That's a wrap!

I couldn't wait to eat these candies before taking their picture, so you're getting the wrappers.
First off, a gumball from Halloween. I'd been saving it and recently found it in the back of the pantry closet when the Sugar Baby decided to play "store" and unloaded every box, bag and canned good into the living room. I wanted to try the gum because the wrapper said teaberry, and I love teaberry gum. As it turns out, it wasn't teaberry flavored, it was just made by Clark's Teaberry. What a disappointment. I don't even know where it came from. I've never seen them before, and a quick Google search yielded nothing. Kinda creepy, actually.
Next up, a little box of Italian nougat. I love nougat. Why is it so hard to find? I love the little box.
And lastly, the Sugar Baby snagged this Savannah Blueberry Dum Dum from the basket at the local over-priced but family-oriented grocery store. His lips and teeth were blue, and my car reeked of blueberry. And speaking of Dum Dums, over at their website, they're having a flavor face-off beginning March 15. Let's go butterscotch!

Assorted Miscellany

Here's a bit of trivia for you: a 4-ounce box of Swedish Fish is enough to fill a small wine glass. I took a trip to the dollar store today and I'm in the process of trying to figure out exactly how much candy I'd need if I wanted to have a truly glorious candy buffet for my birthday. I might have to call in No-Nuts to take on this mathematical challenge. Needless to say, it's going to take a whole lot more than a few boxes of Swedish Fish if I hope to make any sort of visual impact. Maybe I should just stick with little net bags of Jordan almonds.
Another good tip to keep handy: 40 snack-size Butterfingers are enough to make a very large sign that says "40." More on that later.In other news, I haven't been posting as much lately because of the heat and all, but to make up for it, I have two exciting giveaways coming up. You won't want to miss these, so stay tuned.
And last but not least: today the Sugar Baby learned "ROYGBIV" by grouping together Dum Dums. Now who says candy isn't educational?

Still Life with Marshmallows and Lollipop

"Who did this?" I heard Mr. Goodbar say from the living room last night.
Uh-oh. I was expecting something like marker on the sofa or the cat dressed in pajamas.
Instead, we found this sitting on a little chair. Apparently a still life crafted by the Sugar Baby before he went to bed.

In the Red: Cherry Dum Dums are the Shizz

As I've mentioned before, Dum Dums have become quite a commodity in this house; they are the ultimate potty training tool. After reaching a successful goal, the Sugar Baby stands on a step stool in the kitchen and anxiously awaits the big bag of lollipops. He looks very carefully before choosing his precious reward. The thing is, he's all about red. So all the cherry pops went first, then the bubblegum and cherry cola. "We have to get more red ones," he keeps saying. It then occurred to me to look at the Dum Dums website to see if they actually do sell single flavors in bulk. Well, they do, but only flavors that are about to be discontinued. For $5.20, you can get a box of 120 pops in buttered popcorn, pink lemonade or cherry cola. (I haven't tried the popcorn, but I really dig the pink lemonade ones.) In the meantime, the Sugar Baby will have to try the other flavors. (He actually seems to have a fondness for the coconut ones.)

The Spangler website is pretty cool. You can order the usual T-shirts and mugs, but you can also vote on your favorite future flavor. The options they're offering are: apple pie, blueberry, cranberry, french toast, honeydew, pumpkin, peach and toasted marshmallow. Personally, I'd vote for honeydew and toasted marshmallow, although pumpkin might be interesting.

D is for Dum-Dums

Great uses for Dum-Dum lollipops:
1) Cat toy. Put one on a slick surface and watch the kitty bat it around.
2) Potty training incentive. They're the perfect small treat. (That, or a single M&M).
3) Playing a miniature drum.

I heart Dum Dums

I have a new-found respect for Dum Dums. In the past, I've always given them D-list status in the whole candy hierarchy, but my thoughts are changing. Why, you ask? First of all, I tried a tangerine one the other day. It tasted just like a tangerine Life Saver. (Remember those?!) Yum.

Second, I realized they make a great distraction for an ornery 2-year-old who's been stuck in a car seat for six hours. Nothing makes time go by like a cherry Dum Dum. And bonus for me-- because they're so small, I don't have to worry about him having too much sugar or choking.

So three cheers for Dum Dums! Hooray!

And I've posted this before, but I'll do it again, since it's such fun trivia: there are two ways that the "mystery flavor" Dum Dum is created. One, any of the pops that miss getting wrapped on the machine are given a mystery wrapper. Two, the mystery pops are a combination of two flavors, created when they switch the flavors on the machine. Cool!

Even More Pop Trivia!

I got an e-mail from my own private Slugworth, a dude named Thomas who works at the Spangler factory. He sent me this super-secret tidbit about Dum Dums:



There are actually two ways that the mystery pops are made. The first is just as you described. The second is that as the dum dums come down the chutes to be packed in bags, there is one last person that sorts through them. If there happened to be some that have come unwrapped, they save them to be re-wrapped. In an effort to save time rather than sort them all out, they are all rewrapped as mystery flavor.

Aha! So how about that! Very cool. Thanks for the info, Thomas! And speaking of Dum Dums, I realized that my local liquor store has a big basket of them at the exit. I snagged a Pineapple Coconut one, hoping to save it for posterity, since that flavor is being discontinued. Unfortunately, the Sugar Baby fished it out of my bag and popped it in his mouth before I could get to him.

Pop Trivia

I came across some interesting trivia today: the "mystery" flavor Dum Dum is actually a combination of two flavors. It's created when one flavor switches to another on the machinery. How bout that!
And here's some more info about everyone's favorite wee lollipop: in February, two new flavors were added, mango and tangerine. Sadly, chocolate, banana and coconut-pineapple will retire.

Fun Fact!

Dum Dums make most excellent cat toys.

Bar None is back! (And other candy news)

Well, not really. But the new Nestle Crunch Crisp is pretty damn close to the Bar None of my memory. I first heard about this new bar from William at Chocolate Obsession, where he described it as the "horrific love child of a Nestle Crunch and Kit Kat." Love that! So I had to try it. Oh YUM! It was crispy wafers and chocolatey cream and crunchy stuff. It's not crunchy enough to "feel" like a Nestle Crunch and the chocolate cream pushes aside any Kit Kat references. I really dig this bar. I will admit, though, that I tried it after a few glasses of champagne, so it could be that I'm totally off-base. Guess I'll just have to try it again to be sure.
In other candy news, apparently Dum Dums are having a contest where you can enter to have a lollipop flavor named after you (or your kid). I can't think of any "H" flavors to go with Henri, though.
And this is pretty exciting, although it's not candy-related: the banana Twinkie is back! Apparently this is the summer of banana. I thought Twinkies were going to be discontinued for some reason, but I guess not. I haven't kept up on the news. But I have a vague recollection of banana Twinkies from when I was a kid, although naturally I always preferred a Chocodile, which was a Twinkie-like cake covered in chocolate.