Pringles bells, Pringles smells, Pringles all the way!!

Fat Mike's a big Pringles fan.  Even as a boy growing up, I got sucked in by the innovative package design and sleek curvature of the chip that fit so nicely in my face. While I'm totally satisfied with the traditional Pringle, there are some totally awesome flavors out there that may have fallen under the radar of the normal chip consumer.  The Fat is here to share just a few with you.

I think Pringles has upwards of 20 flavors circulating the market these days  They are prone to throwing out PLENTY of limited edition flavors as well, so it's important to keep your eyes peeled.  I have no intention of ranking my favorites, but Fat Mike just likes to keep you fine folks aware of what is circulating out there.  I'm especially pleased to be able to share a unique Pringle that I happened upon which I have NEVER seen before or since.  They're not even on Pringles' own flavor list, but we'll get to those shortly.

Finally, it should be noted that Pringles divides their own flavors into categories.  The only flavor categories in this post are Xtra, Favorites, and Limited Edition.  For the full list of available flavors and categories, click here.

Let's start with one from the "Favorite": Salt & Vinegar.  Every chip vendor dabbles in the S&V and it's become a mandatory flavor for any manufacturer who wants to hang with the giants out there.  Having celebrated the other traditional flavors in my Pringle riddled past, I grabbed these off the shelf after realized that I'd never judged how these held up.

Eh...

It was too bad.  I didn't really get a good feel from these.  Pringles subscribes to the "coating technique" when flavoring their chips in order to limit the "greases" left behind (I think) similar to a Chee-to, or Doritos. However, this technique seems to be the downfall because the flavor isn't cooked into the chip as much as some competitors.  So, when you dig into this can for the tangy zip of some S&V you instead get a Pringle that's dusted with a vinegary powder with a fading moment of flavor.  It's not like you can just blow it off like dust on an old library book, but that's the way it comes across during the eat.  The flavor isn't bold, and instead just fades away quickly leaving an almost bitter aftertaste.  Granted, that makes you want to reach in and replace the flavor in your mouth with another chip, but I just don't subscribe to the forced follow up.


I ended up giving away the remainder of the chips (after I got about halfway through) to some dudes I was hanging with, but THAT resulted in learning a handy "Pringle-Tip".  I've always appreciated the can for its simplicity in funneling the last remnants of the crushed chips into my face with a simple tip o the can into the face-piece.  However, a classier way of approaching this is to simply use the cap as a plate for clean eating.  I was shockingly impressed and humbled by the fact that this had never crossed my mind.  Nevertheless, it's always been obvious that Fat Mike is barbaric in his approach to eating and only considers the intake, not what it looks like from the outside. There's always room for some classy snacking.

Anyway... back to the point.

Moving into the X-tra category, we have the Pringles "X-tra Tangy Buffalo Wing" flavor.  on the end of the eat.  The spice level is perfect, and just keeps you grabbing for chip, after chip, after chip.  Unfortunately, there isn't a flavor locator on the Pringles website, but it's not uncommon for supermarkets to keep some of the X-tra flavors on the shelves.  I would drench this in a nice, homemade bleu cheese dip or throw it on top of a grilled chicken sandwich to add some tang and spice. That's right, not on the side... on the SANDWICH. If you don't know... try it. Life = changed.
When I first plucked this pearl from the oyster shell of my local convenience store, I was curious about the title. Most vendors simply execute "buffalo style" flavors trying to replicate the basic wing flavor. Why are Pringles adding the "tangy" to the title?  I soon found out the answer.  These chips are a REVELATION! They have such an addictive "zip" to the flavor that walks the line between tasting EXACTLY like traditional buffalo sauce and a spicy, South Carolina BBQ sauce.  The "tangy" comes from a vinegary addition that comes in right

Next, there are a couple of "Limited Editions" from the Pringles "Food Truck" exploratory.  I would advocate that this become a much more regular practice from the Pringles flavor development team. Regardless of whether the flavors I've tried were executed successfully, Food Trucks are all the rage these days and the flavor profiles could be AMAZING if explored further.  Could you imagine an Arepa flavored Pringles chip?? Or Jerk flavored Pringles?? Get with the program, Julius. *The Pringles logo is a stylized cartoon caricature of the head of a male figure (commonly known as "Julius Pringles") 

Thankfully, the 2 that I was able to try did not disappoint: Kickin' Chicken Taco, and Cheeseburger.


We'll start with the rhyming Kickin' Chicken.  This was good, but not great.  The Pringle provides the perfect base using the nicely cooked potato and sturdy construction for housing the bold flavor, but there wasn't any depth to the flavor.  The "taco" was facilitated by some nice chili powder, and there was a bit of "salsa-esk" spice to it, but any nuance was overwhelmed by the chili powder.  In the end, it was a decent chip, but nothing to write home (or extensively in this blog) about.

Cheeseburger, Cheeseburger, Cheeseburger!!!

These are difficult to describe, but after a lot of thought and reflection, I'm gonna give it a shot.  Do these chips actually taste like a cheeseburger? No.  Is there a meaty flavor anywhere in the chip? Absolutely not.  However, you that smell you get in your car after you order McDonald's drive thru and then ride with the bag in your car for a while? These chips taste like that.  There's no essence of cheeseburger in the chip, but what the Pringles flavor team were able to create was a chip that tastes like what a fast food burger SMELLS like.  When you pop one of these chips in your mouth, you get ketchup, you get mustard, you get a little bit of onion, and you get pickle.  All of the condiments found on a cheeseburger are represented in full on this Pringle.  It's amazing to experience.  You can't help but feel like you're eating a cheeseburger chip, but your brain knows that what you're eating doesn't taste ANYTHING like a cheeseburger. Crazy, right? Yeah... crazy like a FOX.

Finally the coup-de-gras! Dessert.

 Your eyes aren't deceiving you, those are WHITE CHOCOLATE PRINGLES!!!  I walked into the store expecting nothing, and came out with THIS!  Even if you read the Thrillest ranking of all 29 flavors of Pringles posted in April of 2015, you won't find this ANYWHERE on that list.  The container was a bit dinged up, and I knew it fell in the "Limited Time" category so I grabbed 'em up and jumped in.  WOW!! This was a triumph.  Sure, it's a little odd to apply a white chocolate powder to a chip, but it blends with the salt PERFECTLY and just melts in your mouth.  At first, the sensation is strange because the flavor takes your mouth and your brain by surprise.  Moreover, a crucial part of the experience is in the eating technique.  If you just pop the chip in your mouth, you'll get a good experience and emerge confused, but willing to dive in again.  However, if you close your lips slightly as the chip slides in, the Pringle dust coats the lips and as you consume the chip you're left to lick the lips to grab that sweet finish on the tongue.  It's dazzling.  I was so impressed that I started to share with random people to see if they had the same reaction. Those who were brave/trusting enough to try them came away with the same feeling.  These are only available around the holidays, but I'm not sure what holidays they choose to bust these out.

As I stated earlier, Pringles will keep you on your toes. Always be on the lookout for new, and exciting work out of the Pringles innovators.  They know what they're doing, and they're doing it well.  These are just a few gems out there. Go out and experience all that the Pringles team has to offer.  Peace, and Pringles be with you.