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08/28/2005: Mountain Berry Punch Kool-Aid! (Cereal, too!)

Buncha buncha updates.  First up, the Kool-Aid Section inducts Mountain Berry Punch, one of the true powerhouses of the lot.  I can’t say it’s a must-have favorite of mine, but I appreciate that it is for many of you.  Dig the package art, though.  Also, finally got around to doing a few updates to the Cereal Prize Project, and now that I’m over that hump, perhaps it can return to a more regularly updated glory.  Group 013 and Group 014 have been posted!

Posted by Matt. E-mail me!


Discussion Thread: 61 comments

Thanks for this great story I loved hidden treasures and forgot all about them!!!  Does anyone else remember keeblers "magic middles" chocolate chip cookies with the frosting like center??? Yum! Matt if you ever find any info on magic middles let me know! They always went great with my ecto-cooler :)

Ghosted by brookelynn @ 08/28/2005 4:32 PM EDT

There’s few things worse than finding a delicious, yummy, nice, perfect cake - and discovering it’s covered in those damn little round sprinkles of death.

But oh man, just /reading\ about Mountain Berry Punch makes my mouth water.

Ghosted by Madcap @ 08/28/2005 4:36 PM EDT

Ah yes, building Sunday papers. Great to hide a sleeping, drooling Jason Mewes. :)

Ghosted by Knegative @ 08/28/2005 4:38 PM EDT

Matt, you had a rubber fred flintstone figure in group 013 while I have a few rubber dinos. One is riding a skate board. Haw! Do you know if these mysterious dinos are cereal prizes? Any one out there know?

Ghosted by Darth Poop @ 08/28/2005 5:08 PM EDT

Yeah, I rememer the Sprinkle Spangle cereal, it totally sucked.  I think the box was in our cupboard for a long ass time!

I def. remember Mt. Berry Punch!  That was one of the best flavors there was!  Black Cherry is kind of close, but no cigar.

Ghosted by kidneyboy @ 08/28/2005 5:16 PM EDT

I remember both of those cereals and can’t remember if I ever had either one of them. The second one reminds me of a candy that was for Pop (soda) brands like Mountain Dew and Pepsi. It had sort of a bubblelicious form except the inside was gooey and supposed to taste like the pop (soda). How I got that out of Hidden Treasures I’m not sure.

Ghosted by Dohopoki @ 08/28/2005 5:20 PM EDT

i remember getting toys in cereal.  not many of the kind i’m allowed to eat now a days come with toys oh well.

Ghosted by 80'skid @ 08/28/2005 6:56 PM EDT

Bleh. I never liked Mountain Berry Punch. Too into the blue stuff.

Ghosted by Road Block @ 08/28/2005 7:56 PM EDT

Oooooh. So that’s what they were. I had always remembered "hidden treasures", but didn’t know what I was remembering. I thought I was just crossing wires and fantasizing about dog kibble.

Ghosted by Road Block @ 08/28/2005 7:59 PM EDT

Just made some Ice Blue Raspberry Lemonade.  Looks a lot like Windex.

Ghosted by Joe in OH @ 08/28/2005 9:04 PM EDT

Thank you Matt for finally covering this beast. I have to say, this flavor had to have extra sugar. A cold glass would not do. Make it extra sweet, and then add ice cubes. That is the proper way to enjoy this. As much as I’ve said before that this is my KoolAid holy grail, I do remember that this would not taste the best unless you made it as described. And to top it off, I can honestly say that the best food to eat this with is Mexican Food.

(I know it’s not wine, but just trust me.)

Ghosted by Heathtown @ 08/28/2005 10:07 PM EDT

Oooh, Mountain Berry is probably my favorite of the discontinued Kool-Aids Matt’s reviewed so far. I’d go through gallons of the stuff during the summer. (And I do remember it being a bitch to clean up, too…)

I also remember both of the Group 14 cereals. Never had "Hidden Treasures." It was too expensive, and neither my sisters nor I were eager to eat what looked like fruit snacks stuffed into a couple of random Chexes. "Sprinkle Spangle" did make it’s way onto our table, though, and none of us were any more impressed with it than you. Tiny little hard sugar pebbles probably ARE a bad thing to put in cereal.

Ghosted by starwenn @ 08/28/2005 10:32 PM EDT

Reading this article awakened within me the desire to go make Kool-Aid and then put Gushers fruit snacks in it. Yay, sugar! :)

Ghosted by Eddie Lightning Frog @ 08/28/2005 10:45 PM EDT

brookelynn,
I have been singing the praises for Magic Middle since they debuted in the early 90’s.  I have no idea why they stopped making them because they kicked the ever living shit out of every othe rcookie out there.  Preach on about the Magic Middles!!!

