A Sweet Birthday Gift

A friend of mine from the USA gifted a box of American sweets for my birthday a few weeks ago. I thought it would be cool to go through everything and share my thoughts on its contents.

Firstly, I think the exterior of the  box itself should be spotlighted. It looks brilliant, doesn't it? As you can see, the company that packaged the gift is called Heavenly Sweets. I checked out their website and they sell a lot of packages like this containing treats from America and Britain.

So, after showing you the front of the box and repping the folks that sell these things, it's time to show you what I was met with upon opening the present.

'WOW,' was my first thought. And that is just the things on top. I would soon find other items underneath.

In this post, I'll go through every single thing inside the package and share with you what my immediate thoughts were after I ate them.

There were only two things I have had before. I opted to go with those items first.

Miniature Reese's Cups

I've gone on the record many times in the past to share the fact that I love Reese's products. IF I was being unfair, I'd say that the Reese's Cups wins straight away. But - I am fair enough to disqualify the Reese's from this taste test only because I have had them before. 

Reese's NutRageous Bar

The same goes for the Reese's NutRageous bar. I have had these bars many times in the past. I always seem to pick one (or more!) up whenever I shop at the Co-Op. Before finding them in British shops, there was a time when I'd add them to my orders from websites that sell US confectionary.

I cannot think of an exact similar product in the UK. However, I would say they are close to being like a Cadbury's Picnic bar. Albeit without the dried grape but with peanut butter.

I would recommend anything Reese's.

Onto everything else...

Laffy Taffy (Cherry)

This was a small chew. Cherry is one of my favourite flavours, so it comes as no surprise that I enjoyed this.

The texture felt more creamy than the chewy sweets I am used to... if that makes any sense.

Warheads Cubes

These cube-shaped sweets came in a foil bag. There was a mix of sour and sweet flavours. Regular visitors are sure to know that blue raspberry and grape are my favourite flavours when it comes to American candy. I didn't really get the 'grape' taste in the purple cube. However, I absolutely did when it came to sampling a blue cube. I also dislike watermelon-flavoured candy. I stumbled upon those ones a couple of times.  Eurgh!!

As I tried out the bag, I was reminded of some penny sweets I used to buy on the way to school back in the 1980s. They were cube-shaped, just like these, and they also had the same texture. However, the 80s product was all sweet unlike these which had a mix of sweet and sour. 

Also - I cannot recall those penny sweets from my past having any flavour to them. These absolutely do.

Top Pops (Strawberry-Lemon)

The next stop on my journey was a Top Pop which had a strawberry-lemon flavour. Upon seeing the lollipop, I was reminded of a Swizzels Drumstick. It was just like one texturally. I thought the mix of strawberries and lemon was something like I had experienced during those times when I'd do drink mixes from the USA: I'd get a sweet sensation followed by bitter and vice versa. 

Top Pops (Strawberry)

Just like the above, this was another chew on a stick. This one, with the strawberry flavour, was 100% sweet, though. As funny as this sounds, I preferred the previous flavour because of the contrasting sensations I experienced with the sweet and sour mix.

Warheads Sour Jelly Beans

These sweets weren't like regular jelly beans. They didn't have the same look nor texture. They come in a range of flavours.

I have had some nice and very bad jelly beans in the past. These were FAR FROM being the worst (I had zany Harry Potter beans sometime within the past five years or so). 

The best flavour of these Warheads Jelly Beans were... unsurprising to some.... Blue Raspberry!

Lemonade Dots

I had never tried the American style of gumdrops before receiving these gifts. I'm actually quite surprised at not having done so. These are somewhat different to what I am used to. 

These Lemonade Dots are shaped like lemonade cups and come in many colours (flavours!). There are strawberry lemonade, lemonade, blue raspberry lemonade (yes, the best one, but they were all very nice!) and cherry lemonade.

At this point in the project, I consider Lemonade Dots to be in the lead...

Laffy Taffy (Sour Apple)

I had a cherry-flavoured Laffy Taffy above. Apple is one of my favourite flavours, so I decided to save that one until after the cherry flavour. Unfortunately, I'd say this wasn't as 'sour' as promised! Therefore, cherry wins the in-battle between the two Laffy Taffys in this selection of sweets. That's not to say I didn't enjoy this sweet.

Oh, but hold on...

Laffy Taffy (Grape)

I didn't realise that the long purple sweet in the box is also from the Laffy Taffy brand. It had the same texture as the other two smaller chews. This one was longer. Unfortunately, I didn't have a stronger grape taste as I had anticipated. Cherry wins that little in-battle between the Laffy Taffys. 

