Kits and BB Bats: A Fond Farewell

I've been busy working on my ABC paintings of candy and for a while, I was just bopping around the entire alphabet, doing whichever letter suited me at the time. But now I'm getting down to the dregs ... the letters that are giving me somewhat of a challenge.
I've been contemplating "K" for the past few weeks and was trying to decide between Kit Kats or Kits-- those little wax-wrapped squares of taffy. (I've wanted to stay away from name brand candies if at all possible, but in this case, I've been coming up empty handed.) I realized that I didn't know who made Kits, so I set out to do some research.
To make a long story short, I found out that the original creator was Gilliam-- yep, the same company that makes the candy sticks that I just wrote about last week. Then today, Candy Blog had a post about the history of Kits (and the related BB Bats), and sadly, the news is that they're being discontinued.
How can this happen? Kits and BB Bats are iconic American candies. In fact, it was just last summer when I met someone at a party and we had a whole discussion over BB Bats and their pronounciation. She contacted me last week to say she had found some at Cracker Barrel.
It's been a long, long time since I've had Kits or BB Bats, and who knows if I'd even like them at this point in my life, but it's just wrong that they won't be around anymore. This makes me realize how the Kiwis felt when their beloved Snifters were rumored to have been discontinued. (Speaking of which, whatever happened with that?)
Well, now with this news, I definitely have to do "K is for Kits." Anyone have a suggestion for X?

Save the Snifters!

Breaking news! The New Zealand Cupcake Queen has contacted me with this important information:

Some of our beloved lollies (that's candy to us in the U.S.) are being axed and I'm gutted. Sparkles, Snifters and Tangy Fruits lollies are to be no longer produced. Its a sad sad day for the NZ candy lovers. These lollies have been around since I was a kid!You can read all about it in this news article: http://www.stuff.co.nz/4697302a1870.html

There is so much outrage someone has set up a Save the Snifter website: http://www.savethesnifter.co.nz/

I think I need a cup of tea and a lie down after all this drama!!

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New Zealand Cupcake Queen, please accept our condolences. I can only imagine how we'd feel if they decided to discontinue some of our childhood favorites, like Smarties or Necco Wafers or fireballs. Please take care of yourself.

Pineapple Lumps!

OH! I just opened the bag of Pineapple Lumps that the fabulous New Zealand Cupcake Queen sent me and I totally did not expect them to taste the way they do. For some reason, I thought they'd be jellies. I expected to bite into it and it would be soft and sugary, but instead it was nougaty. From the looks of the chocolate coating, these didn't fare as well as the other candies on the trip overseas, so I wonder if the texture is a little off. I'm thinking these are supposed to be a little chewier, not unlike a Charleston Chew, but as they are now, they're sticking to my teeth. In any case, these are very unusual and very yummy. The pineapple flavor is very similar to a pineapple Life Saver, which I totally love.
The package says, "Pineapple Lumps have been available since 1935. They are unique to New Zealand like Jandals, Pavlova and the Haka. Try them from the refrigerator to get that really chewy sensation!"
(I had to look those three things up. Jandals are flip-flops, Pavlova is the meringue cake topped with fruit and the Haka is a traditional Maori dance.)
Thus concludes my New Zealand candy taste test. My conclusion: those Kiwis really know how to make candy!