Cabot Popcorn

Cabot is an extremely well known dairy brand in the northeast where I grew up.  Nearly every restaurant that bothers to name their ingredient sourcing will proudly tell you they use Cabot butter.  When they want to make their homemade mac and cheese stand out, they'll definitely let you know it is Cabot cheddar in the mix.  If the whipped cream isn't homemade, it will at least be Cabot brand, no Redi-whip around there.  Even the corner stores carry Cabot products in their dairy case.

In addition to all the basic dairy products, Cabot licenses their products out to a few collaborations to bring Cabot ingredients to offerings outside their basic dairy line: mac and cheese (Kraft style boxed, more homestyle "Farmer's Reserve", or microwavable cups), potato chips, and, what I had my eye on, popcorn.  As you know, I'm kinda obsessed with snacks, and popcorn in general.

"What happens when “The World's Best Cheddar” is tossed with perfectly popped kernels? A seriously cheesy snack that will make other popcorns jealous."

The popcorn is available in 3 flavors: Seriously Sharp (cheddar), Pepper Jack, and Caramel Cheddar, and other limited editions from time to time.

Maple Cheddar.

"A lusciously snackable blend of award-winning seriously sharp cheddar and maple coated kernels makes for a cheesy sweet treat that makes other popcorns jealous."

I went right for the most ridiculously Vermont flavor there is: maple cheddar.

Oh, wow, this was extremely good.

I've consumed a lot of popcorn, sweet flavors, over the top decadent flavors, savory flavors, combo flavors, etc, but I'm fairly certain this was my first maple and cheddar combo popcorn.  It was a mix of two separate kinds of pop corn, the cheddar pieces, and the maple pieces, a riff on the more familiar Chicago mix of (usually orange) cheddar and caramel corn.

Both varieties in the mix were flavor powerhouses.  More than a few pieces of the cheddar and my brain would say, "woah, hold up, this is over the top too much sharp cheesiness!".  Same with the maple - this wasn't just a dusting of maple flavor, no, this was extremely well coated caramel corn with a maple finish, super sweet, to the point that more than a few pieces at a time, my brain also said, "sweet overload! No longer enjoyable!  Just one more and you are done!"  

And therein lay the beauty of this mix.  The pieces were quite visually distinct, pale blonde white cheddar pieces, or darker clearly caramelized maple pieces.  So you could just alternate between them, back and forth, back and forth, creating a completely addicting experience that made it near impossible to put the bag down.  

I really couldn't stop eating this.  It was super savory, it was sweet, it was cheesy, it was sophisticated ... it was everything I wanted and then some.  The bag said 6 servings, which I laughed at, as I looked down to see what was clearly less than a single serving remaining after my few minutes with the bag.  Oops.

I loved it.  Oh, and the pieces were well popped, evenly covered, etc.  Nothing I would change.  This was a limited edition special flavor, with the maple cheddar (as opposed to the regular caramel cheddar sweet & cheesy mix).  If I ever see it again, I will most certainly purchase. ****+.

Pepper Jack.

"Perfectly popped kernels tossed in our farmers naturally aged, award- winning pepper jack makes for a seriously cheesy, lusciously zingy treat that makes other popcorns jealous."

I also tried the pepper jack at some point, not a flavor I'd think I'd like, as I don't generally go for jack cheese, but, uh, the bag didn't last long enough for me to actually get a proper product photo.  Again I say, oops.  I also do not have my tasting notes, as I didn't intend to review it (it was just something my mom had picked up when I was visiting).  But my memory is that it was savory, lightly spicy, and, yes, gone in an instant.