Wonka candy brand. Last year it was gummis (Sluggles, Puckerooms & Sploshberries), this year they revised their chocolate bar line under the new Wonka Exceptionals and now they’re introducing some new sugar candy items to the Exceptionals line. The first is called Fruit Marvels which are vaguely described on the packaging as hard candies with soft centers, delicately sugar dusted. They come in three flavors: White Grape, Pomegranate and Clementine Orange.

There are two formats for the packages. The first is the tins, which hold 1.9 ounces (14 pieces) and retail for $1.99. Though that’s a little expensive, there’s a second more cost effective option which is the 5 ounce box which retails for $2.99 (and you can refill the tin).

Wonka Fruit Marvels - White Grape Packaging

The box is imaginative and quite different from the holographic mylar/plastic of the chocolates. These stand up boxes come in two parts. There’s a tall tab top box with a dizzying purple/lavender design, over that is a sleeve. The sleeve is taped to the box and features little circular cut outs that reveal the patterned box underneath. Like the Wonka Exceptionals Chocolate Pieces, even the UPC code gets Wonka-fied.

Wonka Fruit Marvels - White Grape PackagingInside the box is another package, a long mylar pouch with the candy in it. They’re not marked for the individual flavor, as I discovered later on when I ditched the boxes and carried all three pouches around in a ziploc bag while I was tasting.

The front of the package states Made with Natural Ingredients* and then directs folks to read the list of ingredients to explain the asterisk. Flipping over the box the ingredients are really easy to understand. For the White Grape they were: Dextrose*, Sugar*, Corn Syrup*, Pear Juice Concentrate*, and less than 2% of Modified Corn Starch, Tapioca Dextrin, Natural Flavor*, Tumeric Color, Citric Acid*.

I find this a little confusing ... they’re saying it’s made with natural ingredients, but not saying that all of the ingredients are natural. (So just about all food products would qualify under this “Made with Natural Ingredients” thing.) I appreciate that they’re not saying that highly processed ingredients like modified food starch is natural, but I’d prefer if they just said “made with real fruit juice but no artificial flavors or colors” and left it at that. Both Clementine & Pomegranate have Carmine coloring, which is a natural coloring derived from insects but of course not considered vegetarian/vegan, may be an allergen for some sensitive folks and is not kosher/halal.

Wonka Fruit Marvels Pomegranate Tin

The Pomegranate Fruit Marvels tin is simple. Inside are tucked over a dozen little candies. The tin is about 3.5 inches in diameter and just shy of an inch thick - a little big to tuck in a pocket. There’s a piece of waxed paper cushion on the bottom and on the top. The tin is easy to open and close, but stays closed so I wouldn’t worry so much about this coming open in the bottom of your bag.

They’re about .75 inches in diameter with a sugar sanded coating and soft coloring. The candies are really a puzzle at first. I didn’t understand what they were by the description, but I guess that’s why they called them Marvels.

Wonka Fruit Marvels - Pomegranate

The outside is a hard candy shell, it’s made of dextrose like SweeTarts, but it’s not compressed like other powder candies, instead it’s panned (added as a liquid layer that forms a hardened glaze after many coats). Inside is a firm and flavorful jelly. It’s like a super jelly bean in a way but remember that the shell is very thick.

When I first popped it into my mouth I thought it would be like a Gobstopper, many flavored layers and then a jelly ball in the middle, but it is actually faithful to the scale on the package. I tried sucking on them first. The sugar sanding is rough at first but that dissolves away quickly to the shell. The shell is dextrose (glucose) so it has a slightly cooling effect and it has a kind of thinness to the sweet note instead of the round syrup sweetness of sucrose (sugar). Eventually there’s a little hint of the floral berry flavors of pomegranate. There’s a layer just between the jelly center and the shell that has a little burst of sour.

Wonka Fruit Marvels - PomegranateI pulled quite a few of the candies apart. I found I preferred biting them to letting them dissolve. It’s not advisable to just crunch them up at first until you gain some experience at it, I think letting them warm and dissolve a little helps.

You can see the thickness of the shell here and how it’s dense but kind of crumbly.

