Halloween 2013 in the Aisle already!

Yes that's right, Halloween has struck the candy aisle already. I had heard that Costco has had costumes on the shelves for the past 2 weeks, but I finally saw some candy on the floor of regular grocery stores this week.

Other than the big bulk boxes of mini candies, which I documented fairly extensively last year here, the only other real Halloween candy I've seen so far has been the Nestle Halloween editions of their most popular bars. Again this is something I saw last year and I have to say it worries me slightly that these may be the actual same chocolate bars.... but they couldn't be. right?

Since they're all the same flavor and just spooky packaging I feel pretty fine just observing from afar. I mean I like it and all, but I don't know that packaging alone is making me rush out to get these. Although that said they are still great chocolate bars :) so that might get me on board.

As for Halloween, I'm sure the next time I go to a Shoppers Drug Mart or the Dollarama I'll see more.
 Its definitely coming soon.

A Drinkable Chocolate Bar

We all know about Nesquick (or just Quick if you live in certain places), but did you know that there are a few more chocolatey drinks on the store shelves these days? As I was walking the supermarket the other day I spotted some chocolate bar drinks, produced by Nestlé.

These may be common place, there's a few other flavors of this around as well (strawberry, banana maybe?), but how about a more direct chocolate bar drink?

Now these are looking good. caramel and coffee seem like natural fits for drinks, and pairing them with Nestle chocolate is a good idea. The only thing that might make these drinks better is if they were designed to be heated up.

I also stumbled on these Hershey chocolate milk drinks. Seems like pretty serious stuff. Especially the Double Chocolate one. Definitely preferable to Muscle Milk and the like.

Then as I was leaving I saw even more drinkable chocolate bars!

I'd definitely like to try some of that Caramilk drink. Sounds yummy!

I'll keep my eyes peeled for more drinkable chocolate bars. Let me know if you've seen more on your travels down the aisle.

Coffee Crisp Egg - video review

A pretty odd review for you today, here we've got the elusive Coffee Crisp Egg.


For a look at my review of the classic Coffee Crisp please click here. Or for a more detailed Egg review, please look at the written review. Also you can always check out all of our reviews over on the reviews page.

Coffee Crisp Egg review

Today we are looking at a real oddity, the Coffee Crisp Egg.

This should be a quick and hopefully fun little review for you today. I took a look at the full version of Coffee Crisp a few weeks back here on the blog, and gave it top marks. A full 5 out of 5 for its ingenuity, design, and most importantly awesome taste blending coffee and chocolate into one fantastic candy bar. Today we're looking at that same bar but in another form. Can the egg live up to its big brother bar? Lets have a look.

Right off the bat I'm a bit wary of this. Why is an egg being sold around Halloween / Christmas time? That doesn't fit thematically. And why is this thing on super discount everywhere I look? I have a sinking feeling that this is an Easter holdover that Nestlé Canada is trying to unload before their Christmas goodies come onto the shelves. And most importantly before their 2013 Easter chocolates show up. But hey, maybe I'm wrong...

I think the packaging is fine, kind of a little version of the big packaging. I always liked the cCoffee Crisp font, and especially the steaming cuppa coffee in the letter O. I'm definitely concerned about the picture showing the inside of the egg though. The chocolate bar version of Coffee Crisp that I love so much features a chocolate / coffee mix layered between crisp wafers, this looks like a big blob of chocolate.

Also I understand that eggs are all the rage and everything, but if you're going that route then why put the chocolate into a full bag? why not just a foil wrapper like all the other normal eggs? Maybe this Coffee Crisp has special needs...

Opening it up we see a standard looking chocolate egg. I like the spiral patterning and design work here, and the Nestlé imprint is a nice touch. It feels solid, heavy, and smells alright. Not like coffee, which is something I get a lot of from the bar, but this may just be its own thing. Lets bite into this egg.