Toxic Waste Nuclear Sludge (Sour Cherry)

Oh wow, this chew was VERY, VERY sour indeed. It was strong enough it made my tongue tingle. I cannot recall any chewy bar act in that way before. The sourness in this bar more than made up for the lack of a 'sour' experience with the sour apple Laffy Taffy. And then some. You know, after trying this, there's only one way to go next. It's...

Toxic Waste Nuclear Sludge (Blue Raspberry)

This, just like the other Toxic Waste Nuclear Sludge, is extremely sour. Even though this should be my favourite chew, because it's blue raspberry flavour, I think the sour cherry is slightly better of the two in this range of sweets.

At this point, the Toxic Waste chews (particularly the sour cherry flavour) are very close to Lemonade Dots in the running for top spot...

Sour Punch Rainbow Straws

When I saw the packet of Sour Punch Rainbow Straws, I thought to myself 'I've had those before'. However, I was incorrect. Upon opening them, I recalled that the things I had a few years ago were rainbow belts. These were more like laces.

They had a sticky texture along with the fizzy dusting. The best flavour was (OBVIOUSLY!) blue raspberry although the yellow, sour lemon,  one came a very close second.

Charleston Chew
I was made aware of Charleston Chew bars many years ago, but had never seen them when I've bought imported US goods. After seeing the box contained one of these chocolate-coated marshmallow/nougat bars, I knew what should be in the main event slot of this project.

The wrapper exclaims that I should 'Try Frozen!' Go on then..

After leaving the bar in the freezer for close to an hour, I pulled it out. 

The strawberry-flavoured nougat was quite brittle when I took bites out of the bar. However, as I chomped away, the food became more like a nougat: chewy! 

As I chomped away, the strawberry flavour struck. As did the chocolate albeit the strawberry was the predominant of the two tastes.

Putting this bar in the freezer beforehand did make the experience even more interesting because it gave me a strong followed by soft and chewy texture. I'd rather go through those contrasting sensations with one bar than just the one, so the recommendation on the wrapper worked out well.

The Best of the Lot?

I thought the Lemonade Dots would be the sweets which came away as the winners. However, that was before I tried the Toxic Waste Nuclear Sludge and Charleston Chew bars.

After sampling everything in the box, I took some time to contemplate which item I liked the most and thought there was something about the Charleston Chew. The more I reflected, it became clear to me that it reminded me of something from my childhood.

I used to love a bar called Lovell's Milky Lunch. It, like the Charleston Chew, had a nougat/marshmallow centre that was coated in chocolate. 

Here's what Google told me about the Milky Lunch bars:

They obviously contrast with the Charleston Chew having a strawberry flavoured centre. 

I cannot help but wonder what a Lovell's Milky Lunch bar would have been like had I done what the Charleston Chew wrapper told me to do and freeze it.

So, that's it: Charleston Chew is the winner. Lemonade Dots draw up a very close second. And then I have to go with the cherry flavoured Toxic Waste Nuclear Sludge, over its blue raspberry stablemate, because of how crazy it felt to try it. It was like a Wham bar on steroids!

Rating Drink Powders XV: On The Doles

I had to make sure I hadn't made any mistakes, but - yes - this is the fifteenth edition of 'Rating Drink Powders' - a series of post where I try, and rate, instant drinks that are made by pouring a sachet into bottled water.

I genuinely didn't think I would create any more of these themed posts because I thought I had tried every on the go drink powder (other than caffeine/energy versions) I could find on the US import site I shop from.

Enter two new boxes. Both under the Dole brand.

I tried both of them within the last few weeks. I was not impressed with either.

The Tropical Splash flavour had a bitter tang to it. Looking at the box, you see it has a load of tropical fruits (obviously!), but nothing tasted nice. It was just.. there. 

I have to rate Tropical Splash one-and-three-quarters out of the five star grading I use.

Strawberry Pineapple is slightly better. But, only by a quarter of a star.

Even though it was meant to be a a mix of strawberry and pineapple, I found the water to taste somewhat minty. I was watching a Christmas movie at the time, so I may have been led astray, but - I couldn't help but think I was drinking a liquid candy cane.

I guess it's the right drink to have at this time of year.

Both drinks are clear. That kind of threw me off as well. I expected the Tropical Splash to have an orange look and the strawberry liquid to be red.

It should go without saying that I don't think I'll ever buy Dole powders again. 

As for whether there will be more Rating Drink Powders posts in the future? Well - seeing as I didn't think I'd get to number 15, I wouldn't bet on or against it.