The jelly center is complex. It’s smooth and thick, it’s also nicely flavored without being too sweet or tangy. Though I don’t think any candies really capture pomegranate flavor well, these are still an excellent flavor no matter what it’s called. It’s more raspberry to me - floral and jammy.

The sanding isn’t messy, no sticky fingers, but there is a bit of sugar dust in the bottom of the tins or the bags which can get everywhere.

Wonka Fruit Marvels - Clementine Orange

The Clementine Orange Fruit Marvels sounded really good. I love citrus and the less-common oranges often have wonderful notes that make things so much more interesting than just eating spoonfuls of Tang drink mix. Clementines are a tasty little citrus, they’re easy to peel and are usually seedless - they have the tangy profile and juicy taste of a tangerine.

The outside sanded shell doesn’t give much indication of the flavor inside, just a soft orange color.

Wonka Fruit Marvels - Clementine Orange

The flavor is truly like a tangerine. There are bold juice and citric acid notes but there’s also a really good zest component that sets it apart from straight-laced orange. There’s no bitter or lingering orange peel aftertaste though.

The White Grape Fruit Marvels are nearly colorless on the outside but a little on the yellow side after cracked open. (They were devilish to photograph, but I think you get the idea with the other two.) White grape was always one of my favorite fruit juices as a kid, so I’m very familiar with the flavor. This is extremely faithful. There’s a concord grape note to it, but also a brighter and lighter feeling to it, a little like champagne.

All three flavors are distinct and faithful to their profiles. The candy itself is unique, I’ve never had anything quite like it before so I give Wonka high marks for not just regurgitating the ordinary with a frivolous name and funny packaging. I like the concept of the boxes and that they’re more cost effective than the tins but still $3 for 5 ounces of sugar candy is on the high side, even for something that doesn’t have artificial flavors/colors. Also, the amount of packaging is silly, the outer sleeve could easily disappear without losing the feeling of upscale decadence.

I’m a little unclear about the target market for these, I’m guessing they’re not for little children like many other Wonka products lately like Kazoozles. Perhaps they’re targeting young adults, especially since the tins are great for sharing. They might also appeal to folks who want an intense flavorful indulgence without too many calories. Since they’re all sugar there’s no fat and each piece is about 12 calories. The tin makes each piece feel rather special. (Honestly, it seems like the target market is for grown ups for never quite grew up, which would be me.)

I like where Wonka is going lately.

These are in limited release right now, they’re available exclusively at WalMart stores until June 2010 when they’ll start appearing at Target. The candies are made in Mexico.

Related Candies

  1. Wonka Exceptionals Scrumdiddlyumptious
  2. Big Tex Giant Jelly Beans
  3. Wonka Kazoozles: Cherry Punch & Pink Lemonade
  4. Jelly Belly Sunkist Citrus Mix
  5. Wonka Tinglerz & Nestle Buncha Crunch
  6. Gimbal’s Lavaballs
  7. Wonka Sour Nerds


Name: Wonka Fruit Marvels
    RATING:
  • SUPERB
  • YUMMY
  • TASTY
  • WORTH IT
  • TEMPTING
  • PLEASANT
  • BENIGN
  • UNAPPEALING
  • APPALLING
  • INEDIBLE
Brand: Nestle
Place Purchased: samples from Wonka
Price: $2.99 retail
Size: 5 ounces for box & 1.9 ounces for tins
Calories per ounce: 99
Categories: Nestle, Hard Candy & Lollipops, Jelly Candy, 8-Tasty, Mexico

POSTED BY Cybele AT 12:16 pm     CandyReviewNestleHard Candy & LollipopsJelly Candy8-TastyMexico

Eat with Your Eyes: William Dean Chocolates

William Dean Chocolatier - Peanut Butter & Jelly

Creamy peanut butter base with shards of toffee topped with fresh jam then encased in a beautifully airbrushed milk chocolate shell. I would like a whole box of these now. The photoset of the whole box is here.

