I have been waiting for two new limited-edition flavors of pop to come out for a while now. About two weeks ago, they both hit the shelves. However, I have yet to try either one of them. There are a few reasons why, but they are pretty significant.
First is the first ever limited-edition flavor from A & W, Ice Cream Sundae. This one was announced late last year. Why do so that early? No idea, but it is now out. The reviews I've seen online suggest that it is based on root beer. I would have thought that the cream soda flavor would be a better base, but the reviewer could be wrong. The predominant flavor is chocolate, with at least one reviewer comparing it to a chocolate soda. Another one suggested that there were hints of cherry, but mostly in the background. One reviewer actually added creamer to his drink to get a more traditional sundae flavor. Now, I'm sorry, but I hate this 'dirty soda' trend of mixing other beverages into your pop. That is the main reason why I hated Pepsi's Wild Cherry and Cream flavor from earlier this year. Too much of a dairy flavor and not enough vanilla. While individual bottles are out there, no local store I have visited so far seems to carry them. These first reviews kind of turns me off to try a full carton of twelve, mainly because I don't really like too many chocolate-flavored things. For instance, I couldn't stand chocolate milk or chocolate ice cream when I was a kid. Still don't think I'll like it, although I haven't had either one in a very long time. Even a six-pack of larger bottles might be too much of an investment if I don't like them. Still, I will be searching.
The second pop is the latest limited-edition flavor from Ale-8-One, a regional beverage company here in Kentucky. Now, I've never had any of their products, from the original ginger ale through all of their newer varieties--from cherry to their other limited-edition from this year straw(berry-water)melon. However, their current one intrigues me. It's pawpaw. That's right, America's very own 'exotic' fruit. Almost no one outside of the Appalachians has ever tried this cousin of the tropical custard apple. Oh, there have been attempts to cultivate the fruit tree, but the actual pawpaw is so far too delicate for widespread shipping, especially since in can look disgusting when fully ripe. Somehow, with help from Kentucky State University, Ale-8-One has managed to capture the flavor of a pawpaw in a pop. Unlike most of their products, this one is shipping in cartons of four instead of the typical six. All glass bottles. While the original ginger ale is sometimes available in plastic bottles, this variety doesn't. I've looked for individuals, but almost no one carries a wide variety of glass bottles. So, I will have to but them buy the carton, if I can still find them. Almost all of the first batch has sold out, if not completely, by now.
This is a shame, because I used to love pawpaws when I was a kid. One of my great aunts had a tree in her yard. I would get a selection of them after older relatives had their share. The tree stopped bearing fruit while I was still young, so other relatives and friends would search the woods each fall to help me get my fix on the fruit. However, by my late teens, I had turned off of pawpaws. My picky eating habits didn't like the fact that the fruit had to turn dark brown or black before being ripe. Having people I didn't really like bring them in didn't help either. Finally, I was starting to get a rash if I peeled my own fruit by hand, a fairly common disturbance. Swallowing the entire whole seed while trying to get all the flesh off didn't help either. At least they aren't poisonous like the seed of the custard apple. It's been so long now that no one who used to hunt pawpaws for me are still around, even if I did want to try one. This Ale-8-One might be my last best chance to relive this part of my childhood. I just have to find a bottle opener.
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