Happy New Year

I want to thank all of my readers and wish you a Happy New Year!
I will see you again in 2014 with more Candy 'n Stuff!

M&M Gingerbread

Oh boy! Christmas Eve is finally here!
It has been a nice season and there have been much to try and write about.
I really hope Santa brings me some more candy (or stuff) for next year.
I think I have been really good.

Like the previous post, this one is also about gingerbread flavoring.
That nice little candy called M&M has joined the gingerbread league.
And just look at that package, it is so nice.
It definitely has that brown gingerbread color.
And the red M&M in a Santa suit.
With an expression that says: "Yeah, we have gone gingerbread baby!"



The candy comes in three Christmas colors. Red, green and brown.
Red is for Santa.
Green is for the Christmas tree.
And brown is of course for gingerbread.

They have a pretty strange buttery smell.
But gingerbread dough have butter in it so what about the taste?
The taste changes somehow between M&Ms.
Sometimes it taste like gingerbread cookies.
Sometimes like gingerbread dough.
And sometimes like slightly burned gingerbread cookies.
Maybe they are trying to simulate baking gingerbread cookies?
You always burn the first batch, hehe.



I would like to give a special Christmas greeting to Kevin how got these for me. Merry Christmas man!

To all my readers, I would like to wish a...

Boas Festas!
Buon Natale!
Cestitamo Bozic!
Chuc Mung Giang Sinh!
Een Plesierige Kerfees!
Felices Fiestas!
Felices Pascuas!
Feliz Ano Novo!
Feliz Natal!
Feliz Navidad!
Frohe Weihnachten!
Fröhliche Weihnachten!
Gajan Kristnaskon!
Gesëende Kresfees!
Gezur Krislinjden!
Gladelig Jul!
Gledileg Jol!
God Jul!
Glædelig Jul!
Gun Tso Sun Tan'Gung Haw Sun!
Hristos se rodi!
Hyvää Joulua!
I'd Miilad Said Oua Sana Saida!
Joyeux Noël!
Kala Christouyenna!
Kellemes Karacsonyi unnepeket!
Kung His Hsin Nien bing Chu Shen Tan!
Linksmu Kaledu!
Mele Kalikimaka!
Merri kurisumasu!
Merry Christmas!
Mo'adim Lesimkha!
Nadolig Llawen!
Natale hilare!
Noeliniz Ve Yeni Yiliniz Kutlu Olsun!
Priecigus Ziemassvetkus!
Sarbatori Vesele!
Pozdravljaju s prazdnikom Rozjdestva!
Selamat Hari Natal!
Shub Naya Baras!
Sreken Bozhik!
Sretan Bozic!
Srozhdestvom Kristovym!
Vesele vianoce!
Sung Tan Chuk Ha!
Tchestito Rojdestvo Hristovo!
Vrolijk kerstfeest!
Wesolych Swiat Bozego Narodzenia!

Twix Gingerbread

We are nearing us the end of this Christmas season.
And what better than some more gingerbread flavors?
Regular Twix are available in Sweden and they are always nice.
And when I saw these gingerbread flavored ones, I had to have them.
The bag is very gingerbready.
It has the right color and those gingerbread men are just lovely.



These are like regular Twix, but the caramel has been flavored with gingerbread.
There is no real smell of gingerbread unfortunately.
They smell more of regular Twix, which is to say, milk chocolate.
It is really a shame that the cookie bar was not a gingerbread cookie bar.
Because while the caramel does taste like gingerbread.
It is not nearly enough flavor to satisfy my gingerbread cravings.



I would like to take the opportunity to thank Kevin for getting these for me.
Thanks man!

Apotekarnes Årsmust 2013 [Limited Edition]

I know what I said... No more beverages.
But I could not resist this one.
In Sweden we drink a lot of julmust during Christmas.
I do not know how to translate julmust.
The best i found was carbonated Christmas cordial (or sap).
It is a soft drink made from hop and malt extract and different spices.
It is said that only two people know the entire original recipe.



Anyway, this is a vintage limited edition with a special flavoring.
This year, the flavoring is dark chocolate.
Dark chocolate is something I am not that fond of.
At least not when eating it straight up.
So this should be interesting.



It smells like regular julmust.
Which is a sweet smell with a faint smell of beer in the background.
At first it does taste like regular julmust.
But after a while, the flavor transforms.
The taste becomes darker.
There is definitely a chocolate flavor.
It is not totally like dark chocolate.
More like light dark chocolate if that is a thing.
It is actually quite lovely.
Christmas must is a Christmas must!

Hershey's Candy Cane Bar

Here we have the latest Christmas chocolate bar from Hershey's.
This is a white mint chocolate bar with bits of candy cane.
And it is very holly and jolly.
The packaging is very nice.
A plain snow white color with candy cane trimmings.
Simple, but yet, so elegant.



Upon opening the package, you are greeted with a very nice scent.
It is like the scent you get from an actual candy cane.
But in turbo mode. It is very lovely.
I think you could almost use it as a scented candle.



