03.24.07
Caramel and Cocoa Pretz
And now for Pretz flavor two: Caramel and Cocoa Pretz. I think you can see why I wanted to try these alongside Cacao Pretz for I wasn’t sure there would be much of a difference. Cacao vs. Caramel and Cocoa? How much of a taste difference is there when you add caramel to cocoa? Cacao Pretz was pretty darned cocoa-rific, I couldn’t see caramel being able to stand on its own caramel feet against that sort of chocolaty onslaught. Thus, I thought I ought to taste these two similar Pretz side by side so I could better describe the subtleties between the two. It turns out that I needn’t have bothered, for Caramel and Cocoa Pretz are very much their own thing from Cacao Pretz.
Where Cacao Pretz was a deep, dark chocolaty color Caramel and Cocoa was more a toasted tan. Caramel and Cocoa is also a smidge shorter than the standard Pretz length which…I have no idea why. I can hazard a couple guesses, like maybe this is a kid’s size Pretz (judging from the cover art – still Japanese illiterate) or maybe Gilco is ‘resizing’ Pretz (less bang, more buck) or perhaps this is New Pretz. There could be a revised ISO Pretz standard for all I know, but one thing I noticed was that the Cacao Pretz cost $1.72 and came with two foil wrapped pouches where as Caramel and Cocoa cost $1.71 and came with but one foil pouch. That’s a penny less for half as much and shorter sticks. If I had to put money on a reason for these differences, I’d bet dollars to donuts that Gilco was pulling the old “make the product slightly smaller while charging the same price” maneuver. Pea point deductions for the single packeting and for shortening the stick while keeping the price relatively the same. Come on, Gilco, caramel can’t cost THAT much more.
Packaging rant aside, Caramel and Cocoa Pretz are really quite tasty. They are not as deeply cocoa as Cacao Pretz were but that works in their favor. The cocoa flavor and the caramel flavor are equally present in a nice happy blend of delicious. You can taste and smell both the cocoa as well as the caramel and neither overpowers the other. Nice. Of course, Caramel and Cocoa sports the delicious Pretz crunch so all around, a very good job with the flavor and texture.
Caramel and Cocoa also brings us to six sweetie Pretz (round 4: flat 2) for a hexafectra of Pretz sweet. Heh. Hexafectra. Were I to rate Caramel and Cocoa Pretz just from pure enjoyment, I’d give them a 4 pea rating no questions asked. However, I am peeved about the pricing vs. the quantity of Pretz received and as always, the single packet thing annoys me to pieces. There is enough annoyance for noticeable pea point deductions but I’m feeling rather magnanimous today and will only take off half a pea. Don’t think this will get you off the hook for screwing with the customer though, Gilco. I’ll be most unhappy if I see this packaging vs. quantity thing as a repeat offence and I have no qualms about going back and re-editing posted reviews. The internet is a malleable beast and I can, at any time, take more pea points off for this sort of customer unappreciation.
Rating: 3.5 wasabi peas out of a possible 5.