Hmm... ok, well this is interesting. So what we've got here is a fairly solid, definitely hard piece of milk chocolate. There is a little flavoring in it... could that really be the coffee? If it is I'm surprised. This is very mildly flavored if it is coffee. The real misstep though is the texture. The texture is nothing like a regular Coffee Crisp. This is not what I'm expecting, or really looking for at all. There are wafers, yes; but they're not layered. There's no line of wafer, no crisp crunch to them. The wafer is broken into tiny pieces and scattered throughout the egg. The closest thing I can think of that this resembles is a Crunch bar. Yes the wafer tastes like wafer, and not rice crispies as in the case of a Crunch, but they are placed thoughout as you'd find in that chocolate, and it has much of the same texture. Well, it would if it weren't such a thick piece of chocolate that I need to chomp through.

I'm not sure what Nestlé was thinking but this does not taste like a Coffee Crisp. I wouldn't be nearly so disappointed if I didn't have that in my mind. And frankly this is so different they could've called it anything else and it would be ok. I mean this isn't terrible, but its not very good. This is just ok. And the fact that they've tricked me into thinking I'm getting Coffee Crisp in one form or another is shameful. I simply cannot recommend this chocolate egg.

Walking the Candy Aisle rates the Coffee Crisp Egg - 2 / 5

For more on all things Nestlé please check out their site here.

Coffee Crisp - video review

Unfortunately I'm still having ongoing video upload / internet access issues so I do not have the Cadbury Creme Egg Snack Cakes video review up for you today. I do however have a review for a Canadian classic, Coffee Crisp. Enjoy.


Great stuff. I posted the written review a week or so ago, please check it out. Or go over and check out all of the reviews on the reviews page.

On a final note, I know there are so focus issues with the videos last week and this. I'm working on some new equipment, and will have all this resolved very soon. Thanks for the patience candy fans!

The Halloween Edition

Wow, I can't believe its this close to Halloween and I haven't even really mentioned it here except in passing. Sure I've been busy moving thousands of miles and literally to another country, but that's no excuse to ignore one of the biggest candy holidays of the year! So this is a situation I hope to rectify starting right now.

I've still been feeling around, figuring out what my best locations are for candy, and finding my way through the mire of new - yet oddly familiar - Canadian candy and chocolate, but I have to say when I saw these first 'Halloween edition' bars I had to check them out.

Nestlé is certainly on the case with a bunch of their classics re-branded to fit a spooky theme. Not any actual change in flavors but this is just a fun way to keep the products relevant and interesting. I give them real props for these designs.

 My favorite has to be Coffin Crisp. That's awesome. Of course if you don't know these bars are usually called Kit Kat, Smarties, Coffee Crisp, and Aero respectively.

A few weeks ago I mentioned the awesome Cadbury Screme Eggs, but now I find that they come in mini as well :) Love that green goop inside...Expect a review of this one very soon.

Not to be outdone though the fine folks at Lindt are getting into the spirit of Halloween with some thematic packing of their amazing chocolates and truffles.

Wile the mini pumpkins above are great, it does seem odd to me that a Swiss company is celebrating Halloween. When did the holiday make it over there? Or is this just for the US market. The Lindors below make a bit more sense, the Halloween touches are pretty subtle.

Very nice. Now none of these companies so far have changed their actual candy flavor, these changes are just cosmetic, even to the creme egg. I'll be interested to get my hands on some of the more specific Halloween themed chocolates that are flavored like pumpkin and what not.

While not strictly speaking candy these Pillsbury Halloween cookies sure look good! Here's a thought though, that Doughboy really needs a better costume. I can totally still tell who he is with that eye mask on... 

These Hershey Drops have very cute Halloween designs on them. I give any company props for making actual changes to the candy itself for the holiday, even if like the creme egg its just cosmetic. These are pretty spooky fun. I don't think I've ever actually had tHershey Drops before.... maybe I'll have to pick some up.

And finally Twizzlers have issued these ghost shaped cherry licorice bites for Halloween. They're pretty cool, if you like Twizzlers. My worry would be that they're closer to Nibs than regular Twizzlers. I am not a Nibs fan. Also Cherry is definitely not my favorite candy flavor. I'll probably pass on these, but nice try Twizzlers :)

Expect more Halloween coverage including a bunch of reviews to roll into full swing in the next few days. I know I'm looking forward to this year. Let me know what you're most excited to try.

