The Fizzary

Never in my wildest soda dreams did I ever imagine a place like The Fizzary existed. Years of seeking out special brands on the Internet dulled my soda senses and with that I lost my edge; my ability to go grass roots and uncover flavors hidden in bodegas and high-end grocery stores in every area I visited. I thought finding sodas from across the country would mean a trip across the country. Never did I fathom a store, a beautiful little store, could offer me this and so much more.






The Fizzary is a Graceland of mind-blowing proportions for soda fans and worth a pilgrimage to Haight Street in San Francisco. The sign on the wall says it all: 900 Flavors. 900 flavors!!! I couldn't and still can't believe it. 900 flavors...and I only had 2 hours before a flight to drink what I could because I firmly believe if I drank what I wanted the gas bubbles in my body would expand and cause me to literally explode once the airplane ascended to 10,000 feet. Instead I opted for four bottles (because the nice clerk told me buy three and get one free!).

With 900 to chose from and not a great deal of time I formulated the plan to try two cherry colas (possibly my favorite soda), a cream soda and a root beer. I wanted to see what sparked my interest as well as what I should try based on geographical limitations that could prevent me from obtaining the same soda brand at a later date. For the cream soda I picked Waialua Soda Works from Hawaii since the likelihood of going to Hawaii soon was small. My root beer was Crater Lake from Oregon, another location far from my home. My two cherry colas were closer, Cicero Beverages Cherry Cola out of the Windy City and Squamscot Cherry Cola from New Hampshire. I'll save my reviews for a later date because this post really belongs to The Fizzary.

The soda selection is overwhelming and it would take weeks to truly sample all The Fizzary has to offer. For those reading this that are irked by the idea that these bottles are warm, The Fizzary has a solution: a chiller that cools soda bottles in four minutes by submerging them in a bath of cold water so if the soda you would like to taste is not located in one of the two refrigerated coolers you can still walk out sipping your beverage of choice. Every wall is lined with shining bottles of soda and arranged by flavor, such as colas, orange sodas, root beers, etc. There is even an area for ones that can't be categorized as well as one for foreign sodas.


The Fizzary also offers a selection of candy, naturally, for those bozos who want to get an extremely ecliptic sugar high on. One candy that surprised me was Super Ropes, 34" of licorice I have not had in years. But my main focus here was the soda and when it comes to soda The Fizzary can not be topped. A true store for soda aficionados and my first stop the next time I am in San Francisco.

Peeps Party Cake

Cake, cake, cake, cake, cake, cake, cake, cake, cake,
 cake, cake, cake, cake, cake, cake...

 

I danced around my room and sang Birthday Cake immediately after tearing open the new Peeps Party Cake flavored marshmallows for one reason and one reason only: it felt right. Peeps delivers another solid new flavor with Party Cake and they are as delicious as any other Peep flavor out there. Classic Peeps are still a favorite candy of mine and the brand has come a long way in my lifetime, growing from an Easter specialty to a candy for all holidays. A coworker of mine informed me about a ginger bread flavor, a flavor I missed, but her enthusiasm showed me that Peeps had also succeeded with that new offering as well.

Texture and taste are the keys to Peeps. True candy aficionados reading that will instantly think about the Peep texture, a mouthful of marshmallow coated in fine, colored sugar. These aficionados might also think about a Peep that has been out of the package for a day and growing hint of staleness that crisps the sugary outside a fraction while keeping the marshmallow fluffy inside. But I digress. The Party Cake peeps are an instant classic. They taste like cake without an overload of frosting. They are something different and a must try. Peeps just hit me with a Party Cake bomb I want to bite and it's not even my birthday.

...it's not even my birthday.