Orbit Bubblemint

It had been quite a while since I've had an Orbit chewing gum. However, a friend of mine sent over a packet of Bubblemint flavour from the USA, so I became reacquainted with the brand.

I didn't even know if Orbit is still available in regular UK shops until a Google search informed me that the brand was discontinued and replaced by Wrigley's Extra on these shores.

As I mentioned in December, I love the bubble gum flavour Wrigley's Extra and - when it was removed from British shelves - it felt like Wrigley's Extra Bubblemint took its place.

This Orbit gum from the US is very similar to the bubblemint Wrigley's Extra and - because of that - I feel loyal to the bubble gum flavour Extra and will say this - it isn't as good as bubble gum flavoured Wrigley's Extra!

With that said, and this is a strong positive, I found that Orbit Bubblemint does retain its flavour longer than any of the other gums I've been sent from the USA. 

I must have chewed the first stick for over an hour and it still had a taste to it all that time later.

You cannot say that about many gums, can you?

Tasting Another Trident Chewing Gum

Do you remember back in March, when I wrote about trying a stick of minty Trident chewing gum, I noted that I had an orange flavour to try?

Well, I was wrong.

I should have paid more attention when I opened the parcel my friend had sent me from the USA. The orange packet of Trident gum I have is not an 'orange' flavour alone.

It is Tropical Twist!

The fruity gum is nice. Upon my first few chews of it, it seems as though mango comes across as the most predominant flavour in this medley.

Mango is one of my favourite flavours, whether that be in sweets or drink form, so that makes this chewing gum a winner in my book.

Rating A Drink... Liquid Water Enhancer?

When I last placed an order for drink powders, in order to publish a few posts in my Rating Drink Powders series, I came across something I hadn't seen available before.

It's called a 'Liquid Water Enhancer' and - I suppose - it works in the same way the drink mixes work by squirting the liquid into a bottle of water to give it flavour.

I tried it out a few minutes ago (as I am writing the post). I squirted two shots into the water and, upon having a few sips, I've found it to be quite bland.

It was quite a disappointing result considering - as I have said plenty of times in the past - I enjoy grape flavoured things from America because you rarely get anything like that here in the UK.

Another thing which is a considerable let down is the fact that the grape-flavoured drink mix - from Crush - scored four stars in the first ever Rating Drink Powders post.

I doubt I'll ever buy another one of these small bottles again. They evidently seem to be a waste of money - especially at the price I paid on the US goods website I purchase these imported foods and drinks from.

Trident Minty Sweet Twist Chewing Gum

My journey through some American chewing gums, that were gifted to me by a friend, has made a stop at a brand I have not tried before.

Made by Trident, the flavour is 'Minty Sweet Twist'. Its packaging has an image of one of those blue and white minty hard sweets (I cannot recall their exact name), so I expect them to have a flavour resembling those.

As you can see below, the packaging is similar to the gums I've tried in previous posts. The little box opens and the sticks packed tightly together.

There are fourteen sticks in total. They are bluey-green in colour. I suppose their more green than blue.

As for the taste - it was another one of those that has a mild mint taste for a second, but then a second - much stronger - wind hits to make its impact.

I suppose that is the 'twist' that is promised?

It was nice to try, and I will for sure finish off this box, but I don't think I would go out of my way to look for this particular flavour if I ever see Trident gum being sold over here in the UK. With that said, I am open to trying some different Trident flavours. 

And I will.

That's because my friend bought me a packet of orange Trident, so those will be next on the list once I run out of gum in this box.

Rating Drink Powders XIV: Skittles Edition II

In June of last year, I published the eighth post in a series in which I have rated drink mixes from the USA.

The edition focused on three boxes of powders from the Skittles brand. In today's post, I once again find myself tasting Skittles drinks because - while doing a shop for American foods and drinks - I stumbled upon a box with individual flavours as opposed to the 'punch' drinks that are available in the other three Skittles packets I reviewed last year.

This box has four flavours - strawberry, orange, green apple and grape. I'll try them in that order.

As per usual, I'll drop a sachet into a bottle of water and share some thoughts along with a rating out of five to see which one wins this round.

Strawberry
If you've read previous editions of Rating Drink Powders, you'll be aware that I am not that keen on strawberry flavoured mixes.

This was no exception.

After taking my first gulp, I immediately thought the drink had a watermelon flavour. I absolutely detest watermelon, so this threw me off at first. However, the sensation didn't last long - the strawberry did kick in eventually. 