Coffee Crisp review

Well here we are finally, a new country and a whole new candy aisle to explore. Today I thought we should start with a true Canadian classic, Spoiler warning, this is one of my favorites. In terms of originality, this one is just tops. Lets have a look at Nestlé's Coffee Crisp.

Why on earth aren't there more coffee flavored things in the world?! People LOVE coffee. All over the world people are just crazy for it. Why is it I can only find a coffee flavored ice cream from Haagen Dazs, and chocolate bars in the organic fair trade section of Whole Foods?! this is absurd. I want coffee flavored stuff all over the place. It just makes good sense. Where is my coffee flavored potato chips? My coffee flavored breakfast cereal? My coffee flavored energy drink? (all awesome ideas BTW). For now I'll just have to settle for the biggest and certainly most commercially available coffee flavored chocolate bar (in Canada at least) the Coffee Crisp.

The package tells us that this "Makes a nice light snack". And the logo has a steaming cuppa joe brewing right out of the O in Coffee. I like the design work here, Maybe more than that though, this has a nostalgic place in my heart. As a Canadian and a long time ex-pat I have personally, and have heard others, profess their love for coffee crisp abroad on many occasions. If there was one singular chocolate bar that Canadians seem to want to share with the world it would be this. Maybe its because the mixture of coffee and chocolate is so original, or at least it was for many many years, but whatever the reason Canadians have a special spot for this particular chocolate bar and I'm glad to finally share my love for it with you.

The bar itself is based around the wafer cookie. You know the kind. Often now you see it in Chinese candy and cookie aisles, but it had a definite western hey day in the mid 80s. Light wafers pressed together with a flavored cream or frosting, in this case chocolate form a kind of layer cake of goodness. Its not gooey, but there is a smooth quality to it once you get through the crisp wafers that would sometimes just dissolve in our mouth. So with Coffee Crisp specifically these wafers are held together with chocolate and coffee, then the whole thing is surrounded in a thin coat of more chocolate.

The bar smells great when opened, definitely like coffee with just a hint of chocolate. This is what I want from my coffee chocolate bar, a bold choice. 

 Biting into the bar reveals those wafer layers I was talking about, and you'll see the middle layer shown above is actually made of a coffee, or perhaps chocolate / coffee mixture. The texture is wafer, it snaps subtly as you bite, but the flavor is all sweet coffee and chocolate. Eating this bar is an original experience, and one I always remember fondly.The aftertaste is great, lingering just the right amount.

Despite it being a bit warm and the outer chocolate layer melting off a bit on my fingers I think this is really a fantastic chocolate bar. If you can get it, please do. This is an excellent choice, a real Canadian classic, and I highly recommend it.

Walking the Candy Aisle rates Coffee Crisp - 5 / 5

This is of course a Nestlé product, and is available in Canada, some parts of the US (I believe in limited capacity), as well as some parts of England and Australia. Let me know if you've found it in your other random part of the world. Canadian travelers have done a pretty great word of mouth job on this candy and I expect many specialty stores all over the world will have it in some small quantity. For more on this delectable chocolate check out the Nestle Canada page on it here.

Walking the Canadian Candy Aisle

A few weeks ago I took a little vacation back up to the Great White North and visited some family. A great time was had by all, but I didn't get away without checking into the local Shoppers Drug Mart and seeing what candy there was to see. Seeing as today is the Victoria Day holiday in Canada I thought now would be a good time to share what I saw.

I've been a Canadian transplant living in the States for about 8 years now and my memory isn't always as reliable as it should be so I was interested to look with a more discerning eye specifically to see what candy and chocolates are to be found walking the Canadian candy aisle. Sure there are a few items that cross over from the States up to Canada but I was surprised to see really how few there were, particularly when a lot of them are from the same companies.

Let's start though by having a look at the big British player in Canada that you don't often find Stateside: Cadbury.

These of course are the standard Cadbury classics, Milk chocolate, and Milk Chocolate with Fruit & Nut. Most Americans will be familiar with these only probably not in this small bar size.