Blue Meth Candy

"Say my name." - Walter White

FOTB and overall superstar Melissa again comes through with a delicious treat right from her own kitchen: blue meth candy. While brainstorming ideas for her daughter's birthday cake she decided on a Disney's Frozen cake and what better way to make Elsa's palace from the movie than clear blue hard candy. One of the benefits of being Melissa's friend is that the hard candy she made to practice in preparation for the final cake becomes a treat for me and the rest of her friends. Fans of the show Breaking Bad will also see a little bit of Walt's blue meth in the look, color and glass-like pieces that make up this wonderful treat. The taste is pretty good too and likened to a Jolly Rancher watermelon, although I detect a hint of something else in there, maybe even blueberry. Although, that could be the meth talking.

Hooker Mountain Farm Rock Maple Cream Soda

FOTB Melissa again contributes to the blog in a major way by transporting a bottle of Hooker Mountain Farm Rock Maple Cream Soda back over the border and delivering said bottle into my grateful hands. Rock Maple Cream Soda? Sounds like they combined syrup and soda, right? Right? Looking at the bottle, that is EXACTLY what they've done.

Who you ask? The folks at Hooker Mountain Farm. They make a line of sodas including cream soda, root beer, spruce and lime, orange cream, blackberry and mulled cider. Interesting flavors. I'm intrigued. Let's do this.

Popping the bottle there is no strong odor except the smallest hint of spice. This concerns me so I take the first sip and find nothing. Oddly, the flavor of the soda is not overtly present and barely brushes the taste buds as it flows flatly across the tongue. The expectation of sugary syrup mixed with cream soda is crushed beneath a liquid that lacks sweetness, creaminess, and bubbles. From the soda perspective, I can be extremely negative because this might be one of the least flavorful sodas I've ever sipped. However, that does not make it a bad beverage. Looking back, that first scent that emulates from the bottle is the fire maple syrup. It's slightly smokey. The lack of bubbles hurts it as a soda but the spice and that indistinct smokiness combine to form an adult beverage, a drink for those looking for minimal sweetness and limited carbonation.


Overall Taste: 5.0 - Not for me, but I think I know a few who might like it.
Fizz Factor - 2.5 - Not even sure this one is carbonated.
Appearance - 4.0 - Clearer than you would expect but the bottle screams Vermont-made.
Flavor - 6.5 - Here is where I will concede that this is something unique. I've never had a beverage like this and honestly plan to recommend it to a few friends that do not appreciate soda and its bubbly personality.

Skittles Desserts

A dessert fitting for Marshawn Lynch

It is difficult for a classic candy like Skittles to come out with a flavor that could dethrone the original in overall taste and craveability and while Skittles Desserts is not an exception to this rule, this new offering is still a contender in the Skittles non-original flavors arena. Just the concept, "dessert flavored Skittles", is appealing and looking at the line-up of flavors, I'm excited for the strawberry milkshake.

The pink strawberry milkshake is joined by a blue blueberry tart, a green key lime pie, red raspberry sorbet and lastly, another favorite, an orange orange creme. When I tear the bag open my senses are bombarded by a sweet cloud of dessert fragrance. It is difficult to pinpoint a specific candy in that sugary poof but it is a perfect invitation to the bite size candies inside.

From left to right: blueberry tart, raspberry sorbet, orange creme,
key lime pie, and strawberry milkshake

Taking them one by one, I'm going to start with the blueberry tart. It has a strong blueberry taste that is a little tart, but not sour, and delivers a solid taste throughout. But blueberry is not my favorite, so moving on to the raspberry I need to say off the cuff that I like the color, a red that befits a raspberry and not a cherry. The flavor is strong and almost envelops the mouth as soon as the teeth crack the hard candy shell. It's like a little raspberry exploded in your mouth, but with more sugar. The key lime pie, is the exact opposite. It takes a few chews to really get the taste. Saving the best two for last, we'll take the orange creme first. Is it creme, or cream? Whatever. This one is spot on. Now, I have to make the disclaimer that nothing in my mind compares to an orange cream popsicle in orange cream taste and I have never really cared for orange cream candy. Sadly, this is true here as well but this candy is delicious. The orange cream is strong and you get a quick hint of it as your tongue brushes across the candy shell.

