SPOTTED ON SHELVES – 12/17/2012

Here are some interesting new and limited edition products found on store shelves by us and your fellow readers.

Limited Edition Marshmallow Pebbles Starring Barney

This is the second Limited Edition Marshmallow Pebbles box we’ve featured here with the first being the Wilma Flintstone box. From the looks of it, Post will probably have Betty Rubble and Dino boxes, but I hope Post releases a super limited edition Pearl Slaghoople box. (Spotted by Cortney at Walmart.)

YoCrunch Vanilla Yogurt and Applesauce

Maybe it’s just me, but it feels like YoCrunch added the words “Terrific Taste Combo” to the packaging specifically to convince shoppers that the combination of yogurt and applesauce isn’t as weird as it sounds. (Spotted by Stefanie at Walmart.)

Green Giant Casseroles

I will not eat them with an evil coven. I will not eat them from an oven. I will not eat them with a horny stag. I will not eat them from a microwaveable bag. I will not eat green bean casserole. Oh, no. Oh, hell no. (Spotted by Marvo at Safeway.)

International Delight Caramel Macchiato Iced Coffee

International Delight has a new half-gallon carton iced coffee flavor — Caramel Macchiato. I’m waiting for Starbucks to come out with their own iced coffee in a half-gallon carton. But instead of calling it a half-gallon, I hope they call it gigantesco. (Spotted by Marvo at Safeway.)

Kidfresh Frozen Entrees

According to the Kidfresh website, “Because most children don’t eat enough vegetables, each of our fresh frozen meals are full of hidden veggies that have been pureed and snuck in. Shhh…don’t tell the kids!” Well, if Kidfresh is trying to be secretive about it, maybe they shouldn’t have highlighted “with hidden veggies” on the front of the box. (Spotted by Marvo at Safeway.)

Thank you to all the photo contributors! If you’re out shopping and see an interesting new or limited edition product on the shelf (or really unusual), snap a picture of it, and send us an email ([email protected]) with where you found it and “Spotted” in the subject line. If you do so, you might see your picture in our next Spotted on Shelves post.

SPOTTED ON SHELVES (HOLIDAY EDITION) – 12/14/2012

Here are some interesting new and limited edition holiday products found on store shelves by us and your fellow readers.

Jet-Puffed SnowmanMallows French Vanilla

Jet-Puffed GingerbreadMallows

MoreMallows! But I’d really like to see artificially flavored EggnogMallows and CinnaMallows. (Spotted by Stefanie at Walmart.)

Candy Cane Pop Rocks

With these Candy Cane Pop Rocks, I can make my breath kissable, but the popping may make my mouth super unkissable. Or, for some of you, super kissable if you like swapping spit with a side of mini explosions. Here’s a Candy Cane Pop Rocks review. (Spotted by Lauren at Safeway.)

West Soy Chocolate Pepperming Stick Soy Beverage

“Serve warm or chilled”? I need West Soy to be a little more specific with “warm.” Do they mean room temperature? If that’s the case, the box might as well say, “Serve chilled or at temperature that makes you regret you didn’t serve it chilled.”
(Spotted by Audrey at Whole Foods.)

Rondele Limited Edition Gourmet Spreadable Cheese

President Rondelé Limited Edition Cranberry Orange Gourmet Spreadable Cheese and President Rondelé Limited Edition Pumpkin & Spice Gourmet Spreadable Cheese allow me to make a sentence that’s way longer than it should be. (Spotted by Linda at Fresh & Easy.)

Twinings Keurig Tea

To make your Keurig look more festive this time of year, you could wrap it in Christmas lights and tinsel; give it a red, white, and green paint job; put it back in its original box, cover it with holiday wrapping paper, and put a bow on it; or put a supply of these Twinings Christmas and Winter Spice teas next to it. The Tea Review Blog reviewed both flavors. (Spotted by Audrey at Harris Teeter.)

Thank you to all the photo contributors! If you’re out shopping and see an interesting new or limited edition product on the shelf (or really unusual), snap a picture of it, and send us an email ([email protected]) with where you found it and “Spotted” in the subject line. If you do so, you might see your picture in our next Spotted on Shelves post.

NEWS: Pepsi and Lay’s in China Team Up For Cola Chicken Flavored Potato Chips

Holy crap! China has had Pepsi Cola chicken-flavored Lay’s potato chips since August!

According to AdAge:

Cola chicken is a common recipe in China, with chicken wings tossed into a wok and caramelized in soy sauce, spices and cola. In potato-chip form, the flavor is vaguely similar to barbecue with a sugary aftertaste. If there’s any hint of Pepsi, it’s fleeting and lacks fizz.

Now that I know there’s a Chinese dish called cola chicken, I hope Panda Express offers an Americanized version of it really soon.

Here’s the TV commercial for the cola chicken-flavored chips:

SPOTTED ON SHELVES – 12/12/2012

Here are some interesting new and limited edition products (and occasionally odd products) found on store shelves by us and your fellow readers.