I took a second sip and I once again had my mind trick me into thinking I had watermelon. 

Same with the third. And so on.

To be fair, it is a refreshing drink. I simply dislike the initial taste every time a drop goes down my throat and - because of that - I have to score it low.

Rating: **

Orange
Even though I found tasting the strawberry flavour to be a peculiar experience, it does have a redeeming feature if you were to compare it to when I sampled the orange drink.

I couldn't taste a hint of orange at all.

Compared to other orange drinks I've had over the past two years, this is potentially right at the bottom when it comes to flavour. Not good.

I genuinely thought strawberry was going to be the least liked flavour of the four, but I was very wrong.

Rating: *

Green Apple
As I have written in the past - Apple Tango is one of my favourite drinks. It should come as no surprise, therefore, to see me keen to see what the green apple flavoured Skittles tastes like.

Before I share my thoughts, it's worth pointing out elephant one in the room. 

In the US, where these drink mixes come from, the green Skittles are apple flavour. Here in the UK, you'll find that they're lime.

As I am a fan of apple drinks, I am glad I get to drink this flavour (although I wouldn't turn my nose up at lime!).

The apple flavour is strong. It's superior to the two other drinks I've tried from this box. It reminded me a lot of the Jolly Rancher apple drink I tried in Rating Drink Powders V. It would only be fair to give this Skittles green apple an identical grade.

Rating: ***

Grape
The second elephant in the room is the grape Skittles flavour. Over here, in the UK, the purple Skittle is blackcurrant. 

Elephant three - grape is one of my favourite flavours.

It should go without saying that I am glad this purple drink isn't blackcurrant (not that I dislike it).

Unfortunately, I found Skittles Grape to be reminiscent of some of the weaker grape drinks I've tasted over the years. Because of that, I have to rate this one in a similar fashion.

Rating: ** 1/2

And the winner is...
Apple wins by half-a-star over grape in what was really a two-horse race considering how disappointing the strawberry and orange flavours were in this set.

I know I've concluded some of the most recent drink powders posts with a doubt over whether there will be future posts in this series. As of right now, it appears as though I've tried everything I've been able to get my hands on. Therefore, this MIGHT be it.

For now?

Rating Drink Powders 13

If you read this post I published in late-January, you would have been aware that I've stocked up on more drink mixes to do my Rating Drinks Powders series.

For the past (close to) two years, I've been gifted - and purchased - drink powders from the United States. These mixes are poured into bottles of water to create a flavoured water. I've dedicated twelve posts to sampling everything I have tried. What you're reading today is the thirteenth edition.

In today's installment, I try two flavours from brands I've tried in previous posts. I also taste two flavours from a sweet (candy) brand from my childhood.

Nerds Grape
It seems I am going on trips back to 1986 lately. First, I've been getting daily doses of Garbage Pail Kids with a page-a-day calendar I had for Christmas. Now, I get to try drinks branded by a company I used to eat sweets of.

The grape flavoured Nerds powder, as is often the case whenever I have this flavour, brings back memories from my childhood when I would receive grape candy from my American relatives. For some reason, British sweets never opted for grape back then. I don't believe they do to this very day. 

Even though the smell is good, it's the taste which is the most important.

Unfortunately, the drink was not strong enough. Even though it does quench my thirst, it is far too weak.

In August last year, I gave a Kool-Aid grape powder one star. I think they taste alike, so I'll be consistent with my grading.

Rating: *

Crush Cherry
Cherry drinks and sweets, especially from the USA, also reminds me of my American relatives. Once again, I found myself recalling Cherry Kool-Aid as I took a whiff of the cherry Crush.

This drink was strong. Unfortunately, it was a far too strong. 

Ironically, I had the orange flavoured Crush drink when I did the first ever Rating Drink Powders post in May of 2021. I thought it wasn't strong enough. Look what happens when you want a drink powder to be stronger!

Rating: *

Welch's Strawberry Peach
I tried Welch's grape drink mix in the Fifth Rating Drinks Powders post on October 2nd 2021 and gave it two stars. I found it disappointing because I liked the regular Welch's grape drinks.

I'm unsure if Welch's have a strawberry peach juice. If they do, I haven't tried it. Therefore, I had no expectations going in.

Just like with the grape drink, I found Welch's Strawberry Peach to be watery upon taking my first sip. However, there is a strong peach aftertaste which is quite nice. 

After a few more gulps, I found a strawberry taste, but that was quickly overcome by the peach sensation. 

A fun drink because of the combination of flavours. It is better than Welch's grape mix, so it gets half-a-star higher than that.