 Caramilk has always been a favorite of mine. The name says it all, milk chocolate and caramel. The combination is great, the caramel is really gooey, but the design is smart and lets you eat it in squares and stay clean. As for the Caramilk Secrets and Thick. These are new iterations of the bar to me, and I'd be interested to try them.

Crunchie is one that a lot of people will have tried. Its such a unique candy bar that its definitely made the rounds. If you're not familiar, its a golden honey flavored sponge toffee covered in milk chocolate. Really one of a kind.

For the life of me I can't remember what a Mr Big actually tastes like, but I know there was a very brief period where I counted it as one of my favorites. I think it's a combination of wafer and peanuts AND rice crispies that makes it original. Its also apparently the biggest candy bar produced by Cadbury. Great bang for the buck.

I've already talked about my love for Wunderbar on the blog before. If you have a chance this is definitely not one to miss.

In my mind Crispy Crunch is up there alongside Coffee Crisp and Crunchie as one of the best and most popular Canadian chocolate bars. It's got a snap and flaky-ness similar to Butterfinger, but is more about the textured experience rather than butterfingers melty goo.

These small sized Clusters are new to me as well, but the entire trend of making bite sized chocolate pieces has only gotten big in the past few years so I suppose my missing out on them isn't too surprising. I'm not exactly sure what the simply titled Clusters is exactly, since as far as I know there isn't a full sized chocolate bar associated with it. I'll have to check it out when I get a chance.

The other big player in the (mass produced) Canadian chocolate market is Nestlé. Oddly though, other than a few crossovers like KitKat and Crunch, they have a wildly different group of products available in Canada than they do in the States. Lets have a look.

Does this exist in the States??? Looks delicious!

The "real" Smarties Kind of like original M&Ms. Their tag line back in the day was "when you eat your smarties, do you eat the red ones last?" Good stuff :)

 Kit Kat is everywhere. Feel free to check out my review.

Never one of my favorites I can see why some people like Aero bars. The chocolate is light and its definitely the most airy chocolate bar I've ever had. I've had the original and mint, but never seen the dark chocolate version before.

Coffee Crisp is a true classic.If you like coffee and chocolate, you'll love this bar.

More bites. This time for Coffee Crisp and KitKat, yum!

Another nougat, peanut and caramel bar. A commenter recently posted on the WTCA Youtube channel that this bar is akin to Baby Ruth, and I'd kind of agree. Apparently this one is available in limited quantities in the States.

There are of course a few outliers and some that I didn't get to like the ever popular Mars Bar, and for coconut fans Bounty. I've never had a Mars Caramel before...

 

 Hershey does have a presence in Canada, its just overshadowed by Cadbury and Nestle. I thought this Cookies 'n' Mint bar sounded good, and I don't believe its anything I've seen here in California.

 Yes Kinder is big in Canada too. But they're much more prevalent than they seem to be down south.

While I'm not particularly familiar with Kerr's. Scoth Mints in general are really popular in Canada. They're kind of the same size and shape as a Mentos, but full on mint, with a bit more of a chalky flavor. They're really good and I'd recommend you try some.

 The only other group of candy that I had to mention here is one you'll see not just walking down Canadian candy aisles, but also in movie theaters, and corner stores. Maynards is the brand behind the popular Wine Gums. But they've also got a lot of other 'theater' style candies.

I'm mostly used to getting thee in the rolls instead of this kind of big bag, but even though I've had these a lot of times and always want to like them, I never seem to...

 

 Love the Swedish Berries, the only thing that tops them is Swedish fish ;) I'm not a huge watermelon fan, but these sour ones are very good.

 Never had the Cherry Blasters and I don't really intend to. BUT I love Fuzzy Peaches.

 Yuck.

I'm about to say something controversial but I stand by it. Gummy bears are simply not as good as gummy worms. 

I'm sure there's more if you look in other stores, but that  was all I saw that stood out while walking the Canadian candy aisle. Let me know what you like in other countries. And I have a feeling we'll be seeing more Canadian candy and chocolates here on WTCA in the coming months.