Friday, January 10, 2014

Amy’s Organic: Andy’s Dandy Chewy Candy Bar

Amy's Organic Andy's Dandy Chewy Candy BarA couple of years ago I was treated to a small tasting of a new line of candy bars. They’re from Amy’s Kitchen, which already makes vegetarian convenience foods. I finally started seeing them on store shelves at the end of last year, even at major grocery retailers like Von’s, not just Whole Foods or Mother’s Market. I’ll have reviews of all four of the bars, but I thought I’d start with their unique offering first, the Amy’s Organic Andy’s Dandy Chewy Candy Bar.

The package says Soft caramel with pecans covered in chocolate. Well, that not only sounds good, it doesn’t sound like any other candy bar on the shelves.

All the bars in the line are color coded and feature the name large and in the middle of each wrapper.

Packaged in bright colors with distinctive artwork, Andy’s Dandy Candy will be easy to spot in stores. Amy’s mom, Rachel, who oversees all of Amy’s packaging, was inspired to reach out to artist Stanley Mouse, creator of the iconic Grateful Dead posters, to design the candy wrappers.Mouse’s use of brilliant, saturated color and unique typography capture the essence of a past era.

As you’d expect with an organic candy, they’re expensive. I didn’t see them selling for less than $2.29 a bar, and as high as $2.79.

Amy's Organic Andy's Dandy Chewy Candy Bar

They’re 3/4 of an ounce each, about 2.25 inches long and one inch wide.

The bite is excellent, it’s soft and chewy, with a stringy pull to the caramel that’s not too sticky. The pecans are small, but provide a lot of texture and maple-flavor. The milk chocolate is robust and stands up well to the rest of the ingredients. The whole thing isn’t too sweet, though it is rather milky.

There’s a lot of information on the wrapper. I love transparency. But it’s poorly organized. So here’s all the info provided, in order for people who read left to right, top to bottom. (I don’t, but I’ll list them that way.)

0 g of trans fat
No added MSG
No preservatives
No GMOS
No Bioengineered Ingredients
All dairy ingredients made with pasteurized , rBST hormone-free milk
[The ingredients lists everything as organic except the filtered water and sea salt]
Contains milk, soy and tree nuts
Made with Rainforest Alliance (tm) certified cacao
Made in a facility that processes wheat, tree nuts and seeds
Amy’s Kitchen does not use any peanuts or eggs
Gluten Free

So when I went looking for the peanut statement it wasn’t with the gluten free statement (which may or may not be contradicted by the wheat in the facility statement), it was on a separate line in different type. It’s a big old mess. Some are marketing statements, some are transparency statements, some are FDA mandated inclusions.

My issues with the back of the package aside, this is a no-compromise bar when it comes to taste and ingredients. It tastes like candy, but I feel like someone is putting a lot of thought and consideration into it behind the scenes. For this bar, the fact that it’s not even something that I can get in GMO form means that I’m more likely to reach for an Andy’s Chewy Bar in the future.

Related Candies

  1. Justin’s White Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups
  2. Theo Salted Almond Dark Chocolate
  3. Eli’s Earth Bars - Celebrate Bar
  4. Justin’s Peanut and Almond Candy Bars
  5. Double Dutch Sweets: The Ramona Bar
  6. Organic Moo Milk Chocolate with Crisped Rice & Corn Flakes


Name: Andy’s Dandy Chewy Candy Bar
    RATING:
  • SUPERB
  • YUMMY
  • TASTY
  • WORTH IT
  • TEMPTING
  • PLEASANT
  • BENIGN
  • UNAPPEALING
  • APPALLING
  • INEDIBLE
Brand: Amy’s Organic
Place Purchased: Von's (Glendale)
Price: $2.29
Size: 1.5 ounces
Calories per ounce: 133
Categories: All Natural, Candy, Amy's Organic, Caramel, Chocolate, Ethically Sourced, Kosher, Nuts, Organic, 8-Tasty, United States, Von's

POSTED BY Cybele AT 3:10 pm Tracker Pixel for Entry     All NaturalCandyReviewAmy's OrganicCaramelChocolateEthically SourcedKosherNutsOrganic8-TastyUnited StatesVon's

Comments
  1. Too many first names in this candy bar. And the sing-song rhyming simon of it all means a tongue-twister and a mouthful of confusion. But if it tastes like you say it does, then I will look for it.

    Comment by Jason on 1/11/14 at 9:43 am #
  2. Boy, that package sure has some antiquated graphic design.  What is Amy’s demographic?  Aging flower children?

    Comment by Ruffy on 1/13/14 at 12:57 pm #
  3. Tried Amy’s candy bars, loved them, will be buying again.  thanks for the review.

    Comment by Jan on 10/03/14 at 9:27 pm #
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