Ghosted by phunqsauce @ 08/28/2005 10:48 PM EDT

Mountain Berry Punch is the only flavor I remember my mom buying when I was really young.  I always wanted to try others, and I only did while at friends house.  Soon enough me and my sisters got to start picking out flavors ourselves and we never picked MBP.  I think that’s why it’s not one of my favorites.  I do remember the staining and trying so hard to not end up with a Kool-Aid mustache.

Ghosted by kb @ 08/28/2005 10:52 PM EDT

My mom mourns the discountuation
Mountain Berry Punch. I never really liked it. She said it tasted like the berry punch from Knott’s berry farm (if you’ve ever had that stuff).

Hidden Treasures tasted horrible and all you had to do was hold the cereal up to the light to see which ones were filled.

Ghosted by pikachulover @ 08/29/2005 2:11 AM EDT

Oh man! I tried both of those cereals when they came out, but I did not remember that until now. My Grandma had them at her house (this was where I tried all the hip new foods). I remember Hidden Treasures was better tasting (I liked to eat them dry), but they both kind of sucked. I hate those stupid sprinkles. I’m sure Sprinkle Spangles could have been better if those sprinkles hadn’t been so darn hard. I mean, even thinking about both kinds right now, I can remember the taste and it’s not too good. I don’t think Grandma bought a second box.

Ghosted by Rainbowfeet @ 08/29/2005 2:36 AM EDT

Big Jerm, you’re scary.

I’ve already mentioned Magic Middles in at least two other X-E blog posts before, but this is the first time I’ve seen support from more than just my own self, so I’ll join the party. FIND A STALE MAGIC MIDDLE AND EAT IT, MATT! WE’LL CLICK ON YOUR ADVERTISING!!

Anyway…..
….There’s some cool things on my site this week, not that there aren’t every week, but this week you can download several movie trailers as seen on TV in 1981, as well as witness Mulberry’s dangerous trek into Nintendo Headquarters in "Nintastic Voyage." Click my name to get there!

Ghosted by Mars @ 08/29/2005 3:38 AM EDT

Can’t remeber if I tried Sprinkle Sprangles, but I KNOW I tried Hidden Treasures. 2 words, 1 adverb = absolutely disgusting crap! Like a dog rolled around in some dirt, jumped into my mouth, and had a shit. It was disgusting.

Sprinkle Sprangles on the other hand…look quite good, I probably would’ve liked them as a kid, maybe. Maybe I did, but I think I’d remember if I liked a certain cereal. Damn, I’m still having a hard time hunting down some Trix and Fruity Pepples so I can relive some childhood memories. Bastards took it off the shelves for some reason.

Ghosted by The Cause @ 08/29/2005 8:14 AM EDT

A purple Fred Flintsone and Sprinkle Spangles?  Now that’s a cream dream!

Ghosted by Review the World @ 08/29/2005 9:06 AM EDT

Wow.  Next time I need to create some half-congealed blood for a no-budget slasher film, I’m headed straight to the Filipino store because I bet they still have Mountain Berry Punch.  Alongside the shrimp-flavored Funyuns and the canned cuttlefish.

Ghosted by Jedoc @ 08/29/2005 9:30 AM EDT

I also remember Magic Middles.

But my favorite discontinued cookies were the PB&J cookies.  PB cookies with a jelly in the middle.

Ghosted by JLAJRC @ 08/29/2005 9:52 AM EDT

as of this moment (midnite) on amc, the breakfast club is on…i am assuming it is edited, but u never know nowadays…after 10pm on comedy central and fx they have been gettin’ away with f-bombs and everything!  best new show on tv: it’s always sunny in philadelphia (fx)

Ghosted by gerv @ 08/29/2005 12:03 PM EDT

it’s edited and i now have a strange craving for turkey pot pie

Ghosted by gerv @ 08/29/2005 12:05 PM EDT

I spent my childhood drinking Kool Aid but had forgotten about all the cool flavors that used to be available.  Mountain Berry Punch was one of my favorites but your Kool Aid articles has resurrected others to my memory as well.  Sunshine Punch, Strawberry Falls… I remember drinking these and loving them.  No wonder a few years ago when I hit up the Kool Aid aisle looking for an alternative to my usual Ginger Ale and Coca Cola fix that I left confused and only recognizing like…Grape.  Oh well :(  They discontinue all the good stuff.

Ghosted by Kittycatgirl @ 08/29/2005 12:13 PM EDT

The "Hidden Treasures" look eerily like Whiska’s salmon flavored cat treats. Could there be a disturbing connection?!?

