Mint-Tastic M&Ms

Mars Confectionery Australia continue to puzzle me, they really do. Whilst they won my heart with their introduction of dark M&Ms (now and always a Lockett family pantry staple); they stomped on it again when they said that they didn’t have the right machinery (or attitude) to make Peanut Butter M&Ms here.

And yet, they force me to consider loving them again when they introduce these, Mint-Tastic M&Ms, and even took the time to email me with the news. No actual samples, alas, just an email, which is kind of like presenting Stevie Wonder with a ‘magic eye’ drawing and asking him to explain the imagery he can find in it.

Oh well. Several weeks went by and no Mint-Tastics were found anywhere – and believe me, I looked, because dark chocolate and mint are right up in my all-time favourite flavour combinations. Finally they appeared at my local supermarket and were on special, clearly hoping to encourage the plain M&M lovin’ traditionalists to give them a try.

And so they should. Just don’t mistake these for the Crispy Mint M&Ms that were released here in Australia by a flown-out-for-a-day Pamela Anderson a couple of years ago. As I predicted at the time, they rapidly faded into obscurity. Understandably too, because they tasted like insipid chalk dust. These new guys, however, are much better. They’ve given up trying to turn the crispy biscuit bits a pale green and add a weak mint taste and instead just focused on the combination of good dark chocolate and peppermint on its own. Perhaps, too, M&Ms learned that just because they’re a mega brand doesn’t necessarily mean that they can release something as bland as crispy mints with Pammy as the lowest-common-denominator spokes-rack and expect our taste buds to accept it.

Instead, these newer, better and much-more-deserving-of-your-time Mint-tastic M&Ms are very minty – quite strong in fact. Perhaps even slightly too overpowering for some palates who may find that the dark chocolate is almost lost between the fresh breath flavour and the crispy shell. Still, it’s a nice way to freshen one’s breath after an evening meal. Or after breakfast…

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