French Fry Diary 614: Walkers Ranch Raccoon

Over in the UK, Lay's Potato Chips are known as Walkers Crisps, and they have the Do Us A Flavor contest there too. Several folks, including a recent episode of The Nosh Show (it's also the episode where they try the US DUAF competitors), have brought one of those flavors to my attention.

It's called Ranch Raccoon. Yeah. Let that sink in for a moment all you who thought Cappuccino and Chicken & Waffles were a bit much. Ranch. Raccoon.

Here's how the fine folks at Walkers describe this flavor: "A delicious combination of gamey meat flavour, with accents of sour cream and a garlic kick. They compliment one another beautifully."

The flavor came from the mind of one Robert Gibson, who initially rejected ideas like 'Doughnut Burger,' and decided that if Cajun Squirrel (apparently a real flavor) worked, why not Ranch Raccoon? Wow. I have no words.

Ranch Raccoon is up against some pretty stiff competition in this year's Walkers Do Us A Flavor, including Pulled Pork in a Sticky BBQ Sauce, Chip Shop Chicken Curry, Hot Dog with Tomato Ketchup, Sizzling Steak Fajita, and Cheesy Beans on Toast.

Well, if there's one thing I can say for the Brits, it's at least they had some fun with the contest. And I think it's also worth mentioning that Pickled Onion, Roast Chicken, and Prawn Cocktail are all regular flavors for Walkers Crisps. Would you try any of these flavors?

French Fry Diary 605: Lay's Cheddar Bacon Mac & Cheese Potato Chips

This has not been a good contest so far for Lay's Do Us A Flavor. The Cappuccino made me sick. The Wasabi Ginger was almost inedible, and while not bad, it would be sad if I had to vote for the Mango Salsa. That leaves only one more contender - the Lay's Cheddar Bacon Mac & Cheese Flavored Potato Chips. Some might say this flavor is the safest bet, and the cop out, I guess we'll find out.

I had been making The Bride try the chips first this year, and even though mac and cheese is her favorite magic food, which she loves as much as I love French fries, this year's Do Us A Flavor contest had her shell shocked, and afraid to try these. See what you did, Lay's? After some coaxing (well, not much really) she tried one, and was disappointed. She tasted no cheese, only bacon, which was her fear in this chip in particular.

Now, bacon is bacon, and there's nothing wrong with a bacon potato chip, but when you put 'em in a yellow bag, and the descriptive words 'cheddar' and 'cheese' outnumber the word bacon, maybe they should taste a little cheesy, ya know? Bacon is good, but so is cheese. The Bride was disappointed. When I tried them, yeah, there was a bit of a cheese flavor, but wow, the smoky bacon flavor was just overpowering.

These chips aren't bad but they really aren't as advertised. I have been very disappointed in the selection of flavors this year. If I vote, and it's a big if, I'll go for the Mango Salsa. Maybe Lay's should've gone with my entry of Poutine, or the special GAR! Podcast flavor - Feet…

French Fry Diary 604: Lay's Wavy Mango Salsa Potato Chips

Well, we're up to the third contender in Lay's 2014 Do Us A Flavor contest, and so far, no winners, hell, nothing I would vote for yet. Today I'm looking at Lay's Wavy Mango Salsa Flavored Potato Chips. It's intriguing that Lay's decided to make these Wavy, which is usually designed for dipping - because this flavor would actually make a good dip. Nice irony. Ironic or not, I just hope these taste better than the Cappuccino or the Wasabi Ginger chips.

The aroma I got when I opened the bag was interesting to say the least. Not unpleasant, but I couldn't really place it. I was expecting something a bit, oh I don't know, more citrusy. Having learned from the last two, I let The Bride try them first. She didn't spit them out or go pale, but her face said volumes. She didn't think they were as bad as the other two, and found the mango flavor disconcerting, "a potato chip shouldn't taste like that."

Again The Bride was on mark. These chips might not have smelled all that citrusy but man, did they taste like mango, and it's a fairly good taste. She compared it to Violet Beauregarde's final piece of gum in Willy Wonka. I think more in terms of Jelly Belly flavors like Buttered Popcorn or Toasted Marshmallow, where the taste feels wrong in this format. It's not bad really. This is the first bag that I've eaten more than a few chips from in this year's contest.

"Not as bad as the other two" is not a ringing endorsement, Lay's. I certainly hope the last flavor is something amazing because so far it's been nothing but disappointment.

