Herr's Jalapeno Cream Cheese and Hickory Barbecue

 

Products circa: July 2026

Labeled "United" and "Liberty", these are semiquincentennial products, this time Philadelphia-coded as "Flavored 4 Philly".  I have no idea how these flavors relate to the city, but Herr's is known as a fantastic regional brand located not far from it.

Jalapeno Cream Cheese: Essentially a sour cream & onion flavor, with a greenery amped up a bit by green chile, and perhaps the sour cream powder goes a bit deeper in flavor so as to be "cheese".  The heat builds up just a bit after a couple bites.  Not bad, but I won't remember these.

Hickory Barbecue: It starts as your typical barbeque flavor, but it's clear that the hickory here as a much more deep and woody flavor than your average chip.  One of the best bbq chips I've had to date.

Ruffles Buffalo Wings

 

Product circa: July 2026

Another semiquincentennial, and this time a truly quintessential (there's a pun in there somewhere) American flavor.

I've had plenty of "hot sauce" chips before, but these are among the best.  It's because they cranked up the boldness of the flavor, and also the vinegar seasoning, such that it actually evokes proper Buffalo wings.  Bravo.

Fritos Flavor Twists Spicy Dill Pickle

 

Product circa: Summer 2026

I guess "spicy dill pickle" is plenty zeitgeisty enough to be an "American" flavor as part of this US semiquincentennial promotion.

They really provided "the works" of flavor profiles here for this snack.  I've tried plenty of spicy pickle snacks recently, and this is different.  This seems to have a ranch flavor base, with dill flavor added, with salt & vinegar powder added, and also the "red hot" flavor on top.  They're not unpleasant, but they are very busy in an All Dressed kind of way.  More than anything, this snack highlights that the flavor twists form factor provides an impressive crunchy texture when using new-fangled flavors, and I wish Fritos experimented with them more.

Pringles Wavy Pineapple Habanero

Product circa: 2021

This was a Walgreens exclusive.

Quite disappointing and lazy.  How I would describe these are having a mild barbecue seasoning with a bit of added citric acid and spiciness.  The latter two are probably meant to simulate pineapple and habanero chiles, but otherwise they are not there, in terms of flavor.

Cheetos Flamin' Hot Tangy Chili Fusion

Product circa: 2023

As suspected by the packages design, these Cheetos combine the classic Flamin’ Hot seasoning with the seasoning from Doritos Spicy Sweet Chili.

And by the way, I encourage you to try Doritos Spicy Sweet Chili while ignoring the marketing.  Smell and taste the product and discern its flavor unbiased, and I think you’ll find that it tastes like umami more than anything.  Like a soy-based potsticker dipping sauce.  I think they should have named the chips something else.  But I digress.

Like I said above, these taste exactly that the two products above combined.  Not bad.  An odd combination, but not bad.

Mountain Dew Flamin' Hot

Product circa: 2022

Erroneously called “Hot Cheetos Mountain Dew” by some, this obviously has no cheese flavoring in it.  In what seemed like a cross-branding blitz of “Flamin’ Hot” products in 2022, Dew wasn’t left out.

There’s extra lime flavor added in to this, but no additional tartness, as some Dews have done in recent years.  This ends up being a sweet limey mix, not unlike Baja Blast.  There is a spicy kick on the swallow, which Dew has also done before.  This is VERY tasty, I might buy this more often, if I had the opportunity.

Doritos Spicy Pineapple Jalapeno

Product circa: 2023

What a wild ride these are.

It starts with the aroma, which is a familiar green vegetal jalapeno, the likes of which I’ve encountered on other snacks.  The immediate taste is an off-putting artificial fruitiness that I can’t help but compare to a fresh-scented surface cleaning spray.  After a few chomps, once you get past the typical onion and garlic, you’ll notice a familiar pineapple flavoring, tasting identical to that which is put into the pale yellow Life Savers in a typical variety pack.

Not an ultimately pleasing combination, but I can’t deny that they took a huge swing here.

Funyuns Spicy Queso

 

Product circa: 2023

Disappointing, overall.  There is cheese powder added to these, and they are notably spicy.  There are flecks of herbs on the "chips", but I cannot taste them.  In fact, these are pretty low on flavor.  It's almost like these are under-seasoned and could use more salt, though I'm sure the sodium of this product is already sky-high.