Rating: ** 1/2

Nerds Strawberry
I didn't think I would like Nerds Strawberry because I find that strawberry drinks are hit-or-miss with me.

This wasn't a miss. It wasn't a complete hit, but it hit the spot. It was a nice refreshing drink that was better than the other three mixes I have tasted for this edition.

Rating: ***

Result

I drank these mixes in the order as they appeared in the picture I took when they were delivered to me. It turned out I had them in the correct order with the two powders I liked the least starting out in first and second place. They were followed by a potential winner in the Welch's powder but Nerds Strawberry pipped it at the post.

I am quite excited at what I'll be tasting in the next edition of Rating Drink Powders. Expect that post to be published in March.

Bubble Gum Day '23

Today is Bubble Gum Day.

I know that because my Garbage Pail Kids page-a-day calendar told me so. 

To kick off the morning, I thought I'd have some original flavour Bubble Yum bubble gum my friend from the USA gave me at Christmas.

Bubble Yum is a name I have seen before. A long time ago, when I was a child, they would sell packets of this bubble gum in shops near me. It's a brand that I hadn't seen - on UK shelves - for many, many years.

Before writing this post, I had a look to see if Bubble Yum is still sold in regular shops in the UK. It doesn't look like. 

My research also led me to see that the gum brand was sold by Nabisco to Hershey in the early 2000s.

As for this Bubble Yum I have with me - it tastes like a regular bubble gum. If you read THIS POST from last year, you'll know it's a flavour I like very much.

More Drink Powders Posts On The Horizon

When I wrote, and published, the twelfth Rating Drink Powders post - in December of last year - I thought that would be the very last time I'd do one.

It seemed that I had tried every single drink mix that can poured into a bottle of water that was available on the American goods website I purchase things from. However, earlier this month, I came across brand new stock including a handful of new mixes.

Of course I snapped up the new items.

Without giving any spoilers, I have bought enough packets to publish another couple of posts to this series.

I haven't tried any of the drinks yet. I'm aiming for the thirteenth edition to go up sometime in February and then I'll follow that up with part fourteen in March.

Wrigley's Extra Cinnamon

Last week, I published a post in which I wrote about being reunited with a Wrigley's Extra chewing gum flavour that has been discontinued here in the UK.

The post ended with me mentioning that my friend had sent over a handful of other chewing gums from the United States of America.  

Considering we're a few days removed from Christmas, I thought it would be ideal to try a flavour which - its own way - is festive.

I'm going to try Cinnamon flavour. And I'm going to do it live as I type this post!

I have a love/hate relationship with cinnamon flavoured foods. I love cinnamon rolls but absolutely hated the Coca-Cola, with a hint of cinnamon, which came out a number of Christmases ago. 

And then there's Cinnamon Toast Crunch - a cereal I absolutely despised as a child, but have - on the rare occasions I've been given a bowl as an adult - found I haven't disliked it as much as I once did.

Before I've even opened the packaging, I have been struck by the scent. I know I'm not going to like the taste of this gum.

* * *

After tasting it and chewing a great deal, I have to admit that I surprisingly didn't dislike as much as I had feared.

The gum does have a strong cinnamon smell when you first open the box, and especially when you unwrap the stick from its wrapper. However, after popping it in my mouth, I noticed the sensation was not as strong as I expected. That's a good thing.

As funny as this may seem - the flavour stayed longer than I had anticipated as well. I didn't expect it to, but it did.

Cinnamon Extra gum isn't something I would ever go out of my way to have again, but I am grateful to have tried it because I would not have ever considered sampling it otherwise.

There are still a bunch of other gums in a padded envelope waiting to be tried out. Look out for more posts like these in 2023.

Wrigley's Extra Classic Bubble

Sometime in 2017, and for at most a couple of years after that, I would find myself buying packets of a specific Wrigley's Extra chewing gum. 

The flavour of the chewing gum was.. 'Bubblegum'. 

To describe the taste, I would say it was like your typical bubble gum albeit in the form of a chewing gum.

Unfortunately, the packets became increasingly hard to find. It eventually became safe to conclude they had been discontinued. 

A few months ago, I happened to find a YouTube video of someone shopping in the USA. The lady in the video was checking out shelves of gum and I noticed the pink Extra box that I had been seeking out since they left the UK store shelves at least a couple of years ago.

I showed a friend in the USA the chewing gum in question and she sent me over a few packets (and also other flavours to try out). 

The American Wrigley's Extra bubble gum flavour differs slightly to the one we had over here in the UK in a couple of ways.

