Gotta Get At This: Lay's Guatemala Ponle Tu Sabor a Lay's Contest

Another day, another contest!
Looks like Lay's Guatemala and Lay's Dominican Republic are both conducting this contest right now. "Ponle Tu Sabor a Lay's", which translates to "Put Your Flavor in Lay's", is a typical 'create the next flavor' type contest. It seems this contest started off with fans submitting potential flavors online (just like the current US contest), but right now the contest is down to two flavors inspired by two different fans; Andrea and Francisco.
The flavors seem to be available in stores (I've yet to confirm this), and fans can go to the website to vote on which bag should be added to the full time lineup. Both of these bags sound KILLER! I would grab either of these without a second thought. Pollo al Limon or Lime Chicken is Andrea's flavor. Even the picture on the bag just makes me want to dive in. And Lomito Encebollado or Tenderloin with Onions is Francisco's flavor. That sounds like a delicious take on the Steak and Onions bag. mmm. Both sound worthy of winning. I'll update when I find out which one wins. But if anyone has friends in Central America that can get their hands on these, I recommend you try and get some.
Also, I just wanted to say, these bags look AWESOME. They have a little touch of 80's with the white striping at the top, but modern coloring and a modern logo. These just look so cool. Not to mention that they have the food being sliced into chips. SOO COOL! Love the look of these!

UPDATE: I was recently looking at the Dominican Republic site and saw that they had 2 different finalists on the page now, I don't know what happened, but they do share a landing page so it looks like the pages got crossed and are now fixed. The Dominican finalists are Carlos with "Salsa a la Parmesana" and Indhira with "A la Parilla". Which are basically Parmesan Sauce and Grilled Beef. I'll throw together a new entry in more detail, but for now I want to clarify that DR has their own unique finalists. The two flavors in this blog entry above are exclusive to Guatemala.

Lay's Denmark Barbecue

Another bag from Denmark! Whoop! Here's Barbecue flavor, Danish style. The Barbeque image on the front is a vegetable skewer, so I'm not sure if this bag was supposed to taste like meatless bbq or with meat. These chips are really nice. The texture is similar to Lay's USA, but the potato is clearly better quality... I enjoyed them. They aren't as potato-y as other chips, just a hint of potato taste and the seasoning is the star. The flavor in the first bite reminded me of a less intense version of the BBQ chips we have here at home. After a few more chips I found the sweetness. It was pretty cool. They are just like the ones we have here, but they aren't at the same time (Does that make sense?). At one point I licked my fingers and I could have sworn I had just tasted Chicken skewers. Insane. So maybe this bag is supposed to taste like Chicken BBQ? IDK. Regardless, I think BBQ lovers will really love this bag. Great for when you are missing chips from home in Scandinavia. For those who missed my other Danish Lay's review... I found these not only in Copenhagen, but in Sweden as well. So, they are worth a search if visiting the region. Loved it, glad I still have a bag left. Good job DK :)

Gotta Get At This: Lay's Netherlands Maak De Smaak Contest Finalists

Oops! I almost forgot to share this! It's almost the end of August, but anyone who was interested in the Maak De Smaak Contest in the Netherlands may have already seen this. If not, here are the 3 finalists... Aioli e Aglio (Garlic Aioli), Whiskey Cocktail, and Spicy Reggae Chicken! All 3 of these sound PHENOMENAL! Whiskey Cocktail?? Is that even real? Jeez! I would devour all of these hahaha.

All 3 flavors are available now in stores in the Netherlands. Voters will choose the best and it will become the winner of some shelf space until next year's contest!

PS Did I mention, I want these!

PSS here is a hilarious commercial, enjoy!

Walkers UK Sensations Caramelised Onion & Balsamic Vinegar

Damn this was a good bag of chips.

