Just like Buzz Bites don’t taste like Dove Chocolate and Sport beans are not supposed to be candy, I did not expect these mints to just taste like mints. Caffeine has a way of turning the most basic of foods into some this special that needs the EXTREME name and the taurine-inositol mix for the 18-24 year old male population. Caffeinated lollipops turned into Maxxed Pops, Snickers gets Charged and gum gets Jolted. Most caffeinated candies can not resist the temptation to drive headlong into that market without thinking – making up for the fact that their sales across the board are starting to decline.

That’s right – there is a growing kid shortage, which is hurting the candy industry. There were 3.3% fewer kids age 6 to 11 in 2007 as in 2002, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. This means that candy companies have to find other ways of appealing to a different segment of the population than they are used to. You can now find healthy slimming candies, protein workout bars by Mars/M&M, and super gourmet chocolates in the spot where only Toblerone used to go.

I fully expected a caffeinated mint by Hersheys to go the Extreme route, and try to compete for space with the No-Doz products – coming out with a druggie inspired gimmick to compete with Crackheads mints or at least Foosh. After all, Ice Breakers had been in trouble before. In late 2006, Hersheys halted production of Ice Breakers Pacs. The product, a white, powdered mint encased in rectangular, translucent baggies was criticized by some law enforcement officials for looking too much like illegal drugs such as heroin or cocaine. I doubt that powdered mind could lead to Los Angeles treatment for drug addicts and also a right treatment center in Oregon, but I am not a law enforcement official who has a decision-making right.

With most candies, the caffeine is barely hidden by Xylitol, and ends up a sour mess in your mouth. Of all places, I did not expect Hersheys, the makers of the Cardboard Brown Rectangle That Smells Vaguely Like Cocoa to pull of anything edible.Lastly, I could not imagine it would have nearly enough caffeine to matter, where I had to down the entire pack to get any buzz whatsoever.
Needless to say, I was very pleasantly surprised. This package went the opposite way than I imagined with everything – from the clever and lovely packaging, to the buzz, the taste, and even the nice little candy surprise I found after chain sucking quite a few.

Packaging:8
This stuff goes completely against the usual caffeine enhanced image. The pack is a light green, leaning more towards a more natural and healthy upscale look than the teen crowd. It is also gender neutral, using light pastel and a more complex color scheme. The color suggests an older audience than the younger audience, who normally get the bright bold colors and the neon. They also list the website, telephone number, caffeine content and all other ingredients easily. While this is by no means revolutionary, it is a very nice change from what I expected this to be.

Buzz/Nutrition:8
While this is no Foosh, 10mg per mint is pretty tasty. And the flavor is nice enough that I easily at 8 of them without thinking. Even with 10mg, this becomes a very easy way to regulate the amount of caffeine you ingest, being able to pop a dozen in your mouth and have a strong buzz, or just taking them slowly and stretching out your buzz for a couple hours. They are also sugar free, only 5 calories per serving (3 mints) and totally guilt free. The only issue I have is using aspartame as a sweetener – the more natural the candy the better. But this is Hersheys after all, so it is not like i could really have expected Stevia.

Taste:8
The mints actually taste good! there is barely a sour flavor from the caffeine , comparable to certs or Life Savers mints in every way. If you put these next to a breath savers, most people would never taste the difference. Not to mention, if you eat enough of these, the blue food coloring does cool things to your tongue, leaving the big blue streak in your mouth! I was expecting something harsh or bitter, and it actually gave me a nice minty fresh breath instead!

Website:0
I called Hersheys main office – and while they did not know what there is absolutely no mention of the candy on the ice breakers website, it is still being manufactured, and can be found in most K-Mart and Target stores without much problem.