My kind of vote

Have I mentioned lately how much I love Vermont? On our last trip up there, we went to the charming (albeit overpriced) Vermont Country Store and what did we find? This.













A contest to vote on candy! Talk about being in the right place at the right time. When we stepped up to the table, this nice lady Bev said, "Looks like we have some candy experts here." I told her, "You have no idea!"

Some of the candies on the ballot were gummi butterflies, sour lips, green apple candies, sea salt and chocolate almonds, S'mores, and ZOTZ. The Sugar Baby sampled them all, of course, and voted for the butterflies. I thought I'd go gaga over the almonds, but the S'mores really won me over. I don't know which one won in the end, but it was a fun way to kill a few minutes before we went into the store and dropped a wad of cash on even more candy. (I had a salted caramel truffle that was excellent. No picture, though. I ate it too soon.)

I Got Presents!

If you think I'm looking a little more fashionable lately, it's not a trick of the eye. Check out this super cool backpack that Gretl von Schokolat made for me. She made this beautiful bag, complete with Chips Ahoy, Fun Dip and M&M wrappers, from her own wild imagination. Totally cute, right? She is one talented Chiclet.And then today, No-Nuts said, "I have a present for you." I had just driven to the far stretches of Connecticut, along one of the longest, most boring roads you could ever imagine, to dump off her mattress, box spring and bottles of booze she left in my freezer "Collected Works of Shakespeare." Yes, she has flown the coop and entered the real world. So she handed me this bag:Oh how sweet! A Pandora bracelet. Or necklace. Or ring. Or ... a bag of Skittles Fizzl'd Fruits and two very sketchy pieces of candy she got from the international crowd she works with.I've pondered trying the Skittles for a while now, but was never motivated enough to actually seek them out. The flavors are Berry Punch, Melon Berry, Raspberry, Strawberry and Wild Cherry. They look like regular Skittles, except they're covered in a powdery substance that actually does fizzle on your tongue, similar to the center of a Zotz. I thought the Berry Punch was pretty gross, but the other flavors were good. I wouldn't choose these over Sour Patch Kids, but I wouldn't turn them away if someone gave me a package for, say, lugging their crap halfway across the state.
The other two candies have nary a trace of English on them, nor do they have a recognizable fruit. Given my recent experience with international candy, I'm hesitant to try them. I think I'll save them for another night when I'm feeling a bit braver, or after I've had a few shots of Shakespeare.

Old Timey Faves from Cracker Barrel

As previously mentioned, I bought a few goodies for myself at Cracker Barrel. First, Zotz.

The Ice Cube Queen introduced me to Zotz at an early age, and I immediately loved them. If you haven't tried them, they're little lozenge-sized hard candies. Inside is a burst of fizzy sourness (probably having to do with citric acid, I'm sure), and you can't help but pucker when you taste them. I haven't had these in a long time, but they were just as good as I remembered.

Next, a package of Valomilk. I never had these as a kid; apparently they're a Midwest specialty. They're made by Sifers, a small candy company in Kansas that only makes this one product. I suppose you can compare these to Mallo Cups in that 1) they're cups and 2) they have a marshmallowy filling. The difference is 1) The cups are huge-- one is satisfying enough; 2) The chocolate tastes better; 3) There is no toasted coconut, as in a Mallo Cup; and 4) The marshmallow is gooier-- you can't eat these without getting some on your face. I'm surprised these don't have more of a cult following, because they're darn tasty. If you've never had one, go out and try it.

Lastly, I got a pack of Black Jack gum, which is currently being made by Cadbury Adams. It's been a looooong time since I've had this stuff, and I have to say, I was impressed. The licorice flavor was intense; it tasted just like eating a black Twizzler. Better yet, the flavor lasted much longer than I remember it. I'm sure that's a new innovation from the Adams people. Kudos!

All in all, I showed great restraint at the Cracker Barrel store. Perhaps a little too much restraint. The stock in the candy pantry is looking awfully low these days.