POSTED BY Cybele AT 9:09 am     CandyFeatured NewsFun StuffPhotography

Wednesday, April 7, 2010

Candy Tease: April 2010

This one is a little different for a new product announcement. It’s kind of a preview and a tease.

imageName: Askinosie Liberia
Brand: Askinosie
Description: Several years ago we started a program called Chocolate University designed to engage the children in our neighborhood.  We want to inspire them about business and about a world beyond Springfield Missouri.  We started in the nearby elementary school, then to the middle school, and now have project at Central High School called “Cocoa Honors.”  Askinosie Chocolate is the sole funding source of Chocolate University by donating 100% of our tour proceeds to Community Foundation of the Ozarks for the benefit of this program.  In Fall 2009, 14 juniors from Central High School were selected to participate with us in the selection of the next cacao source country in Africa as part of an 18 month-long project.  We believe that this is the first single origin bar available in the world from Liberian beans.  Auction begins Sunday April 4 at 8 PM CST and ends the following Sunday.
Introduction Date: TBD
Notes: I’m very interested in this new microbatch of chocolate, I don’t think I’ll bid but I’ll definitely buy a couple of bars when it’s released to the general buying public. I love the San Jose del Tambo chocolate that Askinosie makes and their white chocolate, made with goat’s milk is fascinating.

And now on to other new candy products expected this year:

imageName: Fruitzels
Brand: Waymouth Farms, Inc.
Description: The Original Pretzel-Shaped Gummi Fruit Snack Made with REAL Fruit Juice! 
Introduction Date: 03/01/10
Notes: Waymouth Farms are the same folks that make the Popzels, I guess they do all things pretzel themed. I like interesting shapes for my gummis, but I admit that I’m not fond of worms. So maybe this will be a good compromise. They’re gluten free and are fortified with Vitamins C and E. It looks like the flavors are cherry, apple, strawberry, orange, raspberry and lemon ... a pretty promising mix in my book, though I love a pineapple gummi.

imageName: Tabasco Chocolate Truffles
Brand: Elmer Candy Corporation
Description: A dark chocolate shell giving way to a unique creamy center with a subtle Tabasco warmth. Not too hot, spicy or peppery just enough to be enjoyed by all chocolate lovers.
Introduction Date: 05/25/10
Notes: Hot peppers and chocolate aren’t new, but this is the first major branded version I’ve seen so far. I’ll probably give them a try when I see them, but I’m also concerned that the chocolate won’t be great quality. Elmer’s does a good Easter egg, but can they do an all year round candy like this.

imageName: Bake Shoppe Cookie Dough Miniatures
Brand: The Promotion In Motion Companies, Inc.
Description: COOKIE DOUGH ON THE GO!™ Cookie Cough Lovers celebrate, because Bake Shoppe™ Cookie Dough Miniatures Are the Real Deal you’ve been craving! Our Butter-In-The-Batter™, Mixing Bowl Licking™, Heavenly Bite Size Cookie Dough Morsels™ are drenched in pure Milk Chocolate, to tantalize your taste buds! Enjoy our egg-free Bake Shoppe™ Cookie Dough Miniatures on the go, or, you can just savor them slowly…one delicious mouth-watering bite at a time! Bake Shoppe™ Cookie Dough Miniatures is offered in a 3.5 oz Concession Box.
Introduction Date: 4/15/10
Notes: Is this another brand of chocolate covered chewy cookies? Or are they just repackaged Cookie Dough Bites? It’d be nice if they had better chocolate on them than the original - though Albanese makes some tasty cookie bites as does Koppers for those looking for good quality ingredients.

imageName: Belgian Chocolate Thins
Brand: Royal Chocolates NV
Description: Luscious chocolate thins (chips) filled with crispy rice puffs & available in the following flavours: milk, caramel, hazelnut, almond, dark & mint. The product will be available in single packs & multi packs.
Introduction Date: 06/01/10
Notes: Do these look familiar to anyone? I tried something danged familiar from Trader Joe’s last year. If these are the same, I’m sure some fans of them will be thrilled to see the other varieties. I can say that I’d be interested in the hazelnut and mint (though the description doesn’t say if they have crispies in them too).