Cheetos Flamin' Hot Dill Pickle

Product circa: 2025

Note: This is Presumptive Ephemeral Nom

I get it.  It's dill pickle flavoring combined with Cheetos' Flamin' Hot.  They just don't work well together.  I'd rather either of them over the combination.  Otherwise, it's passable.

Doritos Golden Sriracha

 

Product circa: winter 2025

This is a Presumptive Ephemeral Nom.

A frankenstein flavor that likely uses artificial flavor compounds.  The first bite is dominated by chile (not too spicy), mustard, and savories like onion and garlic.  There is a tanginess, but also a sweetness that is almost fruity, and my guess is it's the same flavoring used in the Lay's Sweet & Spicy Honey.  Like that product, this one also has a throwaway name; I suppose the presence of chile and garlic could pose as sriracha.  Not bad, but I would never buy this again.

Pringles Hot Ones Los Calientes Verde

 

Product circa: winter 2025

I've had the sauce on which this snack is based.  The sauce isn't my favorite, but it's damn good, and a complex sauce, much more special that the average one you'd get on any store shelf.

The first taste noticeable here on first bite is the sweet tomato/molasses like character that you'd find on a barbeque chip, which frankly doesn't fit with the rest of this product at all.  It's an odd introduction.

The rest of the experience is pretty straightforward.  The majority of the flavor on this chip is an exceedingly tangy green chile, with potent heat following up the rear.  The heat from a single chip is commendable, but after a few of these go down the hatch (no pun intended), you'll realize this is the kind of heat that builds and builds.  And few more, and you'll be huffing and puffing.  These are some of the hottest mainstream chips I've ever had, and easily the hottest Pringle I've had.

Lay's Sweet & Spicy Honey

 

Product circa: 2024

I've eaten a few bags of these already.

There is no honey flavor in this whatsoever.  Instead, the honey is simulated with a combination of various fruity flavorings.  You will get a grape candy flavor, along with maybe peach.  There is also a heavy dose of savory here, like onion, mustard, soy sauce, and MSG in general.  These are also very spicy.  Not punishing like the "red hot" snacks, but a handful of these will have your throat burning in a great way that you won't expect.

One of the oddest snacks I've ever had that is still VERY enjoyable.

Cheetos Flamin' Hot Cajun Cheddar

 

This is a presumptive Ephemeral Nom.

Product circa: 2024

Like Cajun seasoning, this seasoning is tough to pinpoint:  along with the cheese powder, there is clearly black pepper, chile pepper, tomato powder, and maybe thyme?  More herbs, probably.  The heat doesn't disappoint.  This is good stuff.  I doubt I'd buy it regularly if it were available always.

Doritos Salsa Verde

 

Note: This is a presumptive Ephemeral Nom

Product circa: 2024, and probably before and after

I think I've seen this one around over the years, but I'm finally getting to try it.

Very salty and heavy on MSG, both of which are very high on the ingredients.  Then the flavor is very green: green chiles, like jalapeno, maybe even tomatillo, then green herbs, like parsley and cilantro.  Not too heavy on onion and garlic.  Very decently spicy.  But heavy on salt.  I wish the flavors were stronger; this snack is fairly subtle.

Goldfish Frank's Red Hot

 

This is a Presumptive Ephemeral Nom. 

Product circa: 2024

Regular Goldfish crackers covered in hot sauce seasoning.  The seasoning manages to taste exactly like Frank's Red Hot Sauce (I put that shit on everything!).  I wish seasoning like this was sold in shakers bottles.  This was a really pleasant change of pace.

Cheetos Crunchy Salsa con Queso

 

Product circa: 2012+?

It turns out that I tried these back in 2012, but I don't think I recall seeing these on store shelves since.

What's funny is that I just re-read my old post about these, and my description of them from 2012 is still accurate to how they taste now... but I like them now, and I didn't then.  I guess my tastes have changed?

Doritos Baja Fiery Mango

Product circa: Spring 2024

This is part of the 20th Bajaversary, which is a joint celebration between Taco Bell and Mountain Dew.  I'm having trouble finding the significance of the year 2004 in this "anniversary".  Said to be part of this celebration is the permanent release of Mountain Dew Baja Blast products in stores, as well as Baja Laguna Lemonade & Baja Point Break Punch.

