Melts in your mouth.

One of the best-known slogans, “Melts in your mouth, not in your hands” has much deeper roots than one might think. Most people I would assume are familiar with the M&M brand and the line of products they market. I am for sure.

Turns out, when the U.S. soldiers were at war in WW II, there was a real demand for chocolate. One of the big problems was heat and how it would melt before the candy was eaten. Although not a problem at times, I guess when you are at war, it makes for a messy situation. The Mars candy company came up with an idea—a candy coated chocolate that, as you might guess, “melts in your mouth…”

Move ahead nearly 70 years and you have the same great product, but with many more varieties and colors. A number of years ago, they stopped making the red M&M’s because they contained what was known back then as “Red Dye #2.” I have no idea what it was, but it was bad for you. It was replaced with another color that did not contain this particular dye, but I don’t remember what color it was.

I love M&M’s; my favorites are the peanut variety which were created in 1954, long after the originals. One of the problems I have with them is what I suspect a lot of people find difficult to do when you have started eating---that would be stopping. Sometimes the reason I stop is I suddenly realize I have eaten more of the medium-size bag than I had intended to, or the bag is empty. I always regret it when I am done, but if I regretted it that much, I never would place one between my two front teeth, crack it in half, pull out the peanut and finish it all off. I actually believe if I eat it this way, it will take more time and I won’t eat as many. Nice thought, not true.

When I was in New York City last week, I went by the M&M’s store. You can’t miss it. With it’s very large round shapes placed on top of one another, they spin around slowly and are just begging you to stop in and experience what the world has known for decades. These things taste really good.

The photo above is outside the store. The marketing of the M&M guys has created something very few products can do----a real identifiable personality. Really can’t do that very well with a bottle of Pepsi, Nike shoe or even bottle of Budweiser, but you can with an M&M. That’s marketing for you. If you go to New York, you will see a very large sign, amongst all the other very large signs, where the M&M guys come to life. Ever changing, you never know what to expect once the next scene pops up. Just like my love for M&M’s I really like these little guys---no matter what time of the year, they are always welcome into my home. They don’t make it out of my home, but they are always welcome to stop by for a meal—where they are the final course.

Thanks for stopping by.