REVIEW: Snickers Butterscotch Scoop

One scoop or two? One square or two?

For Snickers fans this summer, these questions are practically one and the same. After the reappearance of its Rockin’ Nut Road flavor, Snickers has released a new candy inspired by the ice cream parlor: Butterscotch Scoop, a limited edition flavor exclusive to Walmart stores.

Snickers Butterscotch Scoop consists of peanuts, caramel, and butterscotch-flavored nougat enrobed in a milk chocolate coating. It is available as a single-size pack, which includes twin confectionary squares, or a stand-up pouch with fun size bars.

As someone who will choose butterscotch for her sundae topping nine times out of ten, I was thrilled to see Snickers honor this underrated sweet. Outside of ice cream, pudding, and the candy dishes of the elderly, butterscotch is a goldmine of unfulfilled junk food potential. Additionally, as someone whose local ice cream shops do not offer butterscotch at least seven times out of ten, I feared that my experience with this Snickers would remind me of these failed searches, which inevitably end with the bitter taste of melted hope dripping on my sneakers.

The unwrapped Snickers smelled exactly like an ice cream parlor, that buttery vanilla scent eliciting visions of waffle cones and sprinkles. As much as I love the familiar formula of a Snickers bar, I only had eyes and taste buds in that moment for the butterscotch-flavored nougat. The star of the bar didn’t disappoint. It tasted like the butterscotch of my dashed summer ice cream stand dreams, a perfect medley of brown sugar and butter flavors. Contrary to my expectations, the nougat wasn’t sweeter than what you’d find in a standard Snickers. Avoiding the syrupy sweetness sometimes associated with butterscotch contributes to the bar’s success.

The milk chocolate, peanuts, and caramel are obviously treasures in their own right, and we know we cannot love Snickers without loving them. I do think the Snickers Butterscotch Scoop would have benefited from fewer or smaller peanut pieces. Although their crunch is wonderful, the peanuts sometimes overpowered the butterscotch flavor. Peanut lovers may disagree here, but those who do are probably lucky enough to live near ice cream parlors that do not deprive them of butterscotch. I examined two bars (with two squares per bar, that’s four squares total, for anyone who is still in summer school), and each piece had a similar ratio of fillings. I’d be interested to know if the fun size bars are structured the same way, or if they privilege the nougat.

Despite this minor gripe, my answer to the question posed at the beginning of this review is, “Two, please!” Snickers Butterscotch Scoop is a deliciously buttery sweet twist on the original bar. This fan will banish butterscotch hard candies from her candy dish indefinitely for another scoop of Snickers.

Purchased Price: $1.24
Size: 1.41 oz (40 g) bar
Purchased at: Walmart (store exclusive)
Rating: 8 out of 10
Nutrition Facts: 200 calories, 10 grams of fat, 3.5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, less than 5 milligrams of cholesterol, 100 milligrams of sodium, 26 grams of carbohydrates, 1 gram of fiber, 22 grams of sugar (including 20 grams of added sugar), and 4 grams of protein.