Autumnal Equinox Journal + Kaffre talks Candy #54

Hello again journal readers and welcome to my very first autumn journal of 2019! *waves banner*

As usual, I've not really done much this month - the Garlic Festival was fun, but not having much cash on hand (an embarrassing oversight) to purchase anything from the small local vendors all I managed to get was a tub of smoked garlic spread. Thus far, I've only tried it on garlic bread, but it was quite tasty once you get used to the smokiness.

Should all go according to plan, I'll be attending a Poutine Fest in a few days as well. It'll be at the fair grounds this year rather than the more scenic city park which is unfortunate as I really liked the previous venue, but at least this way the vendors won't have to maneuver their chip-trucks through downtown Kingston. The festival lasts from the 26-29th, but I'm trying to arrange to go with as my siblings and possibly some cousins so not sure which day yet.

Come October, 'Gemstorm', a local rock-collectors convention will be celebrating its 50 year anniversary so I'll be trying to attend that as well on October 18-19. My personal rock collection is small and currently uncatalogued, but it seems like another good way to get outside and do things as well as potentially educational. There's also Thanksgiving on the 14th, but I'm still not 100% sure what we're doing about that this year.

Well, that about covers what I did in September and hope to accomplish in early October. Insofar as Kaffre himself, I'm nearly at 15000 page-views here on FA which I think is quite impressive given how inactive I usually am so thanks everyfur! As per usual, I've been rather lax in terms of art and stories despite getting short-lived urges to scribble something up pictures or short vignettes so I shall be making a concerted effort to get something created and posted before the end of the year so as to get 2020 started on a productive note wish me luck!

I guess that's everything I wanted to say - thanks for reading! *omni-hugs* Now without further ado...

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Kaffre talks Candy #54

Name: Hostess Cupcakes
Manufacturer: Vachon
Size: 80 gram package of two
Where Purchased: Dollarama
Description: Consist of chocolate cupcakes with a vanilla creme filling and a chocolate glazed top decorated with swirls of white icing.
Opinion: A product I'd eaten occasionally as a child, but not seen in a few years. These cakes are interesting the chocolatey flavour of the cake and glaze nicely compliments the vanilla creme filling which lends some sweetness and texture. Overall, I thought these were very tasty albeit a bit too rich for me to have them with any regularity. They might make for a nice treat from time to time though.

Name: Lay's Onion Ring Chips
Manufacturer: Lay's
Size: 240 gram bag
Where Purchased: Walmart
Description: Consists of standard-looking potato chips with a brown cast to them from the flavourings used.
Opinion: A limited release product that I decided to sample on a whim. At first, they seemed very reminscent of Sour Cream n' onion which was disappointing for someone who loves onion rings, but isn't a fan of sour cream. Munching through the bag, however, a few differences became apparent. The onion flavour is more intense and less sweet with an aftertaste that's somewhat difficult to describe. Overall, I liked these chips and while undecided on how faithfully they replicate the flavour of onion rings, I do think I'd probably try them again if they were available year round.

Name: Nutella & Go! (Breadsticks)
Manufacturer: Ferrero
Size: 52 grams (39 grams nutella, 13 grams breadsticks)
Where Purchased: Dollarama
Description: Consists of a plastic container with two compartments one containing fourteen breadsticks and one containing Nutella (chocolate/hazelnut spread).
Opinion: While familiar with both products separately, I haven't tried them together until now. The breadsticks were dry and flavourless, but not actually bad. It's been a while since I tried Nutella, but it tastes pretty much as I remember having a rich and creamy hazelnut flavour that doesn't quite hide the chocolate taste, but takes the edge off of it. Overall, I thought this product was pretty good and will probably buy it again as, while Nutella has a (deserved) reputation for being unhealthy, it seems a better choice than actual candy.

Name: School Chalk Licorice
Manufacturer: Europe's Finest
Size: 100 gram bag
Where Purchased: Food Basics
Description: Consists of licorice pieces coated in a white candy shell such that they (vaguely) resemble 5cm long sticks of chalk.
Opinion: A Dutch product I'd never seen, but decided to sample as it was on sale. This was an interesting product being superficially larger versions of Goodies (or Good n' Plenty), but it is different in some key ways - the licorice is of better quality which affects both the texture and the intensity of the flavour and by extension the extent to which they contrast with the candy coating which is quite crunchy and has a 'clean' taste (probably vanilla or mint). Overall, I found this candy very weird at first, but it has grown on me quickly and I would definitely consider buying it again.

Name: Starbucks Frappuccino (Vanilla)
Manufacturer: Starbucks
Size: 405 mL bottle
Where Purchased: Dollarama
Description: Starbucks Vanilla Frappuccino consists of an opaque coffee-coloured beverage.
Opinion: While I've seen this product before, Dollarama only ever had the Mocha variety before. This version is somewhat similar having a sweet and tasty coffee/cappuccino flavour, but I couldn't really detect much in the way of Vanilla. This wasn't really a problem for me as I enjoyed the product anyway and would possibly purchase it again, but can't really say whether I'd go for vanilla again or sample one of the other flavours instead...