imageName: Hoja Verde Dark Chocolate
Brand: Hoja Verde
Description: Hoja Verde Dark Chocolate is the first Ecuadorian company to use Fair Trade certified, premium “Arriba” cacao. This unique chocolate is made from single-origin cacao beans grown by small farmers in the tropical lowlands of Ecuador. Our company is proud to build enduring and equitable relationships with small farmer organizations. Ecuadorian cacao has long been recognized as the source of the world’s finest cacao beans. The “Arriba” cacao has captivated chocolate connoisseurs with its depth of flavor and its unequaled aroma. Sweetness comes naturally without artificial flavors or ingredients. The finished bar is a revelation for all the senses: its appearance, its aroma, the sound of the snap, the taste and the way it melts in your mouth. This isn’t just chocolate. It’s a journey through tannins, coffee, nuts, blackberry, cinnamon, fruits and flowers of the rain forest.
Introduction Date: 05/25/2010
Notes: Fair trade is all the rage now, and rightfully so. It’s an interesting trend to see all these smaller companies coming out with single origin or regionally sourced beans. I’m not sure how long it can be sustained and profitable but it’s an exciting time to be a chocolate lover. You can buy on their website now, they retail for $5.99 and the shipping is only 99 cents per bar.

imageName: Haribo Fruity Frutti
Brand: Haribo of America, Inc
Description: Haribo’s new Fruity Frutti are 4oz bags full of pieces of gummi and foam with a juicy, fruity liquid filling. Fruity Frutti has no artificial colors and are made with Fruit Juice!
Introduction Date: 05/25/10
Notes: These remind me a bit of the Wonka Sploshberries, which also have a foamy base and a gooey center - though those are in berry flavors. I can’t say that my personal interest in these is that high since I just don’t click with the goo filled gummis. The no artificial colors element will probably make these a great option for parents looking for flavorful candies that kids won’t turn their noses up at.

imageName: Natural Vines
Brand: American Licorice Co.
Description: Natural Vines, premium soft licorice twists made without artificial flavors and preservatives, are new from the American Licorice Co. Addressing demand from health-conscious consumers, the company says the licorice twists are sweetened with cane sugar, are low in sodium, contain no trans fat and are cholesterol-free. Black and strawberry varieties will debut in select grocery stores, natural markets and gourmet food distributors in May. Holding eight ounces, reclosable standup bags have a retail of $3.49.
Introduction Date: May 2010
Notes: I tried the black licorice version at ExpoWest last month and enjoyed the mellow and woodsy flavor of these. They also don’t stick to teeth and are softer than the Red Vine Bites. I think the packaging is charming.

imageName: Thingamajig
Brand: Hershey’s
Description: It’s Back! The greatest thing since Whatchamacallit. Thingamajig was a successful limited edition bar concept in 2009, helping to drive a 20% increase in Whatchamacallit bar sales.
Introduction Date:  Limited Edition 9/3/2010-12/3/2010
Notes: I reviewed Thingamajig when it came out last year about this time. It’s a fun bar and certainly different from anything else on the market. I think seasonal versions of popular bars are a great idea. It’d be nice if candy companies conveyed that information to consumers. It’s easy to understand the holiday versions of candy, but not these “here & gone” recurring limited editions.

imageName: KIT-KAT Wafer Bar Dark
Brand: Hershey’s
Description: Back by popular demand, KitKat Dark, crisp wafers in dark chocolate. Satisfies without being overfilling. Unique taste and texture.
Introduction Date: 3/26/2010
Notes: Look for a big media push on this. I haven’t seen them in stores yet, but I always prefer a dark chocolate KitKat. It’s hard though, since I’ve had the truly dark premium KitKat Bitter version from Japan before, the Hershey’s version just doesn’t meet those expectations. I’m still eager to find them in stores and I know that there will be oodles of Americans who will begin the stockpiling now.

imageName: Cookies ‘N Cream Bites
Brand: Taste of Nature
Description: A Taste of Nature, Inc.‘s brand new Cookies ‘N Cream Bites are an expansion of the company’s Cookie Dough Bites. Cookies ‘N Cream Bites feature a cream-and-cookie-crumble center, covered in a white “chocolatey” candy coating. The 3.1-ounce box has a SRP range between $1.09 and $1.29; the 4-ounce box has a SRP range between $1.49 and $1.79
Introduction Date: unknown
Notes: Since they already have a dark chocolate version, a white coating seems like a good idea. In my dream world it’d be some good, very dark Oreo cookie bits in the center covered in real cocoa butter white chocolate. These are not from my dream world and I’m already a little tentative to try them because of the “chocolatey” coating.

