August 2011
Village Candy-gram
News to infuse
Village Candy
344 Beaver Street
Sewickley PA
412.741.1490
Tues - Sat 10-5
Wed til 8
Steamin' August Edition
Harry Potter & The Magic Beans
Input From The Trenches
Chiller Theater
Important Announcement!
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Greetings fellow candy lover!

The dog-breath days of summer are evidently upon us. What better time to enjoy an ice-cold refreshment from our fabulous pop selection while satisfying your sweet tooth.

And don't forget to pack your sons and/or daughters off to school, or wherever else they may be going, by putting together (or having us do so) a nice box of goodies to remember you (and the dentist) by, and to get them through those first grueling days apart (like they'll even look back). Better yet, stock up for yourself to help you get you over the separation anxiety!
Harry Potter & the Magic Beans

No, nothing new from J.K.  

   

Just arriving from Jelly Belly (actually, shortly before the Jelly Belly Bertie Bott'spremiere of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2) is the return of the infamous Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans! Delicious "normal" jelly beans are mixed with crazy, creepy flavors in a magical medley! Here's the entire mix: Banana, Black Pepper, Blueberry, Booger, Candyfloss, Cherry, Cinnamon, Dirt, Earthworm, Earwax, Grass, Green Apple, Marshmallow, Rotten Egg, Sausage, Lemon, Soap, Tutti-Fruitti, Vomit and Watermelon.  

 

And, to change things up, last month we asked for your Jelly Belly Mojitoparticipation in picking new flavors for our fabulous 48 flavors of pack-your-own beans. The number one suggestion was Mojito, and now it's here. A refreshing mix of lime and mint flavors, Jelly Belly Lime Beansall in one bean! And, like all of Jelly Belly's beans, they're perfect for weddings and parties! We're also now stocking Sunkist Lime, which packs all the refreshing citrus taste of Sunkist limes packed into a Jelly Belly jelly bean!Jelly Belly Citrus Mix Sunkist Lime tastes just as juicy and sweet as real fruit, and is infused with Vitamin C! This bean is also one of the true-to-life flavors that make up our new Citrus Mix, along with Pink Grapefruit, Orange, Lemon and Jelly Belly BlueberryTangerine. And one final new flavor has been added to our overwhelming assortment, Blueberry, to go along with our Berry Blue. C'mon in and ask for a taste of any of them! 

Village Candy Customer Projects 

Input from the front lines 

 

Customers often go to great lengths to show their love Homemade Candy Landof all things candy. Case in point - this gorgeously edible cake and candy rendition of the classic Candy Land board game. A big round of applause for Liza Murray and Sophia Perry (proudly pictured with their masterpiece).  

 

Candy Land is often among the first board games played by American children, since it requires no reading and minimal counting skills (sounds perfect for our state legislature). It was designed in 1945 by Eleanor Abbott, while she was recovering from polio in San Diego, California. The game was bought by Milton Bradley Company (now owned by Hasbro) and first published in 1949.  

 

At least four versions of the board game were made. The first, from around 1949, had only locations (Molasses Swamp, Gumdrop Mountains, etc.) and no characters. The next version had a track layout different from more recent releases. One further revision was made before characters were introduced. The next edition of the game, from the 80s and 90s, introduced the characters such as Mr. Mint and Gramma Nutt, had the modern track layout, and ended with a purple square.

The current game ends on a rainbow-striped square. Some of the characters and place names were changed in 2002. Queen Frostine became Princess Frostine, the classic Molasses Swamp was changed to Chocolate Swamp, Princess Lolly dropped the "Princess", and Plumpy was removed entirely (bummer).

There are also licensed versions of Candy Land with such characters as Winnie the Pooh, Dora the Explorer and SpongeBob. 

Chiller Theater
A report on all things sodarific: what's new in the fridge, tastings and interesting tidbits from the world of bottled effervescence.

 

Natrona Sodaworks Tasting Report

 

A great turnout of pop aficionados braved the summer heat this past Saturday to find out about (and sample) all that Allegheny County's very own Natrona Bottling has to offer. Vito Gerasole, the bottler's new head honcho (and part of the Gerasole restaurant family) was on hand to offer up the background on Natrona's storied past, where the bottler is presently, and hints on future plans. Those on hand were able to taste from the six current Natrona offerings (eight, if you count Bauser's non-alcoholic Champayno and an extra hot ginger beer) and see all the newly redesigned bottle labels (not pictured below).

 

As usual, Village Candy did its own scientific survey of customer favorites, and the "double-blind statistically significant" results are in:

Natrona Tasting Results
Natrona Tasting Results

 

AND ONE MORE THING: As is always the rule with our tastings, one of our survey-submitting attendees wins a coveted prize. This particularly appealing freebie, graciously donated by Natrona Bottling, is a full mixed case of their great-tasting beverages complete with an historic wooden carrier.

And the envelope please: the winner is Robinson Kastan! Please come in any time and pick up your prize. 

Village Candy thanks Natrona Bottling for donating this prize and their delicious beverages, and also thanks Vito Gerasole for donating his time to make this event a success.

 

 

A Little Pop History

Village Candy now has a limited supply of NuGrape soda. The NuGrape SodaNuGrape brand was invented in 1906, first bottled in 1921, and by April 1933, The National NuGrape Company was founded in Atlanta, Georgia. NuGrape was followed up by the popular Sun Crest brand of soft drinks in 1938. In 1965, the National NuGrape Company introduced Kickapoo Joy Juice, a product based on Al Capp's Li'l Abner comic strip (which Village Candy also carried in the recent past). All three brands were acquired in 1968 by The Moxie Company (renamed Moxie-Monarch-NuGrape Company and later Monarch Beverage Company).

 

In 1999, NuGrape and the Nesbitt's line of carbonated drinks were bought from Monarch Beverage Company in Atlanta by Big Red, Ltd. of Waco, makers of Big Red (which we also carry). Big Red, now the sixth largest carbonated soft drink manufacturer in the U.S., started out in 1937 as Sun Tank Red Cream Soda.

 

The National NuGrape building still exists in Atlanta, but is not open to the public.

Important August Announcement

Yay, vacation!

 

National Lampoon's Vacation Village Candy will be closed Tuesday, August 16 through Friday, August 26. We will reopen for regular business on Saturday, August 27.

We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause, and sincerely hope that you come in to stock up on all your favorites in the next two weeks! It'd be a shame if improper planning led to severe sugar withdrawal.
Village Candy is an old-time, new-fangled retail shop specializing in a unique selection of retro and current bulk and novelty candy, artisan chocolates, glass-bottled pop and candy-themed gifts. Oh, and remember customer service? It's back!

We are here Tuesday thru Saturday 10 am to 5 pm, but on Wednesday we stay late until 8! We are closed Sunday and Monday.
 
Sincerely,
 

Doug Alpern, Proprietor
Village Candy