Trader Joe’s Spooky Bats & Cats Sour Gummy
I normally try not to buy anything from Trader Joe’s, because I think it is a grocery store for babies with zero quality control in both its fresh and prepared offerings. But its gummy candy is undeniable: I would reach for a pack of “Scandinavian Swimmers” before a box of Swedish Fish. On a recent trip to TJ’s, I discovered a new, Halloween-themed offering: “Spooky Bats & Cats.” These are basically awesome, and have the texture—inside and out—of gumdrops without giving you a spice induced headache. Instead, they are a pleasurable mix of sweet and sour with fun shapes to match. There are three colors (flavors) of bat and cat: green (apple), orange (orange), and, my favorite, purple (grape).
Coca-Cola Zero Sugar OREO Limited Edition Soda and OREO Coca-Cola Sandwich Cookies Limited Edition
Two years ago, Coca-Cola announced its “Creations” series, which was designed to “take the iconic Coca-Cola trademark and lend it to new expressions, driven by collaboration, creativity and cultural connections.”
What ensued was a barrage of newly branded Coca-Cola beverages that all kind of tasted the same, like aspartame, raspberry, marshmallow, mango, but most of all, Coca-Cola. I thought this project was fun and interesting, as I do most projects that Coca-Cola, Frito-Lay, and their corporate snack food contemporaries embark upon. But I quickly grew tired of the indistinct new “flavors,” as well as the supply chain timing with which these flavors made it to New York City (routinely a month after they first hit Krogers of the Midwest).
News of Coca Cola x Oreos, however, delighted me as though I was learning about a new flavor of Celsius. Finally, a collaboration worth trying. Perhaps due to the joint power of Mondelez and Coca-Cola, I was able to find both the beverage and snack food very quickly.
The drink is lackluster: Coke Zero with a weak chocolatey aftertaste. It is not bad, and mostly inoffensive, but does not nearly live up to a standard set by the last great, new Coca-Cola product (Coca-Cola with Coffee, Dark Blend).
The cookies are another story. They look and taste like something a six-year-old would concoct: “I wish there were Oreos and they tasted like Coca-Cola but also they tasted like my favorite frosted animal crackers and they are the Coca-Cola colors and they have a Coke bottle on them but also they’re filled with pop rocks so that they’re spicy like drinking soda.” In this way, they’re transportative to a time when you weren’t actually allowed to eat a whole box (Carton? Sleeve? I’m not really sure what to call the vessel they are usually sold in—a plastic tray enrobed in more flimsy plastic) of Oreos, so you did not. If you tried to eat more than three of these in one sitting, you might feel sick. They are good.