The onslaught of limited edition flavors of things never ceases to amuse me. Of course, because I am a sucker for all things limited edition (due to an intense and terminal case of FOMO), I have to try all of them I can. And with Pringles, the reaction has been on a scale from Jamaican Jerk (pretty good but nothing to write home about) to White Chocolate (basically a war crime). Because we are in the Thanksgiving/2nd Halloween season, they’ve now put out a Limited Edition Roasted Turkey flavor.
I’d like to, first and foremost, applaud somebody for putting out something…anything that isn’t Pumpkin Spice. So, Kellogg’s, you get some points out of the starting gate for that. The can is a standard Pringles can, except that you have the horrific sight of the Pringles Guy’s head on a turkey carcass. Look at the picture and tell me I’m wrong. That’s some weird Dr. Moreau shit right there. So I go from initial points to initial probably-going-to-have-crazy-nightmares.
If you do get a can of this, heed this warning: don’t give it the smell test. I’m not sure what I smelled because I can’t bring myself to take another whiff of it. But it was…and this is honestly the first word that sprang to mind: “eldritch.” That is a word I don’t use lightly.
If there is an upside to this, it’s that the chips themselves don’t taste terrible. But–and I know this will come as a shock–they sure as hell don’t taste like Roasted Turkey. They have the regular Pringles salty taste but with some spices thrown in for good measure. Not a lot of spices, mind you, since “spices” are listed under the “Contains 2% or less” portion of the ingredients. But they can at least be perceived.
I’m not sure what I was expecting. I don’t know if chips that truly tasted like turkey would be fantastic or if they would fill me with utter terror. “My these chips sure are…meaty.” No idea. But I am sure this is one occasion where “Artificially Flavored” on the packaging will make you able to sleep at night.
I would recommend them if they just at least had a unique (but good) taste, but as it stands, you can give these a pass. You probably were going to anyway, since you’re all a bit saner than I am, but now it’s official.
Addendum: There is a definite eldritch aftertaste going on, one that surfaces a couple of minutes after eating these. So, yeah, probably best to avoid these. Now I have to go find something to exorcise my mouth.