Anyway, these things are fascinating.  They start with a bright and tangy mango flavor that can't help me think of sugary breakfast cereal... maybe it's the sugar and corn crunch together that's giving that aura.  The heat then slowly shows itself, and this is some of the most impressive heat I've experienced on a Doritos product.  There's probably some savory elements in this snack as well, such as onion and garlic, but if so, they are very subdued.  Honestly, this tastes like spicy Doritos that have Kool-Aid Tropical Punch powder sprinkled over them.  Overall, a fun experiment, but not a snack that I would reach for unironically.

Snickers Espresso, Sweet & Salty, and Fiery

Product circa: summer 2018

Glad to see Snickers getting into the "ephemeral trio" game!  They've been known to issue limited varieties before, but it's been a while.

Espresso: This is the most subtle of the three.  You can't actually taste the coffee, but whatever coffee flavoring that they do add to this product changes the flavor of the chocolate itself.  This is very nice, and a slightly different experience than the original product.  This goes to show why many different kinds of chocolate dessert recipes call for instant coffee as a flavor enhancer.

Sweet & Salty: I'm not sure what I expected here, but I liked this more that I thought I would.  On first bite you'll notice more salt than usual, which is confirmed on the product's sodium count on the label.  I guess I thought this product would simply contain more sodium, but in fact it has crunchy bits of salted toffee throughout.  It's quite pleasant.  If you're into salted caramel, you'll love this.

Fiery: The first bite or two will taste identical to the original product.  A few bites in, you'll notice a dull burn in your throat.  A few bites after that, you'll actually start to taste that chile was added to the flavor of this product.  It's really well executed.  This is probably the best spicy candy that I've ever tasted.

Overall, while none of these break the 3-NOM barrier, this trio is a great lesson in how to do balanced and nuanced variations of a classic.

Snickers Espresso:- Good

Snickers Sweet & Salty:- Good

Snickers Fiery:- Good

Original Snickers(for comparison):- Good

Mountain Dew Mango Heat

Product circa: Autumn 2016

More and more you'll find that food companies are adding spicy touches to products for which they're otherwise inappropriate.  I find this trend mostly boring, and I wasn't exactly excited when I cracked open this bottle.

This product was issued as yet another Mountain Dew Game Fuel, in recognition of the release of Titanfall 2.

Mango is much like its strawberry, watermelon, and banana counterparts: the flavor used in candy and beverages bears very little resemblance to how its natural version actually tastes.  With that said, I'm fine with how "fake mango" tastes.

Your sip will start with a very pleasing fruity flavor before you soon realize that, as this is a modern Mountain Dew variation, it uses 0-calorie sweetener along with sugar.  It takes a swallow to discern the spiciness that's added to the drink.  It's not unpleasant, but it's also not pleasant.  After a few sips I really start to enjoy the "fake mango" flavor(despite the sweeteners), which is the same as any other mango soft drink.  It's enjoyable stuff, and it would have been refreshing in the right circumstance, if it weren't spicy.

But so long as Pepsico keeps adding silly sweeteners to new products, they'll never garner more than 2 NOMS.


Mountain Dew Mango Heat:- Good
Original Mountain Dew(for comparison):- Great 

Hot & Spicy Cinnamon Oreo

Product circa: Valentine's Day 2018

Nabisco, you monster!

Oreo has done it again, creating a variety of cookies that, when read about online, make you check the URL to make sure you're not on TheOnion.com.  If the junk food market segment were motorsports, Oreo would be the king of drifting, constantly skirting the line between traction and complete disaster.

This time they've seemed to use the common theme of the color red to create a Valentine's Day treat using a chocolate cookie and creme flavored like Red Hots.  You can't make this stuff up.

How is it?  Freaking delicious.  A step-cousin of the Cinnamon Bun Oreo, this guy sports a chocolate cookie over vanilla, and a candy cinnamon flavor instead of the stuff you might find in a pie.  With a combination that sounds awful on paper, it works.  It's hard to explain or describe.  The creme is warming (only barely spicy) and strongly flavored, but the chocolate cookie takes your mind off of it so that it's not overwhelming.


Hot & Spicy Cinnamon Oreo:- Great

Original Oreo(for comparison):- Great