Island Beehive cup gum honey, said to have been made by
the only pure strain of Ligurian bees left in the world,
which somehow got transported to Kangaroo Island before
some disaster apparently befell the mother colony in
Liguria. One of the mildest honeys I've ever tasted,
despite the originating plant being some kind of eucalyptus.
The flavor is reminiscent of vanilla caramel, hardly
floral at all and none of the mintiness you might expect.
Good acid balance, so not cloyingly sweet the way many
mild honeys are. A bit granular.

Takdaneh pomegranate juice, product of Iran. Glen's
neighborhood has become quite middle eastern in recent
years, and the local supermarket has been bought by an
Iranian or Afghani (reports differ), and a lot of the
merchandie is from Iran and Turkey. I saw this and
decided to give it a try. It tastes more like real
pomegranates (including the greeny-citrusy note provided
by the membranes). Highly recommended for those who
like the actual taste of pomegranate rather than the
gentrified version offered by Pom and its imitators.

Takdaneh tomato paste was a bargain at about two bucks
for a 2 lb can. The paste could have been a little more
concentrated, but it was otherwise as good a product as
I've ever had - I could have eaten it with a spoon, it
was so sweet, and its acid was very mild. Excellent flavor.

Jahan brand spaghetti - the directions say boil for 10
min, but opening the package I found vermicelli and
decided to give it a taste after 6, when it transpired
that the outside was right but the core was hard beyond
al dente. Another minute or so and all was well, the
result being a nicely toothy, slightly sweet pasta that
held sauce pretty well. Another product of Iran.

Kirk's sticky toffee apple soda - more or less what you'd
expect, only not too sweet. Good balance of sweet and tart,
artificial green apple flavor (the stuff is lurid green)
with a nose of vanilla fudge. In fact the palate, not
unpleasant, was completely and amusingly untelegraphed by
the candy sweetness of the aroma.

Schweppes lemon lime with bitters - this is pretty good,
and I wish we could get it over here. You all know what
bitter lemon is like (now also a rarity stateside), well,
this is deeper and more citrusy in an interesting way;
unlike with Sprite and the like, it's not distinctly lime
but a case where the result is greater than the sum of
the parts. Not very bitter; the color is like Campari soda
and makes one expect more piquancy.

Pura Classic chocolate was on sale, with the 600 mL costing
less than the usual 330 mL size, so how could I resist.
Your pretty standard childhood chocolate milk only less
rich and a little less sweet than I remember. I was hoping
for more chocolate and less milk (the carton did not actually
say milk on the front, just chocolate).

Whittaker's Marlborough sea salt and caramel brittle milk
chocolate - this is 33% cacao, substantially more than
most US milk chocolate (3x Hershey's). Noticeable milk in the
cocoa-rich nose, which came out in an almost cheesy American
aspect. Very sweet, with the ample caramel brittle actually
decreasing the sugariness. Some salt, which accentuated
the sugar by contrast but wasn't obtrusive in itself.

Doritos sabor Mexicana - regular chips such as you know with
a cuminy chile-lime flavor, quite spicy and pretty decent.
Not much dairy presence, so I liked them better than the
nacho flavor you get over here.

Chick Chick Chickadees chicken flavored snacks - puffed
corn things, similar to cheese doodles, but as advertised
instead of cheese-salt, the flavoring is light yellow
bouillony-tasting powder (actually contains chicken) with
significant notes of celery and sage. Interesting, but
after a few crunchy bites, my MSG radar said Enough.
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