I'm going to make a few bold statements now. I love strawberry milkshakes. I love the strawberry milkshake Skittles Desserts flavor. It is the best flavor in the bag. Not only that, I can liken the taste to that of a Starburst strawberry fruit chew, which is a top candy flavor all-time. With that said, these are a must try for any candy fan. Not only are they a new Skittles flavor but I can definitively say that the strawberry milkshake has the potential to be a classic flavor, one that I hope they combine with other, more appetizing flavors.

Cherri and Bubb and Lem and Mel

Today is a day I reclaim a piece of my childhood. This afternoon in the mail arrived three packages each of Mike and Ike's Cherri and Bubb and Lem and Mel flavors. Candies I have not consumed in 15 years, maybe more. Not only that, it is my favorite candy of all time: cherry Mike and Ikes.

Cherri, Bubb, Lem and Mel - my childhood amigos

I was clued in to the availability of these candies by FOTB Shamus, who found them on Amazon. I have searched the Internet for these candies and based on keywords bringing individuals to this blog, I am not alone. Well I guess all our searching and seeking have finally paid off as on the back of each box it reads, "Now this delicious candy is back again by popular demand."

There are no words I can speak that describe my love for Cherri and Bubb. The fact that they are half my favorite candy (cherry Mike and Ikes, again) is equal to the fact that Just Born combined two flavors, both lovable flavors on their own, and unknowingly created one of the best combinations in sugary goodness the world has or ever will see. Fact!

Lem and Mel might be my other favorite of the Mike and Ike two-flavor combinations mainly due to the watermelon flavor. I think the Red Rageous flavor also boasts a watermelon flavor but here the color of the candy is green, like an actual watermelon. Ha, Mike and Ike should have called this flavor "waterlemon."

Candy fans rejoice, the day has come! Casual candy consumers go out and get these. Based on the box it looks like Just Born is bringing them back so let's cross our fingers that we start seeing these on the store shelves and not just from online retailers.

Life Savers Candy Canes

Day Three: Life Savers Candy Canes

Another highly anticipated candy cane is Life Savers. They are already a hard candy, so the transition to a cane form should not be a stretch. A second reason? Pineapple Life Savers are in my Top 10 favorite candies. If you take a closer look, two pineapple Life Saver candy canes sit in this rainbow of fruit flavors, by far the widest selection of any of the canes in this tasting.

That range of colors gives these canes a quality appearance and each flavor is a different color. Individually each color is nothing special but when taken as a whole, it is nice to have five different patterns to choose to eat. There is even a pink (cherry) and a darker red (raspberry) and the greens (lime) stand out to completely fit the season's color theme.

Getting right to tasting them (because I can't stop myself any longer) there are a few substantial comments to make concerning their rankings. First, you have to take each flavor into consideration. Second, they shouldn't just be a candy cane shaped hard candy, they need to be a candy cane version of a Life Saver. So, are they? And the answer is surprisingly yes. Take the raspberry and cherry for example. They taste exactly like their hard candy counterparts, but have slow crunch of a candy cane compared to the pop of a hard candy. The pineapple has the pineapple flavor, but isn't a perfect replica of the hard candy while the other two flavors taste slightly plain, just like their Life Saver versions. All have the right texture.

From left to right: Cherry, Lime, Orange, Pineapple, Raspberry
Rating: HO-HO

These are tasty, flat out, but the cherry is a stand out. For this reason I'm starting to wonder about this whole tasting. At the very beginning, a coworker and I were discussing what the flavor of traditional fruity candy canes is and the answer was cherry. With these Life Savers cherry candy canes being the closest to that flavor of the canes tested so far, it is making me think that nothing new, none of the new candy flavored candy canes, are going to compare to the original. I won't give up, but I might stock up on some cheap cherry canes before they are off the shelves.

These however, get a HO-HO rating. Something fun to try for the season and enough variation to make each cane an interesting experience!