Quick question: When’s the last time you ate a jelly bean? Had you asked me prior to yesterday, I honestly couldn’t have given you an answer—it’s been *that* long. As it turns out, the sweet treat has come quite a long way since my Easter basket years. Six limited-edition Brach’s jelly bean flavors were released earlier this month as part of the brand’s Easter Brunch collection, and they’re unlike anything you’ve ever tasted.

Forget grape, lemon and lime—this year, the jelly bean gods have blessed us with saccharine delights such as Blueberry Maple Pancake, Mimosa and Caramel Cold Brew—yes, friends, there’s a jelly bean that tastes like the best steeped iced coffee you’ve ever had.

While they’re not quite as wild as 2022’s Late Night Taco Truck offerings (it was real, look it up), they still provide quite the rollercoaster ride for your taste buds.

The company sent me a bag, so I tried all six of the new for 2024 flavors, and let’s just say, I have some *thoughts.* Watch the video above and keep reading to find out what each one really tastes like.

1. Blueberry Maple Pancake

• Flavor Rating: 7/10

I expected this to taste like breakfast. Instead, I got an instant sugar rush with a hint of cotton candy. Like the experimental gum that turned Violet Beauregarde into a blueberry in Willy Wonka’s factory, however, the taste changed as I chewed, and the maple syrup flavor began to creep in. All in all, I’d say this is good in moderation. It’s too sweet to eat more than a few, but I didn’t dislike it.

2. Chocolate Glazed Donut

• Flavor Rating: 5/10

This one had my taste buds all kinds of confused. I got very little chocolate from it—more of a butterscotch flavor that was punctuated by notes of bubblegum at the end. If I tried really hard, I could maybe concede to a touch of Dunkin’s chocolate frosting. Mixed with butterscotch. It was … OK, but there are (much) better beans in the bunch.

3. Caramel Cold Brew

• Flavor Rating: 10/10

Got a java addiction? Prepare to have your world rocked. This really does taste like coffee! I’m not talking about a wimpy cup of gas station brew, either: This tastes like strong coffee, hold the bitterness. It’s kind of like eating a coffee bean or taking a shot of cold brew for the most delicious pick-me-up. While my boyfriend wasn’t as keen on these, those with an appreciation for a bold cup of joe will dig the flavor as well as the perceived caffeine boost. It’s a win-win!

4. Cinnamon Roll

• Flavor Rating: 3/10

Cinnamon Roll is the only jelly bean in the Easter Brunch collection I found to be truly inedible. Not because it’s bad, per se, but because the cinnamon is of the spicy variety—think Big Red chewing gum or a Fireball shot. Having made myself deathly ill drinking a pint of Hot Damn in my youth (don’t ask), spicy cinnamon is not exactly a flavor profile I mesh with—I would have preferred a softer, more coffee-ready cinnamon. For those who can stomach it, however, it’s not so bad—in fact, my boyfriend said this one was great!

5. Mimosa

• Flavor Rating: 9/10

It was no surprise to me that I liked Mimosa—I adore them in real life, too. The bean version isn’t quite so fizzy—it definitely could’ve done with a little tongue sparkle—but the orange juice overtones were spot on. Maybe because of its citric flavor, it’s not as sweet as some of the others, but for me, that was a bonus, making it far easier for my typically sugar-starved body to digest. A real standout, if I do say so!

6. Berry Smoothie

• Flavor Rating: 8/10

If you’re a fan of the tried-and-true, you’re bound to enjoy Berry Smoothie: It tastes the most to me like your classic, run-of-the-mill jelly bean. It’s sweet, it’s fruity, and true to its name, there are strong notes of berry. Its definitely less exciting than the others (berry isn’t exactly a core shaker to the palette), but it also just might be the one I’d eat the most of in a row, hence its solid flavor rating.

The Final Verdict

If you ask me, the Brach’s Easter Brunch jelly beans are worth it for the Caramel Cold Brew flavor alone. I’d buy the entire bag just for a handful! Since I also enjoyed Mimosa, Berry Smoothie and Blueberry Maple Pancake, however, I think they offer a pretty good bang for your buck. They’re only here for a limited time, so I’d definitely advise stocking up—especially since you can get two 10-ounce bags for less than $20 if you snag them on Amazon, with Prime delivery well ahead of Easter Sunday.

Now. If you’ll excuse me, I’ll just be over here, chewing through my own Easter basket…

Have you tried the Brach’s Easter Brunch collection? What’s your favorite flavor? Tell me in the comments below!

Xo, Nicole

The post PSA: A Caramel Cold Brew Jelly Bean Exists and It *Actually* Tastes Like Coffee appeared first on nicolebjean.

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Of all the simple pleasures I’m missing out on while stuck in Illinois’ mandated state quarantine, my daily iced Americano with ristretto shots from Starbucks (hold the sugar, please), has to be at the top of my list. No matter how many times my boyfriend tries to convince me that the bagged stuff we brew at home is sufficient, for me, it’s just not the same. I want —nay, I need—more! Luckily, I stumbled upon the one thing that’s sure to get me through until I’m once again able to get my preferred java fix right in the nick of time: Copper Cow Coffee Vietnamese pour over packs (from $11.99).

These genius little biodegradable packets, which rip open at the top, are unlike anything I’ve ever seen. Each one comes with a pair of genius cardboard tabs that pop out at the sides, allowing you to hang them from the center of your mug.

