New product Wednesday, in Dallas-area stores: M&M’s Premiums

by Teresa Gubbins

M&Ms have already spun off in pretty much every flavor -- dark chocolate, white chocolate, mint, cherry, "razzberry", strawberry, dulce de leche, and more -- to the point of fatigue.

But their latest new product, M&M's Premiums, is sufficiently revolutionary to warrant a story in the NY Times. (Although you have to factor in the Times trying to be hip, made obvious by the story's reference to a "blog". Whoa.)

M&M's Premiums are like jewels, like rubies, oooh.

The "revolution" is that M&M's Premiums have dispensed with the candy shell -- the very thing that makes M&M's M&M's. Instead, the Premiums have a thinner skin, really just a coating, but with a flashy metallic finish. The skin has no crunch, though it does offer minor resistance -- a little oomph that's moderately pleasing as it crumbles in your mouth. It almost makes the old crunchy shell seem tacky and unrefined.

To call these M&M's at all is marginal. Not only do they lack the signature shell, they're bigger than regular M&M's and they come in five flavors: chocolate almond, mocha, triple chocolate, mint, and raspberry almond. Most have multiple layers; the triple chocolate, for example, has a milk chocolate center surrounded by a layer of white chocolate and another layer of dark chocolate.

And yet, thinking of them as high-end M&M's makes them seem more appealing -- like little jewels. It's strictly a mindset thing, but it's effective and therefore annoying. They come in cool colors and are pretty. Forgive the gender-itis, but it's totally a girl thing. In fact, they're being marketed to a "young, fashion-conscious consumer," says the NYT, and will be handed out as freebies at Fashion Week in New York in September.

Mars says that the chocolate recipe is different, and they do seem softer. (The word Mars would probably prefer is "creamier".) But they definitely don't seem any higher quality than regular M&M's. Still, they're packaged as if they are, in a six-ounce box that curves in the middle and costs at least $4 -- a little over $10 a pound. So, the same mainstream chocolate, but less of it and for a higher price. But here's the sick thing: A full bag of M&M's always seems like too much whereas this smaller portion seems like just the right amount. So annoying!