French Fry Diary 603: Lay's Kettle Cooked Wasabi Ginger Potato Chips

After yesterday's Do Us A Flavor taste test of *gasp* Lay's Cappuccino Flavored potato chips I needed something to get rid of that awful aftertaste. I thought Lay's Kettle Cooked Wasabi Ginger Flavored Potato Chips might be a nice refresher. After all, if my friend and fellow writer Uriah Young digs them, how bad can they be, right?

Wasabi is not an unknown component in enjoyable potato accompaniments. Oh Yoko! in Cherry Hill rocks the wasabi fries, so this could be very good. It's notable that these are one of two of the four flavors that come in an extra special variation - in this case, kettle cooked. I'm not sure why that is in this case, as opposed to the other three flavors.

The image on the front of the bag had me a bit worried as the Cappuccino chips showed exactly what was going on taste wise. I had to wonder if these chips would taste like sushi. I hope not. A glance at the ingredients betrayed no fish, raw or otherwise, but did indicate a couple different kinds of wasabi seasonings, horseradish, and mystery spices. This could be good or bad.

I learned my lesson with the Cappuccino chips, I let The Bride try one first. One bite and she threw out the rest of the chip. Her words were "I like wasabi and I like ginger, but that just doesn't work." I got kinda a sour cream cream vibe with my first taste, and then a slow burn aftertaste that did not go away quickly at all. These weren't bad, and the kettle cook gave them a good crunch at least.

I think the problem is that unlike last year when I definitely would have not only have given Chicken & Waffles and Cheesy Garlic Bread second chances, I would have finished the whole bag - this year that ain't happening so far.

French Fry Diary 602: Lay's Cappuccino Flavored Potato Chips

Having found all four flavors of this year's Lay's Do Us A Flavor contest fairly easily (after some initial panic), and all in one place (my friendly neighborhood Wawa), was a relief after last year's hunt and search. I decided to take on what some folks think are worst of the bunch first - the Cappuccino Flavored chips.

These chips are by far the most feared of the flavors this year. I'm not a coffee person, so I'm not expecting to like these at all. I don't even like coffee ice cream. Of course the word on the package 'flavored' is kinda key. As with many exotic potato chip flavors, this isn't actually what it says it is, but merely 'flavored' to taste that way.

The other thing on my mind is that I have heard others who have tried these say they are sweet. That's the last thing I would have thought. Sure enough, a look at the ingredients reveals not only cappuccino seasoning and coffee flavor, but also cinnamon (which I sometimes have an allergic reaction to), brown sugar, and even butter.

The aroma that rushed out when I opened the bag was that of coffee and cinnamon, enough cinnamon to activate my allergy to it. My eyes watered and I could feel myself breaking out. The smell is thick and strong. I was almost afraid to try one of the chips. Their weird dirty brown coloring didn't say appetizing. 

The Bride tried one first, and for the record, she's not a coffee person either. She did not like them, and described them as like having coffee with cinnamon in it, that someone happened to drop a potato chip into. That did not fill me with confidence. Still, looking at the front of the bag, it's truth in advertising at least.

As I inhaled more and more from the bag as I took pictures, I began to think that not only would I not be able to try even one, but that I might even get sick. But there's a reason I do these reviews. I do it so you won't have to. Thank me later. The Bride pretty much had it nailed with her description, that and an unpleasant cinnamon aftertaste. These Cappuccino Flavored Potato Chips are definitely not getting my vote. Thumbs down.

The Hunt Is On

Okay, so far the search has been fruitless (or is that chip-less?). I haven't been able to locate any of the new Lay's Do Us A Flavor potato chips this year. So I'm reaching out to you folks.

If you're in the South Jersey/Philadelphia area, and you've seen the Mango Salsa, the Cappuccino, the Cheddar Bacon Mac & Cheese, or the Wasabi Ginger, please let me know where… so I can write about them here. Thanks in advance!

Do Us A Flavor 2014

It's that time again, time to vote for the next flavor of potato chips from Lay's in their Do Us A Flavor Contest. The final flavors have been announced, and they are a bit different. Here are the finalists - Wavy Mango Salsa, Cheddar Bacon Mac & Cheese, Kettle Cooked Wasabi Ginger, and Cappuccino. Wow.

These are nowhere near the insanity of some Japanese and Filipino flavored potato chips I've seen, but they are a bit off the beaten track. Which one will you be voting for? You have between July 28th until October 18th to vote.

Head over to DoUsAFlavor to vote for your favorite, or vote via Twitter, Instagram and/or Vine using the hashtags #SaveCappuccino, #SaveBaconMac, #SaveWasabi or #SaveMango; and/or via text message by texting "Cappuccino," "Bacon Mac," "Wasabi" or "Mango" to 24477 (CHIPS).

And now my search for these chips begins...