First, the flavour is called 'Classic Bubble' whereas ours - as noted above - was simply called 'Bubblegum Flavour'.

The other contrast is in the sticks themselves. 

Over here in the UK, the sticks of gum were small and white in a waxy wrapper. Imagine a regular Wrigley's Spearmint Gum in a foil wrapper. Now envision opening the wrapper and seeing a pink stick rather than a white one and that's what an American bubblegum flavour Extra is.

Here's the thing, though - the gum tastes EXACTLY like the one they sold here in the UK. 

Oh, and the US box has one extra stick compared to the fourteen pieces we had in our boxes. So, that's another plus.

I plan to try the other chewing gums I was sent over the coming weeks and months. Stick around.

Rating Drink Powders XII

Here is the twelfth edition of 'Rating Drink Powders'.

In this series of posts, I take a handful of drink mixes that can be bought online from websites that imports American food and drink then I taste and rate each one.

Sunkist Grape
I have tasted drink mixes from Sunkist in previous editions of Rating Drink Powders. The 'Lemon and Lime' variety scored three stars and the 'Red Punch' picked up four.

Grape is one of my favourite flavours whether it be in sweet/candy form or in drink, so this could be a higher scorer.

I've just put the powder into bottle and it does not really give off a grapey smell that I am used to. After shaking the bottle, I can actually catch a mild smell. 

As for the drink itself - well, it does have a grape taste. However, it is reminiscent of Hi-C Grabbin Grape, which was quite weak scoring average marks.

Rating: ** 1/2

Hawaiian Punch Lemon Lime Splash
This version from the Hawaiian Punch range has a mixture of lemon and lime. 

The liquid has a luminous green colour and looks quite snazzy, if I say so myself. As for the taste - it is not weak at all. That's a plus. However, there is a slight bitterness after the first sip. I didn't get the same sensation after the next few sips.

Initial aftertaste aside, I think this is quite nice. 

Rating: *** 3/4 

Jelly Belly Berry Blue
Another drink mix from the Jelly Belly jellybean company. I had tried 'Very Cherry' last month and scored it three-and-a-half stars. 

Berry Blue smells very strong. The first thing I thought when the scent came to me was blueberry pie. I think this could be a good one..

..damn. No, it's too watery. The taste does hit you, but it's as an aftertaste. This is quite a letdown because I thought it had a chance of being strong.

Rating: *

Hawaiian Punch Lemon Berry Squeeze
The Hawaiian Punch Lemon Berry Squeeze drink smelled of strawberry when I opened the sachet. After pouring in the powder, shaking it up and then taking a sip, I tasted.. strawberry. I didn't experience any bitter, or lemony, sensation like I had with Lemon Lime Splash. They could have simply called it 'Strawberry Squeeze'.

It was nowhere near as nice as the Hawaiian Punch I tried above. At least that one had a lemon flavour!

Rating: **

Cherry 7-Up
Another 7-Up flavour after the regular lemon and lime flavour scored three stars last month.

It's very nice. Not as good as some of the other cherry-flavoured mixes I've tried. However, I have to score high because the cherry edition tastes a lot more like the real Cherry 7-Up than the lemon and lime mix tasted like regular 7-Up (if that makes sense).

If I gave the regular scored three, I have to go higher with cherry.

Rating: *** 3/4

And The Winner Is...
Looks like I kept the best 'til last because Cherry 7-Up was the winner of this edition.

Rating Drink Powders XI

It's the eleventh edition of Rating Drink Powders - a series in which I taste drink mixes that are sold in shops in the USA and can be bought over here - in the UK - through speciality shops that import American goods.

In this edition, I try a few brands I've had before, like Hawaiian Punch and Kool-Aid, as well as sample drinks from big names like Jelly Belly and 7-Up.

As per usual, all drinks will be rated out of five stars.

Hawaiian Punch Green Berry Rush
When I first opened the sachet, the smell immediately reminded me of something. However, it took a white to conclude that it smelled of Haribo sweets. That's not a bad thing.

As for the taste itself - well, there wasn't much to it. Very watery with a mild hint of.. something. And it's not Haribo.

Rating: *

A and W Root Beer
I like root beer and have even drank a can (or more?) of real A and W Root Beer when they were sold in a local shop to me.

As well as that, I have also tasted a different root beer powder when I tried Dad's Root Beer in the second edition of the Rating Drink Powders post in July of last year.

The Dad's Root Beer scored highly with four-and-a-half stars. Will this one come close to that? The proof, as they say, is in the pudding root beer.

