Ok, so you know me by now and I know you’re wondering why I haven’t addressed an important issue that I should have known about by now. It’s been big news for a while, yet you’ve probably noticed that I haven’t weighed in on what is so obviously a totally relevant topic typical of this space in the Saturday paper.
I’m speaking, of course, about the tragic demise of the iconic Cherry Blossom chocolate treat.
This has caught the snack and treats universe by storm – a sickly sweet, syrupy storm. But if you’re like me, you may not see its recent death as tragic at all. In fact, many see the demise of the unusual comestible as the exact opposite of tragic.
As everybody by now has heard from all major news outlets around the world, Hershey Canada recently announced that it is discontinuing the Cherry Blossom. “What the heck is a Cherry Blossom?” two out of ten of you might be saying as you emerge from the cave you’ve been living in for several decades. I will attempt to explain.
Cherry Blossom is a novelty candy, a chunky roundish dome of milk chocolate about the size of a large marshmallow that encases a syrupy maraschino cherry infused with bits of coconut and peanut. It was particularly popular in the ‘70s and ‘80s, especially to people who have a sweet tooth and deficient taste buds. And maybe the most identifiable feature of the Cherry Blossom is that it was sold in bright yellow square boxes you could spot a mile away. And there was a picture on the box. Boy, was there a picture on the box!
The photo dominating the bright yellow box was of a Cherry Blossom itself dissected in half, the guts of the chocolate dome leaking out onto the box. This was obviously intended to make your mouth water enough to run over and purchase the C.B. immediately, however it turns out that wasn’t always the case.
One horrified non-customer I heard in an interview said that when she was a little kid, she thought that picture of the open side of the dome revealing a big red maraschino cherry dripping with red syrup was actually the eye of a dragon that was staring at her and bleeding all over the place. And you know something? It actually does look like a scary bleeding eye, dragon or otherwise.
But still, the Cherry Blossom has lasted, astoundingly, ever since it was invented in 1890!
While manufacturer Hershey declares it a “cherished treat” as CBC puts it, “some are grieving; some will dance on its grave”. In a recent taste test, many folks declined to take a second bite. One of them called the Cherry Blossom “kind of gooey and stupid.” Others said they used to like it as a kid, so, darn it, they are going to like it forever.
I personally take the side of ‘stupid’ from the ‘one bite is one too many’ camp. I couldn’t even bring myself to buy one and do a taste test just for old time’s sake. I guess I’m the same as the person who said they liked it as a kid, only I’m the exact opposite. It was just too mucilaginous, glutinous and viscid for me (I got a new Thesaurus!). It’s what the grumpy character Lou Grant from the super-popular Mary Tyler Moore TV show said: “Nostalgia. I didn’t like it then and I don’t like it now.”
But did I mention that the Cherry Blossom is Canadian-made? How can we buy Canadian when it’s not there? What’s next, Hawkins Cheezies? Now THAT would be tragic.
Harley Hay is a Red Deer author and filmmaker. Reach out to Harley with any thoughts or ideas at harleyhay99@gmail.com.