From there, you simply pour hot water into the open bag and wait for it to drain into your cup (A word of advice: Do so with extreme caution, lest you want to wind up with a nasty burn.) For a Vietnamese-style cup of joe, you’ll want to do this two to three times, while those that are used to the larger pours served in America will want to repeat the process roughly six to eight times (check out the video below to see how it’s done). Essentially, it’s like an über-convenient, portable version of a French press coffee, minus the “press.”

While I was delighted by the innovative design of these handy packs, I was even more pleased by the taste and quality of the coffee found within. I started with the ginger-flavored latte kit ($17 for a 5-pack). I won’t lie—I had my doubts about the flavor. I don’t particularly like raw ginger, and the thought of combining it with coffee? Well, let’s just say my mouth wasn’t exactly watering. And yet, after just one sip of this smooth, incredibly full-bodied brew, I knew I had found something special.

Sustainably-sourced from the central highlands in Vietnam, these beans have none of the bitterness you’ll get from the over-roasted beans at Starbucks. It’s also void of that slightly off-putting fruity flavor found in many an independent coffee shop, striking instead a perfect balance.

What’s more, the ginger that I was so worried about actually enhanced the flavor of my java, adding a subtle, sweet-yet-spicy element that I couldn’t help but appreciate. According to health experts, ginger also just so happens to be advantageous for everything from oxidative stress and inflammation to boosting your cardiovascular function, fighting germs, and protecting against disease—some pretty key functions at the moment, if I do say so myself!

While you can buy these pour-overs on their own, many also come in kits (like the ginger pack) that include sweetener and sugar in the form of condensed milk packets that you can pour right into your cup once it’s finished draining. Watching your figure? These kits contain 100 calories and 17 grams of sugar—a significant improvement when compared to the 240 calories and 31 grams of sugar you’d find in a 16-ounce blonde vanilla latte from Starbucks.

I, for one, am officially hooked: Copper Cow Coffee for the win!

What are some of the things you’ve found that are keeping you going in quarantine? Share in the comments below!

Xo, Nicole

The post The Germ-Fighting Pour-Over Coffee That’s Getting Me Through Quarantine appeared first on nicolebjean.

Avid drinkers of the coffee chain might recall the taste-busters that reigned supreme in 2017, such as the Mermaid Frappucino, the Zombie Frappucino, and, who could forget, the Unicorn Frappucino. For months, however, we’ve been without an Instagram-worthy concoction to post on our feeds, and frankly, the world was overdue.

Finally, like a plentiful rain amid drought, Starbucks has come through. For the next two days only (through July 15), the Seattle-based company is offering up the next big thing in novelty beverages: the Tie-Dye Frappucino!

This multi-colored, candy-coated dream in a cup looks like something born of unicorn tears and rainbows, with distinct swirls of yellow, red, green and blue, a whipped cream topping and colored sprinkles to finish it all off.

“We wanted to create something that celebrates summer and really conveys it both visually and through flavor within the beverage,” drink designer Paloma Carrington-Bataller said in a press release. “It’s summer in a cup and something everyone can relate to; it takes you back to sunny warm days of summer spent at camp or with friends and family.”

While there’s no coffee to be found within — there’s no caffeine at all, in fact — you’re sure to get a buzz of a different kind thanks to a heavy dose of sugar, which seems to be the drink’s main ingredient apart from ice, milk, frappucino syrup and whipped cream.

I won’t make any bones about it — the nutritional facts behind this thing are goddamn appalling. For one measly grande cup, you’re looking at 58 grams of sugar. 58! Let’s put that into perspective, shall we? The American Heart Association recommends just 37.5 grams a day for men, and even less for women (25 grams). So, that’s completely f*cked.

But that’s not all: The Tie-Dye frapp also has a whopping 60 grams of carbohydrates, and 10 grams of saturated fats — that’s 50 percent of your daily allocated value.

The bottom line? This sucker’s not for the faint of heart — literally. But, if you’re willing to throw caution to the wind for a day and say to hell with it, I’ll move right along!

For starters, it’s not quite as pretty as the photo above. You’ll have to lower your expectations quite a bit as far as appearances go, since it’s not exactly Instagram-material — this one didn’t even make my feed. In fact, when mixed together, it sort of takes on a greenish brown hue with faint strands of color peeking through (see below).

The taste is also a bit unexpected. Though my tongue was fully prepared to experience something akin to a Shock Tart, there wasn’t much about this blend that was tart or sour. Do you remember those Pixy Stix you loved to guzzle down as a kid? Imagine someone blending them together with milk and crushed ice, then smothering it with whipped cream. THAT’s what the tie-dye frappucino tastes like. It’s a melted popsicle of flavor with a distinctly sugary finish. Guess Carrington-Bataller wasn’t lying when she said it would take us back to our youth!

I wanted to hate it. I really, really did. Instead, I found it … strangely addicting. The more I sucked down, the more I wanted. I knew I was slurping down pure sugar, but I just couldn’t stop. In fact, I physically had to remove the cup from my presence to avoid lapping up every last drop!

Thankfully for everyone’s waistlines, this dangerous little treat is only around for a few more days. Unless of course, they decide to extend it’s limited edition run, in which case, I’ll be real — we might have a bit of a problem on our hands.

Damn you, Starbucks. DAMN YOU!!!

The post I Tried Starbucks’ New Tie-Dye Frappucino — Here’s What It Tastes Like appeared first on nicolebjean.