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Tag Archives: taffy

Pinot Noir, Shooting Star, Let’s All Go to the Candy bar

Posted on March 15, 2015 by lilliebette
Pinot Noir, Shooting Star, Let’s All Go to the Candy bar

Hey friends. How are you? It has been awhile, but I am writing this post because I am putting off going to gym.

Before we get started let me set the mood:

This pairing isn’t even for Pinot Noir, but I couldn’t resist posting this great video from the Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. If you haven’t seen this show, you should know it includes a scene that defines my entire life:

Today we have a special Texas themed post. I went to Austin to visit my friend Lauren and we went to a Texas candy shop called Lammes and had some Texas wine.

The cutest candy store ever, no?

The cutest candy store ever, no?

The Candy: Lammes Taffy Kisses (Cinnamon, Peppermint, Molasses, Spearmint, Peanut Butter)

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The Wine: Fall Creek Vineyard 2015, Merlot

Some Cat with your Wine?

Some Cat with your Wine?

The Dream:

I chose the taffy because I knew I wanted a red wine. Taffy and white wine could be a bit too tricky since taffy is so sticky. You may recall I have featured taffy before on this blog: here, here, here, and very recently here. I have learned you often want something to be able to wash that taffy out. I chose Merlot because the Fall Creek brand was recommended and we don’t include enough Merlot on this website.

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The Reality:

The wine is nice and simple with a mild flavor. There is a slight tanginess which is followed by a burst of sweetness on the tongue. Yum.

Let’s break this down by flavor:

  • Cinnamon: The cinnamon goes fairly well with this wine but the spiciness of the cinnamon numbs the tongue a tad. The wine is never thrown. This was the best pair of the selection.
  • Molasses: This pairing is not good at all. I didn’t even write that many notes besides “not great” which usually means it is very bad.
  • Spearmint: These flavors clashed and created an overall odd experience. The wine was thrown by the mint which is pretty typical.
  • Peanut butter: The nuttiness battles with the wine’s sweetness. The taffy is too nutty to be enjoyable with the wine.
  • Peppermint: Oh, this was very bad. It was way more minty than spearmint and the wine hardly came through.

I want to note that I actually didn’t note carefully the taffy flavors Lammes was serving. I bought a mix and just interpreted the flavors while I was eating them. This isn’t science ok? I am not taking that many notes.

Overall, cinnamon was the clear winner here! A fun time for all nonetheless. Thank you to Texas, Lauren, Lammes, and Specs!

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A Weird Start to a Weird Year

Posted on January 5, 2014 by lilliebette

Happy New Year!

As promised, I am getting this post out to you before upcoming events and weekends sweep me away. My candy bowl is getting really full so I am going to make an effort to be extra vigilant to pair more often. This upcoming pairing is definitely odd. I have never heard of this candy but I found it back in November and knew I had to feature it. I can’t really say the pairing was good or bad—just unusual. Starting the New Year off right (really weirdly)!

The Wine: Chardonnay, The Wonderland Project, Vintage 2012 “La Reine Blanche”

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Long Live the Queen

The Candy: Abba-Zaba, Peanut Butter Filled Taffy (Strawberry & Plain)

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The Dream:

Wow. Peanut butter-taffy filled taffy….pretty wild. I picked the Chardonnay because I thought the dry sweetness would compliment the salty peanut butter. Chardonnay can really cleanse the palate and compliment a dish. I thought after chewy salty-sweet taffy, the Chardonnay would offer a nice clear flavor to relieve the tastebuds.

An Inside Look

An Inside Look

The Reality:

Both taffies are incredibly chewy because, again, I bought them in November. I really should have paired them immediately. The strawberry is has that unnatural saccharine sweetness with a touch of tartness. It reminds me a lot of strawberry laffy taffy which obviously makes sense. The peanut butter is good on its own–it’s that cheap sugary peanut butter you find in Reese’s. The candy is just bizarre on the whole. It’s like a train-wreck in your mouth–you really should stop eating it but it’s just so horrifying you can’t stop.

The wine is light, sweet and not very dry. There are some prominent pear notes with a nice hint of lemon. I enjoyed it, but I wouldn’t say it is my favorite Chardonnay. I do love that label though. When paired with the strawberry it is light and refreshing but does not add anything. I sort of ripped open the taffy to get more of the peanut butter but I don’t know if that helped.