Time to give it a go:

I can confirm that this did taste exactly like I expected. It is on par with the previous root beer drink I tasted.

Rating: **** 1/2

Kool-Aid Retro: Rock-A-Dile Red
In August, the tenth edition of Rating Drinks Powders was a Kool-Aid special pitting two flavours against each other. Both scored one star each. 

The latest flavour I've came across is called 'Rock-a-dile Red'. Let's see if it's better than a star.

Hmm.. I still feel like the Kool-Aids are a lot watery and lacking in a strong flavour. However, this one is slightly better. Highlight on the word 'slightly'.

Rating: * 1/2

Jelly Belly Very Cherry
The famous Jellybean company - Jelly Belly - is also in this drink powders game with some flavours of its own.

Very Cherry is indeed that. However, it does not come close to the Starburst Cherry I tasted over a year ago.

With that said, it's very refreshing.

Rating: *** 1/2

Lemon and Lime 7-Up
I couldn't believe my eyes when I found 7-Up drink mixes. It's one of my go to drinks (if there are no Fantas!).

Unfortunately, this drink didn't remind me of 7-Up itself. However, it is still a decent lemonade flavour but not something I would go out of my way to try again because there are other lemonades I've tried in previous Rating Drink Powders posts that are slightly better.

Still, it wasn't too bad. I may have enjoyed it more if it was named something else other than 7-Up.

Rating: ***

Result
And the winner is.. A&W Root Beer. I genuinely thought that, when I picked the five to battle it out, 7-Up had the strongest chance of taking the win. I didn't doubt that the root beer flavour would be in contention, though.

Another five drink powders will be sampled sometime next month.

Halloween Candy

With it still being Halloween Night (on a technicality) as this post goes live at the strike of midnight on November 1st, I thought I would publish an addon to yesterday's post and show you something I bought earlier this year from one of those websites that sells American food and drink.

It relates to the Halloween movies.

It is a small tin with Michael Myers mask on it.

Inside the tin was American candy. As you'll see below, the little pieces of orange-flavoured sweets were shaped like Michael Myers' weapon of choice - knives.

I didn't really bother eating the sweets. I gave them away to my nephew. To show how I was more interested in the tin - it was he who made me realise what the shapes were of.

The back of the tin states that it is a  'Halloween II' tie-in. I highly doubt they're from 1981 - when the movie was released - but rather something that has been been made for some other reason. Oh, and it for sure has nothing to do with the Rob Zombie Halloween II reboot from 2009 because the logo font is like the sequel from the '80s.

I wonder if there are Halloween III sweets out there? I for sure would have bought tins bearing the pumpkin, skeleton and witch masks if they had.

Rating American Jellies And A Pudding

In a recent Rating Drink Powders post, I teased that I was planning to do a spin-off. I didn't explain what this spin-off entailed, but now I can.

Whilst shopping for American groceries a few months ago, I stumbled upon a couple of jellies (Jello?) that were made by the same people behind some of the drink powders. I thought it would be interesting to test out those and see if there were any resemblances with their drink powder counterparts.

The items I came up with were Sonic Ocean Water and Jolly Rancher Blue Raspberry. The former is one of the most intriguing drinks I had tried in the Rating Drink Powders posts while the latter, even though I prefer the Starburst Blue Raspberry to the Jolly Rancher version, is my favourite overall flavour.

I also came across a Dove chocolate filling. I ordered it under the assumption that it was something like an Angel Delight. Then, when I read the box after it was delivered, I realised it was a pie or tart filling. I ended up buying a crust to try out the dessert.

Sonic Ocean Water

In May, I tried the Sonic Ocean Water drink powder and gave it three-and-a-half stars out of five. One thing I was concerned about was whether the unique taste (coconutty) would wear thing after a while. 

This dessert tasted exactly like the drink. I couldn't get enough of it. I was still trying to scrape bits off the side of the cup with my spoon. That should indicate just how much I enjoyed it. 

It has been months since I wrote the May 11th review of the drink powder and the flavour still appeals to me. I have to rate the jelly knowing that I am bound to still enjoy it months from now just like the drink has been one of my go to drinks since May.

Rating: **** 1/2

Jolly Rancher Blue Raspberry
Just like with the Sonic Ocean Water jelly, the Jolly Rancher jelly did indeed taste similar to what I expect from the drink.

If I had to pick either one of those jellies to taste again, it would have to be the Sonic one. Therefore, I have to give the Jolly Rancher a shorter rating.