Candy photos and images courtesy of the respective manufacturer.

Related Candies

  1. Candy Tease: March 2010
  2. Candy Tease Valentines 2010
  3. Candy Tease: October 2009
  4. Candy Tease: April 2009
  5. Candy Tease: Spring 2009

POSTED BY Cybele AT 12:40 pm     CandyNew Product AnnouncementFeatured NewsNews

Glutino Gluten Free Dark Chocolate Candy Bar

Glutino Gluten Free Dark Chocolate Candy BarFinding gluten free candy isn’t all that hard any longer, but a gluten free candy bar that also has a crispy cookie-like center? I’ll bet there are lots of folks looking for that.

The Glutino Gluten Free Candy Bar comes in Milk Chocolate and Dark Chocolate varieties. I couldn’t seem to find them in single serve purchase size so I had to buy a full box of them - which was $4.99. So I picked the dark chocolate ones since it appeared by the ingredients list that they’re also vegan.

The candy bar is rather simple, a potato-flour wafer stack with chocolate cream centers is covered with dark chocolate. It reminded me of the old Bar None except it doesn’t have crushed peanuts.

Glutino Gluten Free Dark Chocolate Candy Bar

The bar is crispy, the foamy wafers are rather flavorless but provide a rice cake type crunch. The cream in between is smooth and melts well; it’s more buttery and sweet than chocolatey. The chocolate coating is rather thick on the top and bottom so there’s a lot more chocolate than I expected. It’s nicely tempered, so it had its own crunch. The flavor was mellow, like semi-sweet chocolate chips - rather woodsy.

I liked them and for a gluten free and vegan bar it doesn’t taste like there are any compromises in there. Sure there are palm oils in the cream filling, so that’s something to be aware of but it is organic (I don’t know about the sustainability of organic palm oil). But as far as taste and texture profile, if you didn’t know it was gluten free, you wouldn’t know the difference.

As one bar is under an ounce, it’s not quite satisfying. The box was rather weird, as you can see from the top photo, it’s much taller than it needs to be so I’d say there’s an overpackaging issue (I wonder if they have standard size boxes and just kind of shrugged it off). So I felt a little duped by that. Also, the nutrition panel says that a bar has 140 calories. That doesn’t make sense to me. It’s less than an ounce, which should put it at about 110 or even 100 calories considering the fact that it has those fat-free wafers in there. Even a solid bar of dark chocolate has about 145 calories per ounce.

There are five bars in the box which cost $4.99, so the bars are expensive for something that’s a “snack size” and not a “dessert size”. I’ll finish the ones I have but unless I needed to have a bar that fit the gluten free parameter, I’ll probably stick with the Q.bel Double Dark.

Related Candies

  1. Go Max Go Jokerz Candy Bar
  2. Ritter Sport Neapolitan Wafers
  3. Crispy Cat
  4. Nestle Crunch Crisp
  5. KitKat Bitter & White


Name: Dark Chocolate Gluten Free Candy Bar
    RATING:
  • SUPERB
  • YUMMY
  • TASTY
  • WORTH IT
  • TEMPTING
  • PLEASANT
  • BENIGN
  • UNAPPEALING
  • APPALLING
  • INEDIBLE
Brand:
Place Purchased: Whole Foods (3rd & Fairfax)
Price: $4.99
Size: .9 ounces
Calories per ounce: 156
Categories: All Natural, Chocolate, Cookie, Kosher, 7-Worth It, Israel

POSTED BY Cybele AT 11:59 am     All NaturalCandyReviewChocolateCookieKosher7-Worth ItIsraelWhole Foods

Eat with your Eyes: Pine Brothers Cough Drops

Actually, don’t eat these. They’re probably thirty years old. I really miss Pine Bros Throat Drops. They were glycerin cough drops, soothing and firm and slightly gummy after they softened up. They came in licorice and honey lemon. 

Pine Bros. Menthol Eucalyptus Throat Drops

UPDATE: Pine Bros did come back. You can find them in drug stores in two flavors.

POSTED BY Cybele AT 8:05 am     CandyFeatured NewsFun StuffPhotography

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Meticulously photographed and documented reviews of candy from around the world. And the occasional other sweet adventures. Open your mouth, expand your mind.

 

 

 

 

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