Kozy Shack Soda Shoppe

I wonder if I can suck this Kozy Shack Soda Shoppe Root Beer Float pudding through a straw. If it’s possible, I hope to recreate a 1950s date by sticking two straws in it so that I can share it with my lady friend. (Spotted by Leah at Walmart.)

Dasani Drops

Finally! Something by Dasani that can make Dasani water not taste so much like Dasani water. (Spotted by Marvo at Safeway.)

GoGo Squeez Fast Fruit

You’ve probably seen the squeezable fruit pouches for children at your local grocery store. Well, now there’s squeezable fruit pouches for adults. So where’s the adult juice pouches, Capri Sun? (Spotted by Marvo at Target.)

Flavor Your Own Gourmet Potato Chips

Do you want pizza or chili cheese fries-flavored potato chips? You can now have some through gradual gratification by baking or microwaving your own. Read more about these chips here. (Spotted by Tabitha at Kroger.)

Monterey Jill

Lucerne Monterey Jill cheese has been around for a while, but I still haven’t seen Pepper Jill and Colby Jill cheeses. (Spotted by Shanon at Safeway.)

If you’re out shopping and see an interesting new or limited edition product on the shelf (or really unusual), snap a picture of it, and send us an email ([email protected]) with where you found it and “Spotted” in the subject line. If you do so, you might see your picture in our next Spotted on Shelves post.

REVIEW: Pepsi Special (Japan)

Pepsi Special (Japan)

Look at Japan’s Pepsi Special.

Having the word “special” on its label makes it soooo special.

Well, do you know who else was labeled “special”?

Me.

Oh sure, Japanese scientists did research on dextrin, which is in Pepsi Special, and learned that it prevented rats from absorbing the fat they ate and because of that the cola has been designated as a “Food for Specified Health Uses” by the Japanese government.

Well, I aced several tests in the first grade that involved reading at a higher level than all my other classmates, being able to put the square block into the square hole, and drawing trees that looked like trees, all of which designated me for a gifted and talented class.

But look at me now. I could’ve been a doctor, lawyer, pharmaceutical salesperson, or an actor who plays a doctor, lawyer or pharmaceutical salesperson, but the only real accomplishments I’ve had are barely graduating from college, not getting arrested for anything, eating an entire large Pizza Hut pepperoni pizza in one sitting, and not having watched a minute of James Cameron’s Titanic.

I don’t know if the pressure of being labeled as “special” got to me or the years of praise caused my ego to become so large that my arrogance destroyed almost every meaningful relationship I’ve had, leaving me as an empty shell of my former self, but whatever happened I’ve learned that being labeled “special” doesn’t guarantee success.

Pepsi Special should look at my paunch and unshaven face and realize that it could be me in the future. I don’t know what the beverage equivalent of being overweight, unshaven, and sitting in your underwear writing junk food reviews is, but whatever it is, Pepsi Special won’t feel special.

Besides the dextrin and the fancy stamp of approval from Japan’s National Institute of Health and Nutrition, which looks like someone at the front of a boat yelling “I’m the king of the world,” was there anything else special about Pepsi Special?

Yes, Pepsi Special smelled like Pepsi Next and, this is probably a bit blasphemous, it tasted like Coke Zero.

I enjoyed its cola flavor. It didn’t have a strong artificial sweetener flavor like Diet Pepsi and it was nowhere close to being as syrupy sweet as regular Pepsi, but it definitely tasted more like a diet cola. The dextrin didn’t affect the cola’s viscosity in any way and it just blended in with the flavor of the cola.

As for the claims that Pepsi Special will prevent the absorption of the fat in the foods we eat, it’s hard for me to determine if it’s doing anything because I only purchased two bottles. Heck, it’s also hard for me to tell if there are any benefits because I’m not a scientist. I could’ve been one, just like I could’ve been a doctor, lawyer, pharmaceutical salesperson, or an actor who plays a doctor, lawyer or pharmaceutical salesperson, but instead I have to settle for a clean driving abstract.

Stuffing five grams of fiber into a cola that doesn’t taste like it has five grams of fiber is impressive. Although, I wouldn’t recommend drinking a lot of Pepsi Special in one day because the combination of carbonation and fiber can’t be good for both end of the digestive system.

(Nutrition Facts – 11 kcal, 0.4~2.0 grams of fat, 25~46 milligrams of sodium, 5.4 grams of fiber, 0 grams of protein.)

Item: Pepsi Special (Japan)
Purchased Price: $4.95
Size: 490 ml
Purchased at: eBay
Rating: 7 out of 10
Pros: Pleasant cola flavor, if you enjoy low- or zero-calorie Pepsi colas. A bottle has more than 5 grams of fiber. Making diet cola healthy. Being one the of few people on Earth who hasn’t seen Titanic.
Cons: Only available in Japan and on eBay. Hard to determine if the dextrin is doing its job. If you don’t enjoy low- or zero-calorie colas, you won’t like it. Drinking too much of it might turn you into a burp and fart machine.