Rating: ****

Dove Chocolate Tart

To be fair, it's a bit stupid to rate a couple of jellies and then compare them with a tart. However, I have already invested the time into this post and shall therefore state the following:

The tart was VERY NICE if I say so myself.

I plan to have new instalments of the Rating Drink Powders posts coming up over the next few months. Keep an eye out for those!

Cookie Dough Bites Breakfast Cereal

A few years ago, I bought a box of chocolate coated cookie dough and thought they were quite nice. The same website, which sold those Cookie Dough Bites, have started to sell a breakfast cereal bearing the 'Cookie Dough Bites' name, so I thought I would give them a go as well.

I am always curious whenever I come across American breakfast cereals with chocolate and - in this case - cookie flavour rocks because I have desperately sought after the Rocky Road cereal I was given by my relatives back in the 1980's.

Rocky Road had three balls - one was chocolaty, the other had a vanilla taste and the other, which was not that much of a 'ball' as such, was marshmallow.

Looking at the box of the Cookie Dough Bites, I hoped that the white coloured ball would turn out to be a small bit of cookie dough. My hope was dashed. It was a regular bit of the puffy cereal.

The bowl I had for this morning's breakfast was okay, but it isn't something I would go out of my way to buy again.

Rating Drink Powders X: A Kool-Aid Battle

I recently came across a couple of drink powders I haven't tried before, so thought I'd do a head-to-head for today's post.

Both are varieties of Kool-Aid. The first is branded as a 'retro' flavour called 'Purplesaurus Rex' while the other is grape. 

My favourite proper Kool-Aid flavour is Tropical Punch followed by grape, so this might be an interesting battle considering both of the drinks I'm going to sample today are in the purple-colour family.

Kool-Aid Retro: Purplesaurus Rex
While pouring the powder into the bottle of water, I caught a whiff. It reminded me of something. I just couldn't place it. I soon realised that the smell was reminiscent of... paint stripper!

The good news - I did not get any hint of paint stripper when I took a few sips. The bad - it didn't have much of a flavour.

I surmise this drink is meant to be a 'punch' full of purply fruit flavours. It tastes, and looks, like purple water.

Not strong enough for my liking.

Rating: *

Kool-Aid Grape
As I mentioned earlier in the post, grape is one of my favourite Kool-Aid flavours. However, this is the first time I've gone for it in drink powder to bottle form.

Just like with the Purplesarus Rex brand, this was more watery than flavourful. 

It smelled of grape, and not paint stripper, when I pulled off the top of the sachet. I suppose that's a plus. Barely.

Rating: *

Result
I'm somewhat disappointed with both drinks.

I hate to do this, but I have to call this match-up a tie. Both receive a star apiece. They're lucky I didn't score lower!

Don't forget - there is going to be a 'Rating Drink Powders' spinoff in the near future...

Rating Drink Powders IX Redux

On July 1st, I published a ninth edition of the 'Rating Drink Powders' series that I've ran on this blog since the middle of 2021.

In the post, I wrote about my experience sampling Starburst's Fruit Punch drink powder. At the time, I was a few days into a Covid outbreak and realised - in the midst of writing - that I could not taste the drink at all.

I think it's only fair to redo the post now that my smell and taste have returned. Here goes.

Well, it does have have a flavour that I didn't taste back when I had lost the two senses. However, there isn't THAT much of a difference.

It still tastes more watery than flavourful. 

I'm going to have to give it one star. I'm really surprised because Starburst's Blue Raspberry drink is my favourite of all the drinks powders I've ever tasted. 

It's disappointing. I expected better due to the high opinion I have on the blue offering from Starburst.

Looking at it from a positive point of view - at least it tastes better than it did on July 1st!

Rating Drink Powders IX: One More Punch

I bet you didn't think you'd get to read another Rating Drink Powders post so soon after the eighth edition just a couple of days ago.

Well, this isn't really your usual Rating Drink Powders post because I only have one flavour to try out today.

I have tasted everything I've wanted. All I have left is Starburst Fruit Punch.

Seeing as I have only the one to try, I'm going to test the flavour live.

I've just put the powder into the bottle. It has made the water a dark red colour. It's now time to taste.

Hmm, I don't taste anything. I don't know whether or not this is because I am currently ill with coronavirus but I have been able to taste other things...

This is really off-putting because I cannot taste a thing. It just seems like red water. It absolutely cannot be Covid because I've been able to taste up until now.

I'm going to have to wait until another time to give this flavour a rating. It does not seem right that I cannot taste something from a brand that offers my favourite ever flavour of a drink powder in its blue raspberry offering.