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Greetings fellow candy lover!
Christmas treats and gift items seem to be arriving daily, and this month brings the largest release of candy brand extensions and novelty items that i can remember. We hope to see you before Sewickley's annual Light-up Night (this year on Friday, November 30), because it gets so crowded in here we may not even see you!
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A Parade of Novelties
Most are gathered on our "new items" table
 Let's see if we can actually list all the new candy and novelty introductions. BTW, the candy industry calls candy with exotic packaging novelties (see the toothpaste...er, candy pictured to the left). Village Candy now has Pop Rocks Chocolate Bar (hmmm), Sweetart Shockers Squeeze (exit, stage left), Bubble Blaster (a squirt gun with a lot of bubble gum), Sweet Shot (liquid candy in a syringe for the real candy addict), i-Zream (a little candy ice cream looking thing with "sour crystals" to dip in), Soda Burst (carbonated candy in a little bottle), Twister Mixer (4 sour candy powders that you mix in the cap), Giant Chewy Sweetarts (must I explain these?), Wiggle Pops (a candy pop with a wiggling head that makes the sound of someone choking a chicken, if ya know what I mean), Sweetarts Rope and Fun Dip Tropical. And lets not forget the killa Grillz, a sucker that you hold in your mouth to give you instant dental bling.
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A Few New Brews
Enough to wet your whistle
We've added a few new pops to our cooler that will hopefully pique your interest. First up is Barrel Brothers Creamy Vanilla Root Beer, from the same Salt Lake-area people that fill one of our other cooler lanes with Apple Beer. Though the fictional Barrel Brothers decided to go with high-fructose corn syrup, it does have a nice creaminess and body.
Next up, Journey Caribbean Cream, from the makers of a handful of our other stocked selections, including Ancient Cola, Sassafras Root Beer, John Barleycorn Root Beer, Vanilla Brew, and Oriental Spice Ginger Brew. This is definitely a unique cream, with more than a hint of coconut!
Finally, from good ol' Dad's comes Classic Creamy Orange. Another take on the Julius, Creamsicle and St. Joseph's of old.
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More Boring Stuff from Vosges
NOT! Everything we try from them is too good to describe.
 Due to the overwhelming response to our recent introduction of Vosge Haut-Chocolat exotic bars, we've decided to expand our lineup. And every bite you take (every move you make, every bond you break, ever step you take...I digress) is an explosion of indescribable pleasure. In other words, to die for.
Exotic Caramel Collections are heavenly rich concoctions that come in two distinct 4-piece boxes (A and B - how original). "A" contains Anise Myrtle, Red Sea Salt, Guajillo Chili and Brazil Nut. "B" is composed of Dulce de Leche, Blood Orange, Tupelo Honey (alright, stop humming) and Maple Sugar. Caramelicious!
Bapchi's Caramel Toffee comes in a pretty half-pound box containing roasted, salted Georgian pecans and California walnuts that grab your
attention. Slowly the salt fades into the sweet milk chocolate
surrounding a crunchy sweet butter toffee.
Not an English toffee, never a peanut brittle, and I'll bet you can tell I let the Vosge people write this paragraph!
And now Vosge has introduced a smaller 15 gram size of nine bars from their scruptious line along with a smart complete gift set in a purple bookcase with a bow. Makes a great gift, as do the two purple bookcase sets with their regular three-ounce bars.
BTW, Vosges is one of the original 83 departments (states or counties) of France, created on March 4, 1790 during the French Revolution. It was made of territories formerly part of the province of Lorraine, and named after the Vosge Mountains. Ponder that while your mouthing their chocolates.
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Grether's Pastilles
More than you want to know about a great product
 Village Candy now offers the original Grether's Pastilles tins. Please read on (and on - sorry, but this is candy history) for more about these amazing little losenges.
Grether's Pastilles are perfect for throat dryness associated with colds, flu, overtaxing of the voice, environmental influences like heating and air conditioning, smoking, medications, age-related conditions, etc. The main active ingredient, glycerine, based on vegetable oils, creates a comforting, moisturizing protective coat on the mucous membranes of the mouth and throat. People who stress their vocal cords by speaking a great deal or singing (among them Bill Clinton, Celine Dion and Sting) value the comforting relief given by the unique pastilles
Grether's Pastilles have not only this soothing effect and an excellent flavor, they also have a remarkable history: the first mention of pastilles made from blackcurrant juice harken back to the 19th century in England, where the family business Allen & Hanbury Ltd, London got the long pastille tradition off to its start. The pastilles were available in Switzerland as early as 1910 under the original name Allenbury's. In the early 70s, concurrent with the transfer of production from London to Switzerland, the brand was taken over by Doetsch Grether Ltd. Basel and renamed Grether's Pastilles.
The demanding, time-consuming production process requires special knowledge and experience, and unique production facilities. Some of the ingredients are still ordered from the same suppliers who provided them for the pastilles's inventor. The most important of these, Agar Agar, which gives pastilles their smoothness, makes mass production impossible. This gelling agent, produced from saltwater algae, must be soaked for many hours and then combined with the remaining ingredients and cooked. This fluid is then be left to settle to release its air. In the meantime, special wooden cases are filled with corn flour. The Grether's Pastilles moulds, with the typical GP emblem, are pressed into the cornstarch and then filled with the pastille mixture.
During approximately 6 weeks of the first maturing phase, the corn flour soaks up the surplus moisture of the pastilles. When the required firmness is reached, they are separated from the cornstarch, sprayed with steam and dried overnight. They are now ready for the second, several-week long maturing process: the fruity aroma of the pastilles develops in air-conditioned rooms. So that none of the aroma escapes, the surface of the individual pastilles is coated with a tiny bit of beeswax and vegetable oil, which gives them their shine. Following a strict quality control regimen under the supervision of the Swiss Agency for Therapeutic Products, Swissmedic, the Grether's Pastilles are then packed in their air-permeable packaging, enabling them to breath and mature further to be ready for sale.
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Next Month:
The Village Candy Holiday Gift Guide
Stay tuned for some easy ideas to impress your friends, say thanks, show your appreciation, reconnect with past acquaintances, gain admiration, win him or her back, increase your chances, rally the staff, nurture cavities, stuff your stockings, stuff your face, decorate your tables, get out of the dog house, bribe the rugrats, or just pamper yourself. After this year, you deserve it!
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Village Candy is an old-time, new-fangled retail shop specializing in customer service, a unique selection of bulk and novelty candy, artisan chocolates, glass-bottled pop and candy-themed gifts.
We are here Tuesday thru Saturday 10 am to 5 pm, but on Fridays we stay late until 8! We are closed Sunday and Monday.
Sincerely,
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Doug Alpern, Proprietor
Village Candy
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