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The plain taffy really doesn’t have anything going on. It is in fact plain. I would have preferred at least a vanilla or something because it is so much chewy taffy before the peanut butter. Again, the wine is perfectly fine. I think you lose a lot of the flavors of the wine because your  mouth is just so confused by the taffy. It’s like someone interrupting you when you are really busy and you have no idea how to respond. After you swallow the taffy the wine is delightful but I think I am just happy I am no longer eating the taffy?

I don’t know guys. It was a weird ride. I ate this taffy so fast as well. If you are not allergic to peanuts, I would try this candy just for kicks. I really have no clue what a better wine would have been. I think the fact the wine didn’t taste absolutely awful with the pairing is a success.

 

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Sticky Summer

Posted on May 23, 2012 by lilliebette

June will be here soon, so I might as well face it: it’s summer time. Not “it’s so hot out and it’s spring” but actually summer. I have tried to deny it and put it off. To be honest, the DC Metro area is a bit brutal heat wise. So facing my full summer in DC is a daunting task. I might as well embrace and face it with rink in hand.

As some of you may recall, I promised to pair Cava, a sparkling Spanish wine. I could not find the brand I was looking for nor the wine itself so I decided on a bordeaux rosé. It’s chilled, pink, playful and sweet. It could not be more perfect for summer. (But your time is coming Cava….)

I knew finding a worthy pairing would be a challenge. So I decided to up my chances by buying a pack of Trader Joe’s saltwater taffy that included multiple flavors. I used to love watching the taffy puller at my town’s local fair (and eating the taffy). My mom always buys some for my brother every year…but I need to find out how to get in on that deal. I could not eat it for years because of my braces, and anyway…I digress. The pack did not come with a guide though, so picking apart which was sour-apple and which was strawberry-banana proved challenging. I think I did alright though and this was a fun, successful pairing.

The Wine: le Rosé do Mouton Cadet. Bourdeaux Rosé 2010.

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Stop it you’re making me blush……

The Candy: Trader Joe’s Saltwater Taffy

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Don’t let anyone tell you Trader Joe’s is a health-foods store…

The Dream: I knew the rosé would be sweet and light. I needed some candy with weight to it physically. It could not be something quickly chewed otherwise I would go through the glass of wine super fast. Although it was a sweet wine, I couldn’t go bitter to counterbalance. The wine still has a zing to it and choosing a bitter licorice would be too confusing flavor wise. At first I thought a citrus-flavored candy would be my best bet. The taffy won though because of the variety and unpaired status on this blog. Also, taffy is sweet but not overly so, since it’s so much work to eat. I also just had a good feeling. And I was standing too long in the aisle of the bustling Trader Joe’s and had to pick.

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The wine-glass cameo is to congratulate the Smith Class 2012 for your graduation. Rock on.

The Reality: 

The wine is mostly tangy, which surprises me. It certainly has a sweetness, but there is an overall bitterness (some stronge tannins up in this wine for certain). Concerns me slightly, but it’s cool and refreshing so I have high hopes. 

Let’s go through the flavor of taffy and their corresponding pairing:

Sour Apple–I don’t know why they called it sour. It’s mostly sweet with a slight introduction of sour in the beginning. It goes well with the wine, though the wine’s flavor is downplayed a bit after. They go well together though, since they both offer conflicting flavors.

Watermelon–Like most things watermelon flavored, it tastes nothing like watermelon. It’s hyper sweet, yet weirdly refreshing. The sip of wine after is bitter and sharp. Not a good pairing. 

Red licorice–I will be honest, I could not wrap my head around a taffy that tasted like red licorice. It tastes like red licorice, but is a taffy. It’s fine when you bring fruit into a taffy flavor, but a candy? It was like eating red licorice but feeling like something went horrible wrong in the process. I barely tasted anything notable in the wine, mostly because my head was still spinning.

Strawberry banana–It tasted like banana bread with a warm, strawberry flavor. It truly did taste like a baked good and made me feel warm. The wine is rather sweet after, with just a kick of tanginess. A very excellent pairing.

Cherry–This was terrible. It was an extremely sour candy and the wine tasted bitter after. Not good at all.

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This was fun since every piece of candy brought a different taste experience. I highly recommend grabbing a bottle of this stuff and buying a mixed bag of taffy (hopefully from a loud, overpriced fair vendor). 

My next pairing may be delayed since I’m going out of town this weekend. The weekend is usually when I do a pairing, but I’ll try to make up some lost time. Until then, chill your glasses and enjoy the start of summer. 

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