sweet Archives - Page 20 of 26

December 2, 2008January 10, 2021 Michael

Chunky – A Raisin-Lover’s Dream

Chocolate

Chunky isn’t sold in Canada and isn’t exactly a high-profile bar, so I hadn’t even heard of it when it was memorably referenced in an episode of Seinfeld (“I know the chunky that left these Chunkies!”). Of course, at that point I had to try it, and I do recall being somewhat disappointed in discovering that Newman’s candy-of-choice was so plain. It’s just chocolate, peanuts and raisins.

Your enjoyment of this bar is highly dependent on whether or not you like raisins. It is extremely raisiny, with a very generous amount of raisins in each segment. Also, the milk chocolate seems to be imbued with the flavour of raisins, as the chocolate itself has a fairly pronounced raisiny/fruity flavour.

There are also peanuts in there, which add subtle crunchiness as well as a slight peanutty flavour, however the star of the show remains the numerous raisins, along with the very sweet, slightly fruity chocolate. The whole thing is quite similar to Cadbury’s Fruit and Nut, though that is clearly the superior product; the chocolate is better, and it isn’t quite so overwhelmingly raisiny (okay, I’ll admit it – I’m not a big fan of raisins).

Manufactured by: Nestle
Calories (40 g bar): 190

December 1, 2008January 10, 2021 Michael

Goldenberg’s Original Peanut Chews – Deeply Nutty and Chewy

Candy Bars

With some older candies, their continuing longevity is somewhat mystifying to me (the surprisingly unpleasant Necco Wafers being a prime example of this). However, in the case of Goldenberg’s Original Peanut Chews, I can definitely understand how they’ve managed to stick around all these years (since 1917, according to the packaging): they’re simple, satisfying and tasty.

The Peanut Chews consist simply of a chewy, caramel-like molasses combined with crunchy roasted peanuts, and coated with a thin “dark chocolately” (ie. mockolate) coating. The mockolate seems to be purely aesthetic, as it doesn’t really contribute anything to the taste or the texture.

As for the main attraction of the bar, the molasses and peanuts: it’s quite good. It’s exceptionally peanutty, with a strong peanutty aroma and enough peanuts to ensure that the ratio of peanuts to molasses is something like 50/50. The whole thing is not very sweet at all, with a really rich, almost bitter flavour. It does, however, have a pleasantly sweet, somewhat honey-like aftertaste.

I should note that the version I bought, purchased from the Cracker Barrel, features special, retro packaging. The one you’ll find in most stores is simply called “Peanut Chews” and features a much more contemporary-looking wrapper (which was the result of Just Born – the makers of Mike & Ike – purchasing the Goldenberg Candy Company in 2003).

Manufactured by: Just Born
Calories (4 pieces, 47 g): 230

November 28, 2008January 10, 2021 Michael

Duncans Original Ginger – An Unforgiving Assault of Ginger

Chocolate

Oh, the humanity.

First off, in the spirit of full disclosure I’m going to come right out and admit that ginger isn’t my favourite thing ever, even in savoury dishes. However, I have had the ginger/chocolate combination before, and I have liked it, so I’m not completely biased against anything with ginger. Ginger and chocolate is certainly a strange combination, however in the right proportions the ginger can give the chocolate an interesting and unique taste. In the wrong proportions… well, you have this bar.

Unwrapping the chocolate, I was hit with a rather overwhelming aroma. I don’t know how to describe the smell other than to say it is like ginger put under a magnifying glass. That seemed like a bad sign to me, but I had hoped that this would be one of those things that smells stronger than it tastes. Nope! If anything the smell was subtle, comparatively speaking.

Eating this is like a ginger assault on your tastebuds. It is like being punched in the face by ginger – not just any ginger; the Evander Holyfield of ginger. You may as well just buy a ginger root and take a bite, though I’m not sure even that would be as overwhelmingly gingery. As for the chocolate, it has an unappealingly grainy consistency, and has to be one of the least creamy chocolates I’ve ever had. It’s sweet, without much of a cocoa taste at all (though that may just be the super-strong ginger obliterating any other flavours in the bar).

I bought this at an import store for two or three bucks, and I’ve gotta say: I want my money back. This is literally the worst chocolate that I’ve ever eaten, and I say that as someone who has eaten a ridiculous amount of chocolate in his lifetime. I don’t think I can possibly overstate how gross this was. It actually nauseated me – I was only able to eat three pieces before my gag reflex started kicking in (actually that’s not true: I was on the verge of gagging right after the first mouthful. It was only after three pieces that I realized that life was too short to eat something so disgusting). It’s that bad.

Blech.

Manufactured by: Duncans of Scotland
Calories (58 g bar): Unknown, not that it matters – this is unfit for human consumption

November 27, 2008January 10, 2021 Michael

Dark Chocolate Moose Munch Chocolate Bar – So, So Good

Candy Bars

Moose Munch is definitely unique – popcorn isn’t generally an ingredient you’ll find in all that many candy bars (in fact, I don’t think I’ve ever had a candy bar with popcorn in it). But this bar certainly makes a persuasive argument for the inclusion of popcorn in chocolate.

The Dark Chocolate Moose Munch Chocolate Bar features a creamy, truffle-like centre with chunks of almonds, crunchy toffee and popcorn, all enrobed in dark chocolate. The centre alone – a smooth, richly intense dark chocolate fudge – is enough for me to give this bar a hearty recommendation. It’s really good. The crunchy bits elevate this from “delicious” to “why can’t I buy this in Canada??” (I purchased this bar at a Target in the States, and have lamentably never seen it anywhere in Canada).

The combination of Almonds and dark chocolate is an old standby, and works quite well here. The bits of crunchy toffee have a fairly distinct flavour and definitely add more than just crunchiness to the mix. As for the popcorn, it’s not present in every mouthful, but when it is there it gives this bar a nicely unique flavour. It all adds up to something that is surprisingly awesome. It’s probably a good thing that this isn’t readily available where I live – if it were, I’d be eating it all the time, and would inevitably wind up like the gluttony guy from Seven.

Manufactured by: Harry and David
Calories (56 g bar): 290

November 26, 2008January 10, 2021 Michael

5th Avenue – Like a Butterfinger, but Worse

Candy Bars

I still can’t see a 5^th Avenue bar without thinking about that jingle from a few years back (“It will make you go crunch! 5th Avenue!”). The commercial is over a decade old, and yet that crazy song still pops into my head from time to time. So there’s no doubt that their advertising is effective (at least in my case… stupid catchy jingle), but is the bar any good?

5^th Avenue is fairly similar to a Butterfinger; it contains crispy, crunchy peanut butter, coated in a layer of mockolate (yep, this is yet another bar infected by that recent scourge of Hershey lovers everywhere, mockolate). I’m normally fairly easy-going when it comes to mockolate, however the greasy “chocolatey coating” on this bar seems far worse than average. It probably doesn’t help that there’s a pretty thick layer of the stuff.

As for the crunchy peanut butter centre, it’s not bad, though it’s almost ridiculously sweet (it’s a throat-burner). The peanut flavour is more subtle than it needs to be (thanks, no doubt, to being drowned out by the extreme sweetness). The filling also tends to lodge itself on your teeth, though I suppose that is part of the experience of eating a bar like this or Butterfinger.

5^th Avenue really isn’t a bad candy bar, but thanks to the greasy mockolate and less-than-peanutty taste, it’s definitely inferior to the very similar Butterfinger.

Manufactured by: Hershey
Calories (56 g bar): 280