Here's a bag from Walkers' Sensations line I picked up during my time in London. The flavor: Caramelised Onion and Balsamic Vinegar. What a treat. These chips have so much going on that I don't even know where to start. I guess we'll take on the potato; the chip itself was BURSTING with potato flavor! The kind of flavor that sits in your mouth for minutes after you've taken your first bite. Salty, rich, starchy, perfection. Then, a bit of sweet sweeps across your taste buds from the caramelized onion. Not overwhelmingly onion... just sweet with a hint of onion. And then the chip finishes up with a splash of tang from the Balsamic. Wow. Just wow. The bag is like a symphony being played to your mouth. The combination of what I would considered a perfect potato chip (full potato taste from a evenly cooked chip) and two exquisite flavors create an amazing bag of chips. I really can't say enough good stuff about these.

I highly recommend. They shouldn't be too hard to find... ask a local British grocer to order some if you can't track them down.

Lay's Denmark Salted

Here's a bag of plain salted Lay's I picked up in Denmark. Denmark actually had quite a nice line up of flavors available, but I only got to try 3 of them... scratch that, 2 of them. My sister ate the third bag and didn't save me a single chip... so I forced her to do a guest blog on the flavor lol. Expect that soon haha.
Anyways, just for reference, the other flavors Denmark had that I didn't get a chance to taste were Heinz Tomato Ketchup, and Cheese & Onion. So, Ill have to try those on my next trip :)
But for now, we have the humble salted potato chip. These are made for the Scandinavian market, very much so, the Danes LOVE salty food and these chips don't let them down. They are RIDICULOUSLY salty. Almost too much so, but it's a little bag so I powered through it. My Danish friends LOVED them though, so what do I know? The potato was wonderful, perfectly crisp, nicely yellow, no burns, excellent crunch, and a nice potato flavor. But you really have to be comfortable with a high salt taste to enjoy these, I couldn't do a medium size bag if I had to. These probably pair well with the cold fish dishes that are really common in Denmark. So, just know that before you try. They suit the locale well, and for that reason I don't think it was a bad bag of chips. I also found these for sale in Sweden, so you may be able to buy them across Scandinavia if you are looking.


Note, if you do go looking to taste these, they can be bought individually in medium size bags or in a 6 pack of small bags. The 6 pack carries 3 flavors. The 6 pack was spotted in both Denmark and Sweden.

Er, What?? Did you just say "Do Us A Flavor" Lay's?

I was listening to the radio today, and, um, do my ears deceive me? or did I just hear Lay's USA is doing a flavor contest??
Really?!
OH HAPPY DAY!!
This is awesome! This is the ish I like to see! Some initiative Lay's!!
Lets do this!!

 So here's this dillio...
Apparently while I was away, Lay's launched the "Do Us A Flavor" campaign (I love that name!) and what you do is... you submit a potential chip flavor... and if they pick it... they will make it into a chip... AND you win some money! If it sounds familiar, its because it is the tried and true contest that Lay's has been doing all over the world. The thing I love about these contests is it gives the consumers a chance to try a flavor that wouldn't have necessarily been brought to market otherwise. In Holland, the winner of their contest was a popular French Fry sauce. In Arabia, a Pizza flavored chip. And in Belgium, it was a popular local Hamburger. This is a chance for American chip lovers to go HAM and choose a unique flavor we've never seen before! (PS. Not literally Ham, or maybe, it's up to you)

Lay's did a great job picking the faces of the contest; Iron Chef Michael Symon and Restauranteur Eva Longoria. The contest interface also seems to be a good choice, it's pretty easy to just hop on Facebook and submit a flavor idea... or you can text it from your phone. NEATO!
The winning flavor will earn its creator a cool 1 million USD.
I'm ready to start hourly submissions!
Can't wait to see how this plays out, because as long as we are getting a new flavor, we've all basically won... right?

