We use a fair amount of Newman's Own products around the Technocave and its attached compound. So when we ran across these mints (and other flavors) in a local grocery, I was intrigued. Good company, good flavor, real organic sugar, and the magic word: HOT. Brilliant.

First up, check out this tin. Their whole line has awesome art along these lines. If I can ever finish the mints inside, I might re-purpose the tin for something else.

What's that? I can't finish them? Me, who can't be trusted with a tin of Altoids cinnamon gum lest I chew through the contents of the whole damn case? That's right. First up, the cinnamon taste is minimal. It's there, no doubt, but I can taste sugar more than I can cinnamon. And hot? Forget it. You know how if you like hot foods you get the hot salsa, and it's somewhere on your spectrum that you would consider mild? Okay, this is mild like that...this is something that a three-year-old would find delightful.

And here's what's crazy--mints are supposed to at least freshen your breath, right? No such luck. You get a few minutes of bland taste, then a barely-there aftertaste and no affect on your breath status whatsoever. Pretty much a failure and disappointment across the board. Just another demonstration of the power of packaging.

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