You Know, It IS In The Mix
Candy Bar Review
TWIX
TWIX PEANUT BUTTER
Since I started A Chocoholic UnAnonymous, I have written several reviews of different limited edition variations on the Twix bar. For a change of pace, I've decided to do something different. (Or as John Cleese might say, "And now, for something completely different.") I thought it might be interesting to review the Twix bars that are always on the shelves.
I think I may have mentioned this in a previous review, but let's start with a little bit of background. The original Twix bar was first introduced in 1979. It proved to be popular enough that three variations were released during the following year -- Peanut Butter, Chocolate Fudge, and Cookies & Creme. The last two disappeared from the shelves after only a year or two, leaving only the Original and the Peanut Butter Twix bars until the recent limited editions.
The Original Twix bar is a long, thin vanilla cookie, which is topped with caramel, then covered in milk chocolate. An individual-size package contains two of these bars.
The tagline for some recent Twix commercials proclaim, "It's all in the mix." (It might even be the tagline of the current ad campaign; I haven't seen a Twix commercial recently, so I can't say with any degree of certainty.) Yes, the tagline fits, because I think it's a pretty accurate description of what eating a Twix is like. Its about how the various elements of the candy bar come together in your mouth.
When you first bite into the Original Twix bar, the dominant flavor is the milk chocolate. As you chew, the caramel's flavor gradually becomes stronger, until it becomes the last flavor standing on your tastebuds. Occasionally, there are flashes of vanilla coming from the cookie, but at best, it provides undertones of flavor.
The cookie is most noticeable for its texture. Both the caramel and the cookie take equal yet contrasting roles. The caramel is firm and chewy, yet soft enough that it yields to pressure from the teeth. When you bite into a Twix bar, your teeth s-l-o-w-l-y sink through the chocolate and caramel, until they suddenly reach the rigidity of the cookie. But the cookie provides resistance for only a moment. As the teeth shear into the cookie, it gives way with a pleasing crunch. And as you chew, the bits of cookie become distributed through the caramel, giving the caramel an oddly pleasing granular feel.
The Twix Peanut Butter uses the same basic structure as the original bar. As the name suggests, peanut butter replaces the caramel on top of the vanilla cookie, and once again, the whole is enrobed in milk chocolate.
The peanut butter is smooth and creamy. The slightly salty flavor makes a pleasing contrast with the sweetness of the milk chocolate. Unfortunately, the peanut butter is also a little on the bland side. Normally, this would not be a particularly bad thing, but it is almost a little too bland. It almost needs to be just a little bolder, to stand out the same way the caramel does in the Original Twix bar. In the Peanut Butter Twix bar, the peanut butter's flavor is almost a shadow to the chocolate's flavor.
The cookie takes on something of a paradoxical role in the Peanut Butter Twix. On the one hand, the cookie's texture is clearly dominant. Here, the cookie isn't competing against an equally-dominant chewy caramel. The creaminess of the peanut butter clearly fades into the background as the cookie's crunch comes to the forefront. On the other hand, the flavor of the vanilla cookie is bland; even blander than the peanut butter. There doesn't seem to be the occasional flash of cookie flavor as it is ground to crumbs and rolls over your tongue.
Taking that first bite into a Peanut Butter Twix is also a slightly different sensation from the initial bite into an original Twix. Without the viscous resistance of the caramel to slow things down, the teeth quickly snap through the bar. The peanut butter offers little if any resistance, and as a result, the teeth have built up a little more momentum by the time they encounter the cookie.
The one good thing about both of these bars is that they are permanent parts of the Mars product line. I still think the Dark Chocolate Twix is probably the best version that Mars has produced, but unfortunately, they haven't seen it that way yet.
-jc-
TWIX
TWIX PEANUT BUTTER
Since I started A Chocoholic UnAnonymous, I have written several reviews of different limited edition variations on the Twix bar. For a change of pace, I've decided to do something different. (Or as John Cleese might say, "And now, for something completely different.") I thought it might be interesting to review the Twix bars that are always on the shelves.
I think I may have mentioned this in a previous review, but let's start with a little bit of background. The original Twix bar was first introduced in 1979. It proved to be popular enough that three variations were released during the following year -- Peanut Butter, Chocolate Fudge, and Cookies & Creme. The last two disappeared from the shelves after only a year or two, leaving only the Original and the Peanut Butter Twix bars until the recent limited editions.
The Original Twix bar is a long, thin vanilla cookie, which is topped with caramel, then covered in milk chocolate. An individual-size package contains two of these bars.
The tagline for some recent Twix commercials proclaim, "It's all in the mix." (It might even be the tagline of the current ad campaign; I haven't seen a Twix commercial recently, so I can't say with any degree of certainty.) Yes, the tagline fits, because I think it's a pretty accurate description of what eating a Twix is like. Its about how the various elements of the candy bar come together in your mouth.
When you first bite into the Original Twix bar, the dominant flavor is the milk chocolate. As you chew, the caramel's flavor gradually becomes stronger, until it becomes the last flavor standing on your tastebuds. Occasionally, there are flashes of vanilla coming from the cookie, but at best, it provides undertones of flavor.
The cookie is most noticeable for its texture. Both the caramel and the cookie take equal yet contrasting roles. The caramel is firm and chewy, yet soft enough that it yields to pressure from the teeth. When you bite into a Twix bar, your teeth s-l-o-w-l-y sink through the chocolate and caramel, until they suddenly reach the rigidity of the cookie. But the cookie provides resistance for only a moment. As the teeth shear into the cookie, it gives way with a pleasing crunch. And as you chew, the bits of cookie become distributed through the caramel, giving the caramel an oddly pleasing granular feel.
The Twix Peanut Butter uses the same basic structure as the original bar. As the name suggests, peanut butter replaces the caramel on top of the vanilla cookie, and once again, the whole is enrobed in milk chocolate.
The peanut butter is smooth and creamy. The slightly salty flavor makes a pleasing contrast with the sweetness of the milk chocolate. Unfortunately, the peanut butter is also a little on the bland side. Normally, this would not be a particularly bad thing, but it is almost a little too bland. It almost needs to be just a little bolder, to stand out the same way the caramel does in the Original Twix bar. In the Peanut Butter Twix bar, the peanut butter's flavor is almost a shadow to the chocolate's flavor.
The cookie takes on something of a paradoxical role in the Peanut Butter Twix. On the one hand, the cookie's texture is clearly dominant. Here, the cookie isn't competing against an equally-dominant chewy caramel. The creaminess of the peanut butter clearly fades into the background as the cookie's crunch comes to the forefront. On the other hand, the flavor of the vanilla cookie is bland; even blander than the peanut butter. There doesn't seem to be the occasional flash of cookie flavor as it is ground to crumbs and rolls over your tongue.
Taking that first bite into a Peanut Butter Twix is also a slightly different sensation from the initial bite into an original Twix. Without the viscous resistance of the caramel to slow things down, the teeth quickly snap through the bar. The peanut butter offers little if any resistance, and as a result, the teeth have built up a little more momentum by the time they encounter the cookie.
The one good thing about both of these bars is that they are permanent parts of the Mars product line. I still think the Dark Chocolate Twix is probably the best version that Mars has produced, but unfortunately, they haven't seen it that way yet.
-jc-