Walkers UK MAX Chargrilled Steak

Sorry for the mini hiatus everyone. Just got back from my first trip to Europe and couldn't blog over there... but I'm back with much to share. First bag is one I grabbed freshoftheboat at Heathrow. A bag of Walkers MAX (aka Ruffles, kids) flavored a la Chargrilled Steak. So here's what's up. For a ruffled chip, it wasnt really as potato-y as you would expect it to taste, but maybe that is because the seasoning here packed a HELL of a punch. You just stare at this bag and you can taste the steak charring on the grill. The flavor gets in every nook and cranny of these bad boys. For me, it was a bit too much. They were almost too "manly" for me... if that makes any sense. I barely ate half the bag to be honest. They just had this intense aroma and intense flavor that really isnt for me. I find myself more and more leaning toward the acidic chips and further from the BBQ flavors. But if I were a guy (or a BBQ chip lover, to be fair) I would think this chip rocked. The flavor was spot on. Imagine that Ribeye in the restaurant; this is the level of steak we are talking about. The chip was sturdy and thick cut. Well suited to hold all the weight of a full filet. At the end of the day, this chip wasnt for me, but that doesnt mean it was a bad chip... (insert pun about chip being a bad-ass)
wockawocka
Goodnight!

Gotta Get At This: Lay's Thailand International Flavors

Hey all! Here are some new flavors recently showing up on Lay's Thailand's website. Looks like 3 new international flavors. They appear to actually be releases, although you can vote on your favorite so I'm not entirely sure. The one on the left is an American flavor that they are calling Spicy Cheese Paprika. I could only translate the first word อเมริกัน to mean "American". The middle bag looks like Japanese Fish Balls although I couldn't translate any of what the label says, and the final bag on the right side is "Italian Spaghetti" อิตาเลียน รปาเกตตี้. 
I'm not sure that I'm really desperate to try any of them, the flavors sound a little boring... I think they may all already exist elsewhere, but it is always exciting to try new stuff; so if I can find them I'll be all over that! 

UPDATE, Oct 18, 2012: Looks like American Spicy Cheese Paprika is the winner of this contest. I still don't know what that means, but it seems to me like the flavor will just remain on store shelves while the other 2 hit the Lay's Graveyard. Honestly, this sounded like the best flavor to me too. Enjoy it Thailand!

Gotta Get At This: Lay's España Italian Pesto & Mozzarella

Check this beauty out. Lay's España just posted this on their facebook as a new limited edition flavor. "Italian Sabor a Pesto & Mozzarella" aka "Italian Pesto & Mozzarella flavor". MMMM. That just sounds ridiculous.
Also, how lovely is the packaging?? It makes it look like it probably tastes life changing.
 It's nice to see an Italian flavor that ISN'T pizza or spaghetti bolognese lol. I would LOVE to track this bag down.
If you try it, It'd be great to hear about it in the comments!!

Gotta Get At This: Lay's Peruanisimas Brasa y Tradicion

Here's a bag that's been out since April but I wasn't sure if it was new until I read it on Twitter. It's from Lay's Peru's "Peruanisimas" line of chips made from 100% Peruvian potatoes. The flavors in this line are usually produced by famed Peruvian chefs and are based on traditional Peruvian meals. This particular bag is flavored "Brasa y Tradicion" and is based on the famed Pollo a la Brasa meal (or Peruvian Rotisserie Chicken in English). The dish combines a Peruvian spiced  Roast Chicken with thick-cut crispy french fries... which means the flavors probably convert to an amazing bag of chips.
It's cool to see a range of chips that specifically focus a nation's food history, especially for an outsider to a culture looking for a crash course in what makes that regional cuisine unique.
The rest of the line includes flavors like: Sazón Norteña (Northern Seasonings... based on a rice with duck dish), Pasión al Carbón (Passion on the Grill... based on Creole spiced grilled Beef skewers), Andinas (which are made from Purple and Yellow Marbled potatoes from the Andes Mountains with Salt), and a secondary line of basic seasonings (Salt, Rocoto Pepper, and Native Pepper) on Yellow Peruvian potatoes.
Track them down if you're looking for a taste of Peru like I am!!