Village Candy
344 Beaver Street
Sewickley PA
412.741.1490
Tues - Sat 10-5
Wed til 8
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Greetings fellow candy lover!
Ahh, the smell of summer is in the air. Fresh cut grass, the dripping stillness and nose-clinging fragrance immediately following a thunderstorm's march, cooking asphalt, and the perpetual aroma of outdoor barbecues. Come in and check out our fresh array of summer treats to usher in the season.
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Cooler Times
We're going to devote some regular space to our Pop Cooler. Heretofore, we've only given space to tasting announcements. From this issue forward, we'll set aside a portion of the newsletter to sodarific things, like what's new in the fridge (besides my lunch), first-hand accounts of our regularly-scheduled tastings ('cause mine are always the first hands on the bottles), and interesting tidbits from the world of soft bubbly.
Results from our 2nd Annual Root Beer Tasting
 Our second annual Root Beer Tasting was a resounding success. We added a new wrinkle - this time we pre-emailed ballots to the registrants to find out what root beers they preferred (we surveyed the sidewalk outside for spillage to see which ones were disdained). The winner from the nine we tried was Fitz's Root Beer from St. Louis, though Sparky's was only one point off the top.
We promised one of the lucky ballot submitters a rare bottle of Virgil's Bavarian Nutmeg Root Beer, imported from Germany. The winner of the much coveted grand prize, selected at random (and under seal until tabulated results were received from the certified accounting firm of Dewey, Cheatem & Howe), was Marion Clancy. Please come in and pick up your prize before we snarf it ourselves. Congratulations!
New Pops (i.e., Pop News)
 We have a plethora of particularly pleasurable potions in our frosty depths. Enter this month 7up in beautiful green glass with real cane sugar. Though theories abound as to 7up's naming origin, it seems no one knows for sure. Also new, Saratoga Sparkling Spring in a striking blue bottle (pictured at right), A&W and Sunkist Floats, Yoo-Hoo chocolately drink (made famous when Yogi Berra pronounced "It's Me-He for Yoo-Hoo"), and Diet Vernors, low cal cousin to the country's oldest soft drink.
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Father's Day is Sunday, June 15
Give him a Sugar Daddy he'll never forget
 We're big fans of oversized (i.e., ginormous) candy. In the case of our new giant 1 pound Sugar Daddy, we're suckers for suckers. The Sugar Daddy was originally called the Papa. was invented in 1925 by the James O. Welch Company, and was the biggest lollipop of its time. The name was changed to Sugar Daddy in 1932. Sugar Babies were introduced 3 years later. Village Candy has carried the Sugar Daddy in two sizes, the junior pop and the large pop (along with Sugar Babies). This month we've added the humungous pop pictured at left.
New Asher's Sugar Free Milk/Dark Assortment
 Being on a sugar-restricted diet shouldn't mean restricting taste.
Asher's award-winning chocolate confections are just as delicious as
their full-sugar counterparts. This selection includes peanut butter cups, cordial
cherries, pecan caramel patties and creamy butter toffee.
Big Bite Giant Gummi Bear
And while we're on the subject, let's discuss another upsized mutation of an enormously popular candy now in stock at Village Candy. Check out our Big Bite Giant Gummi Bear (no, the picture below isn't really it - just thought it was cute). This 7 ounce puppy, er teddy comes in various flavors, stands 4 inches tall and comes in a plastic shell. Impressive!
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A Number of New Candy Items
Maxxed Energy Pop
  OK, here's an interesting concept - take a lollipop, color it radioactive green/yellow (look left); infuse it with ginseng, guarana (i.e., caffeine) and B vitamins; give it (taken from their web site, I kid you not) a unique flavor blend, with cream soda notes and hints of lemon lime, making it better tasting than the average energy drink, put it on a "chic" black plastic stick (again) "for maximum hipness when being consumed," and package it in a silver composite can with a pop top lid (look right). That describes Charms new Maxxed energy pop.
Dubble Bubble Mini Tub
 Now you can get your very own petit version of the big Dubble Bubble pail - 12 pieces of soft Dubble Bubble in a small reusable tub that you can refill, load with other candy, or store away with all your commemorative, limited edition soda cups destined for recycling or, better yet, landfill!
Reese's Crispy Crunchy Bar
 The newest in an ever extending line of Reese's Cups (see BTP, below) is the Reese's Crispy Crunchy Bar. Comprised of a layer of peanut butter on top of crunchy peanut candy (think Butterfinger), with peanut pieces on top, then dipped in milk chocolate (or a chocolate-like substance, which the big boys seem to be using these days). Similar in taste and texture to a 5th Avenue Bar.
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BTP (by the pound) Candy Corner
Reese's Pieces
Reese's Pieces are one of my weaknesses. Ever since these bite  sized bursts of a candy classic were introduced in 1978, I've been a huge fan. Where the full-sized cups can become cavity-seekingly sweet, these minute beauties can be evenly moderated and never seem to overload.
