For our kick-off treat, we are sampling Reese’s Franken-cup.
This is a new candy for 2020, and I had to travel all over the Los Angeles basin to find it for this review. It appears to only be available at those purveyors of fine chocolates: Target and WalMart.
The Franken-cup is similar to a standard Reese’s peanut butter cup, but the lower half of the chocolate cup is replaced with “green creme.”
This of course raises the question: what is “creme,” exactly? Merriam-Webster defines it as “a cream or preparation made with or resembling cream when used in cooking.” So, for this candy product, it seems “creme” is a “preparation…resembling cream.” Doesn’t that sound appetizing?
Let’s apply Steve’s Sweetoberfest Scoring rubric to the Franken-cup. (Each treat will be judged along four dimensions, with up to three points available for each dimension.)
Dimension 1–Packaging. Not bad. It’s the standard Reese’s orange packaging, but there’s a closeup of two Franken-cups to show off that all-important green creme. An image of an electrode is emitting little lightning bolts, suggesting that the Franken-cup was created in a mad scientist’s laboratory. Points deducted for not including neck bolts on the picture of the candy, or placing it on an operating table, or incorporating some other trope evocative of Frankenstein. 2 points.
Dimension 2–Appearance of the Treat. Pretty clever to go with green on a Reese’s cup. It’s a surprising twist on a very familiar candy. The mold-green color is a good Halloween choice. I do wonder if they shouldn’t have also colored the filling, though. Also, I think they missed an opportunity to emboss some kind of Frankenstein motif in the top of the cup. Or maybe print something on the paper wrapper that each cup sits in. 2 points.
Dimension 3–Taste. It’s hard to improve on the standard Reese’s. Chocolate and peanut butter are a classic, satisfying combination. The green creme changes things a bit. It’s sort of interesting, adding a different texture and a sweeter, creamier taste. But it ends up quite cloying on the palate. 2 points.
Dimension 4–Value. This “king size” package costs $1.69 at Target. Points deducted for making the cup so damn small. Maybe the regular Reese’s are this small nowadays. But in my day, Reese’s cups were much bigger. A package of two cups was 1.8 ounces, which means four cups would weigh in at 3.6 ounces. This “king size” package of four Franken-cups is only 2.4 ounces. 1 point.
Steve’s Sweetoberfest Score: 7 out of 12, which qualifies as a minor TREAT.
Chasing Phantoms 
I applaud your creative mind, Steve. In anticipation of the name of the best of the best! Joy
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Steve, I was not aware of this version of Reese’s. I can tell you that upon getting my driver’s license at 16 years of age I celebrated by driving to Sears and buying a bag of conventional Reeses. I ate them aplenty on the ride home, and upon arrival, promptly threw up. I am thus moved (you might say) by your suggestion that the green on the Franken-cup evokes mold!
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