The flavor is very minty and the white chocolate is rich.
While the bits of candy cane are crunchy and makes the whole thing so much better.
Forget about putting out some milk and cookies for Santa.
This chocolate bar is the thing this year.
Santa will thank you with bigger and better presents.

JuleSkum Knäck 2013 [Limited Edition]

You, knew these were coming.
Each year I write about the new marshmallow Santa flavor from Cloetta.
Last year it was Winter Apple and the year before that, Candy Cane.
But this year, the flavor is butterscotch.
Making butterscotch flavored candy is a common tradition in Sweden.
And that is why we have butterscotch flavored Santas this year.



The bag is pretty much the same as the previous two years.
Except its brownish color and Santa seem to be a bit larger.
The Santas are also the same as previous years, but they are now brown.



Upon opening the bag you notice a distinct butterscotch smell.
It is very nice and not as chemical as you would imagine.
The taste is also very much butter scotch, but perhaps not as distinct.
If I would have to choose between these Santas and "real" butterscotch candy.
The "real" candy would definitely win.

Gifflar Gingerbread

Enough with the beverages already. Time for some cake.
Some Austrian croissants to be exact.
Gifflar are a popular treat in Sweden.
With flavors ranging from cinnamon to vanilla to blueberry filling.
It is pretty hard to just eat one (or the whole bag for that matter).
Thus making them not so perfect for sharing.



As far as I can remember, these are new for this years Christmas season.
The bag is very nice, with a gingerbread brown and stars of icing.
There is also a very happy gingerbread on the box.
And you know why he is happy?
Because I bought this bag of course...
Now he is spared and gets to live out his long dream of traveling the world.



Gingerbread smell is the best is it not?
And this bag is full of it. It smells like a bakery in here.
It is not exactly like eating gingerbread cookies.
But it is close. The flavor is very very nice.
And I really starting to feel like Christmas in here.

Loka Pepparkaka

I know what you are thinking. Is he only gonna write about beverages this Christmas?
I promise you. There will be other stuff before Christmas Eve.
Now that that is out of the way, yes this is the third beverage on the Christmas list.
But this one is a weird one.
Gingerbread flavored mineral water.
I do not really like mineral water, but I will make an exception this time.



I must say, I am pretty proud of our Swedish brewery.
To try something like this. Cookie flavored water.
Well, why not? Let us try this jolly water.
The label promises us a wintery taste of gingerbread.
There are also some nice gingerbread trees, as well as some real ones on it.



Opening the bottle, you get that distinct gingerbread smell.
Since I had no gingerbread's in the room, it was a very weird feeling.
The taste is not as distinct as the smell, but it is definitely there.
And yes, drinking it is even more weird.
It was cool and all, but since i really do not like mineral water I will not try it again.

Starbucks Orange Mocha

Like last Christmas, I went to Starbucks to sample their Christmas lattes.
But this year, I was deeply dissappointed.
The Gingerbread Latte and the Toffee Nut Latte was still on the menu.
There was only one new flavor. The Orange Mocha.
Now oranges are a big part of Christmas here in Sweden.
But still, I was expecting something else.
Still, one new flavor is better than zero new flavors.



It has a faint orange smell, mixed with the coffee-chocolate smell.
I do not know if the whipped cream and chocolate sauce really is necessary.
At first the taste is pretty nice, like a Terry's chocolate orange.
But after a few sips, the orange flavor takes a chemical turn.
And really assaults your taste buds.
It is to much, to sweet and to little Christmas.
I had to buy another beverage to get rid of the after taste.

Pepsi White

When you review this much goodness, you can get a bit thirsty.
Good thing the Japanese Santas over at Pepsi Japan has a Christmas themed soda.
This is a snow white, tangerine flavored soda.
What is a tangerine?
Well, it is a orange-colored citrus fruit which kind of tastes like a mandarin orange.
I can not remember if there is any difference in the taste because I have not eaten tangerine in a while.



The bottle is adorned with six different snow(wom)men.
I got a hold of the one with a snowoman that has a spiffy little hat.
She looks really happy to be on my soda today.
And I am happy to have here on this blog.
As I wrote before, the liquid is supposed to be snow white colored.
And I think it looks very cold and wintery.



The soda smells a lot of citrus fruits. It is a very refreshing smell.
It has a very citrusy taste which is also refreshing.
I do not know about other countries, but here in Sweden citrus fruits are very much Christmas.
So I think this soda is very nice to try at Christmas.

I have included a picture of all of the different bottles.

Peeps Gingerbread Flavoured Marshmallow Gingerbread Men

Wow, what a name. And it contains the word gingerbread twice.
These have to be more Christmas than Santa.
Peeps are marshmallow candies that comes in all shapes and flavors.
Theses are (you guessed it), gingerbread flavored.



The package is very nice.
Its graphics is a gingerbread house with a little window where the Peeps can peep at you.
The package contains six gingerbread men.
Some of my Peeps were not that well made and they look a bit weird.
But I will not let that ruin my Christmas spirit.