Reese's Pieces were actually launched throughout the US in 1980. They were first manufactured using the panning machines left over from the failed "Hershey-etts" project (Hershey's supposed M&M-killer). Hershey originally had problems with the peanut filling - they were planning on using peanut butter, but the oil leaked into the shell. Scientists created a peanut-flavored sugar filling called penuche, then turned their attention the shell thickness. Reese's Pieces actually contain no chocolate. The year 1982 brought them extensive publicity when they were E.T.'s favorite candy. Trivia Alert: Mars Inc. was originally approached by Spielberg's Amblin Entertainment for a possible tie-in with their M&M product but, for whatever reason (and countless theories abound) they declined, clearing the way for Hershey's then little known candy. Contrary to popular belief, they paid nothing for the priceless placement, but did agree to an after-release tie-in whereby they would promote the movie with $1 million in advertising and could then use E.T. in their own ads.
Maple Nut Goodies
After several customer requests, we are now stocking  Brach's® scrumptious Maple Nut Goodies. Each piece is a unique combination of fresh oven-roasted Georgia peanuts and a buttery toffee center covered in a Real Maple Syrup coating. Check 'em out!
Cherry Sours
Customers have come in over the years (all two that we've  been open) asking for cherry sours. A while back I purchased a sours mix from Jelly Belly, but now we have cherry sours, all by themselves. And, at our regular bulk candy prices!
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It's Candy Alphabet!
 We're back with another electrifying version of our exciting Candy Alphabet. The first person to correctly identify it via email will win FREE candy (and don't worry, it'll be something good - at least we think so, and we know). The wrapper image may not be of a confection we carry, but it will be a treat you've seen before, and we will always provide the answer the following month.
It's fun, it's nostalgic, it's intellectual. And if you use the link near the bottom of our newsletter, you can spread the good cheer to ALL you friends and enemies. BTW, we were originally going to go with a B from Butterfinger, but it was just too easy!
Last week's clue:
The winner of last issue's Candy Alphabet was Tammy Trevisan, for guessing Almond Joy. Actually, someone else guessed it first, but that was a friend, and that wouldn't be fair. Now, a little about the classic Almond Joy...
Peter Paul Halajian was a candy retailer in the New Haven, Connecticut area in the early 20th century. Along with some other Armenian investors, he formed the Peter Paul Candy Manufacturing Company in 1919. The company at first sold various brands of candies, but following sugar and coconut shortages during World War II, they dropped most brands and concentrated their efforts on the Mounds bar. The Almond Joy bar was introduced in 1946 as a replacement for the Dream Bar (created in 1936) that contained diced almonds with the coconut.
During the 1970s, the Peter Paul company used the jingle, "Sometimes you feel like a nut / Sometimes you don't / Peter Paul Almond Joy's got nuts / Mounds don't," to advertise Almond Joy and Mounds in tandem. In 1978, Peter Paul
merged with the Cadbury company. Hershey then purchased the United
States portion of the combined company in 1988. In the 2000s Hershey began producing variations of the product, including a limited edition Pina Colada and Double Chocolate Almond Joy in 2004, a limited edition White Chocolate Key Lime and Milk Chocolate Passion Fruit Almond Joy in 2005 and a limited edition Toasted Coconut Almond Joy in 2006.
Although Peter Paul as a company no longer exists, the name still appears on the wrapper as part of the bars' brand names. |
New (and news for some, snooze for others) from the candy front
 This year's candy show in Chicago's McCormick Center showed off some new products coming your sweet tooth's way this upcoming year. On the horizon:
- Loud Truck energy (caffeinated) gummies
- Pop Rocks chocolate topping
- a new chocolate-covered coffee bean named Crack
- Peeps chocolate mousse bunnies and bears (aren't there enough Peeps in the world?)
- Jelly Belly Sports Beans Xtreme (again, with caffeine)
- new flavors for Wrigley's 5's gum - Lush (tropical) and Elixer (berry)
- Altoids Crème de Menthe and (you guessed it) chocolate-covered Crème de Menthe
- Barton's Chocotini chocolate bars
- Sugar-free Fruit Stripe Gum
- Caffeinated caffeine covered in caffeine (also available in decaf - not really, just checking to see if you're awake)
Nothing truly earth-shattering or destined to become a classic, but things to look for.
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Village Candy is an old-time, new-fangled retail shop specializing in customer service, a unique selection of retro, 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 Wednesdays 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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the Apple isn't necessarily the sourest of the bunch, it takes it rightful spot along side our full Sour Patch By-The-Pound lineup - Peach, Cherry, Watermelon and Kids. Try 'em all - my personal favorite is the Peach!
addictive. Of course you have to like ginger (duh!), 
Now that I've got your attention, individually wrapped sour balls are back, for all you hard (not to be confused with STALE) candy lovers. 'nuf said.