They have a very deep smell of gingerbread cookies.
Which is very nice. I like that smell.
They taste very much like gingerbread cookies.
Like soft versions of gingerbread cookies.
These really made my Christmas season better.

Sia Pepparkaka [Limited Edition]

Let us start this Christmas season with something chilly (get it?).
Ice cream is maybe something you would not normally associate with Christmas.
But this is special extra jolly Christmas ice cream.
This is gingerbread flavored ice cream.
The Santas at Sia Glass (glass = ice cream) has been very nice to us.
As far as I know, I have never seen or heard of gingerbread ice cream before.



The ice cream itself is actually gingerbread flavored.
And it also has bits of gingerbread for added merriment.
It is partially gingerbread colored, which is a shame.
I would have wanted it to be darker.
But one present is better than zero presents.



The package is kind of basic. But all packages of Sia ice cream is like this.
A white box with the Sia logo and the product in the middle.
Not that merry or jolly but it will do.
It has a nice smell of gingerbread.
It actually makes the room smell a bit and that is a first for ice cream.

This is good, so good. The flavor is so good!
Who would have thought that an ice cream flavored with gingerbread would be this good.
It is sweet and does not have that burnt flavor you sometimes get from gingerbread.
I hope they bring this one back.

Roast Turkey & Chestnut Stuffing Hand Cooked Potato Crisps

Another one? This is not like me.
But it is thanksgiving and i though I should be generous and share.
Thanksgiving is all about the food.
And a must is roast turkey with stuffing.



I do not ever think I have had turkey crisps before.
Nor chestnut flavored for that matter.
But why not?
The bag is kind of, well basic.
It has a nice picture, but that is about it.



They do actually smell a bit like turkey, but not like chestnuts.
The crisps are very crispy and have a nice roasted flavor.
They do not really taste like turkey (or chestnuts).
More like roasted meat.

Have a great thanksgiving!

Brie & Cranberry Hand Cooked Potato Crisps

Thanksgiving you say?
Well, then I say... Cranberries!
No thanksgiving dinner is complete without cranberries.
I do not really know the importance of brie.
Maybe they go hand in hand together?
I should try it for real.



I do not know what they smell like, regular potato crisps?
There is nothing distinct about the smell.
But the taste. They are very sweet.
Cranberries are sweet, but they are also sour.
Maybe it is the combination with the brie cheese that makes them so sweet.
Maybe it is just the food additives.

Cap'N Crunch's Cinnamon Roll Crunch Cereal

Before we begin with all this Christmas business.
I need some breakfast.
And why not some really "healthy" cereal?
This is not my first time trying Cap'N Crunch's cereal.
More reviews are sure to come.





Some people eat cereals for breakfast, some eat cinnamon rolls.
And why not combine the two?
This cereal is supposed to infuse the taste and sensation of eating cinnamon rolls.
From the cinnamon taste to the creamy frosting.



Upon opening the package, the room is filled with a nice cinnamon roll scent.
It is almost like you just took some newly baked rolls from the oven.
Filling a bowl with cereal and some milk made the cereal crackle a bit.
They are pretty nice and tastes a lot of cinnamon.
Although I can not taste the frosting, it is almost like eating cinnamon rolls.

Saturnus 1893 Med Smak Av Hallon & Lakrits

We are now halfway between Halloween and the Christmas season.
And what better way, than to celebrate with a kind of hybrid.
I have written before that mulled wine is a big part of Christmas here in Sweden.
And mulled wine is what we have here.
But for some reason it is flavored with something I wrote about on Halloween last year.
Hallon-Lakrits-Skallar. Or Raspberry Licorice Skulls in English.
Yes, this mulled wine is flavored with a Halloween candy (sort of).
I do not really know what went through their heads when creating it.
But it must have been both something sinister and jolly.



The packaging is pretty standard.
The company, some text and the aforementioned candy at the bottom.
Nothing fancy.
The liquid is a very dark red color.
And has a smell of regular mulled wine but also a hint of raspberry and licorice.
It is quite weird. Because it is nothing you would expect from mulled wine.
But what about the taste? Is it more jolly than sinister?
Well, no. It is very strange.
There is of course the taste of regular mulled wine.
But also a strong taste of candy, raspberry/licorice candy.
It is a bit to sweet actually.



Now I think I have to go watch Nightmare Before Christmas.
It is also an hybrid och Halloween and Christmas.

Mountain Dew White Out

Mountain Dew White Out was the final victor of a flavor testing in 2009.
Out of the three finalists, this was the one most voted by testers.
And with good rights, because it is very nice.



White Out is a citrus version of the regular Mountain Dew.
I do like the can, it is very arctic.
Which is also the theme of the liquid itself.
Which is almost snow white.



It has a very nice light citrus smell that makes the whole room smell nice.
And the flavor? So refreshing.
Lots of citrus flavor, but not stingy or tangy.
Just nice and refreshing citrus flavor.
One of my favorites.