Ghosted by CheBeret @ 08/29/2005 12:20 PM EDT

That’s why they stopped producing them. Too many younglings ate catfood expecting to find fruity goodness. The only reward they found was a tummyache and a lawsuit.

Ghosted by Warx @ 08/29/2005 12:32 PM EDT

hey matt, i sent you an e-mail about a packet of old kool-aid i have.  blue moon berry.  i don’t know if you got it or not.

Ghosted by big jerm @ 08/29/2005 12:45 PM EDT

Off Topic: I just got back from a week vacation watching my grandfathers dog.  He has Showtime and they showed The Garbage Pail Kids movie Matt has reviewed.  It is definately a so bad its good movie. I liked Ally Gator the best. 

They also showed the first Troll film.  There’s alot of stars in that movie but I didn’t really catch it.

Ghosted by JLAJRC @ 08/29/2005 12:46 PM EDT

I found a box of sprakling Jell-o tucked away in the pantry yesterday. Too bad it was hard as a rock :(.

Ghosted by Mangykid @ 08/29/2005 12:52 PM EDT

Haha, you said younglings. My friends couldn’t stop laughing whenever they said it in Ep. III. I seem to remember them saying they filmed the slaughter scene. Let’s cross our fingers and hope it ends up in our hands Nov 1. I’m not as sadistic as that makes me sound, I swear.

Padme: Obi Wan says you killed younglings!
Darth Glass: I’m sorry! Are you mad at me? :P

Sorry, Hayden fan humor.

Ghosted by Knegative @ 08/29/2005 12:58 PM EDT

Oh, how I loved me some Magic Middles. Why does all the good stuff go away?

In other, semi-related news, they ran an article in our local paper about cereal and how it relates to our fond childhood memories. Click on my name to see the article. (If they try to make you register to see the damned thing, let me know and I’ll try to copy and paste the pertinent parts.)

If us X-Ers lived closer together, I could totally see us hanging out in our PJs, eating cereal and discussing flavors of yore. Ah, if only…

Ghosted by purplegirl247 @ 08/29/2005 12:58 PM EDT

Oh God, that Sprinkle Spangles shit was awful.  That’s got to be one of the worst ideas ever for a cereal.

Now Hidden Treasures, on the other hand, I liked a lot.  I had totally forgotten about them until now, though.

Ghosted by Night_Trekker @ 08/29/2005 2:02 PM EDT

Don’t forget watching cartoons in the morning, bad 80’s movies in the afternoon, and Carnivale at night.  Just a typical day at the X-E compound, home of the famous Hanging Chia Gardens and the Bottomless Pitcher of Kool-Aid.

Ghosted by kingklash @ 08/29/2005 2:05 PM EDT

the compound would be something like MTV’s "70’s House" but WAY cooler!!  I bet it’s already in the works.  if not, it damn sure should be!

Ghosted by bitchpants @ 08/29/2005 3:23 PM EDT

I vaguely remember both of the cereals listed, more so with the hidden treasures.  My mom didn’t go for too many of these gimmick cereals back in the day going mostly for fruit loops and frosted flakes, so I have no idea whether or not I would have liked them.  However, reading the article I said to myself, "Oh my, I remember that crap." 

As for Kool-Aid, for one reason or another my family never went for the stuff.  I was always a huge fan of course but it would never end up in my house.  That is until I collected some dominoes pizza for one reason or another straight gave us some cherry kool aid when they delivered the pizza one night as part of thier promotion.  It was a huge package and it lasted a long time, needless to say, it was friggin awesome!

Ghosted by Tenacious Tate @ 08/29/2005 6:11 PM EDT

I just saw the ad for this on Fark, so if anyone wants to be Captain N for Halloween: NES Buckle

Ghosted by ME @ 08/29/2005 7:12 PM EDT

Ahhh Mountain Berry Punch.  Good stuff.  And Magic Middles?  Great cookies!!!!!!!!  Yum.

Remember E.L. Fudge?  I remember my mom buying those for a while, and then they were gone–my mom claimed they werent being made anymore.  In 1999, I was picking up a treat for my 11th grade History class b/c we were having a Christmas party, and lo and behold–E.L. Fudge!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  I remember one of my classmates saying "My mom said they stopped making these." 

Any confirmation on if E.L. Fudge was ever stopped and re-started, or did our moms lie?

Also, I just wanted to tell eveyone that a NEW Teddy Ruxpin will be available in time for the holidays priced at $69.99.  Remember how expensive OUR Teddy Ruxpins were in 1985 ($100)?!  The new one relies on digital technology, NOT cassette tapes and motorized mouth and eye noise.  In a world of high tech toys, does anyone think these little kids will appreciate Teddy?  Anyone planning on getting one for the kids (or yourself)?  I’d like to know!!!!!!!  wave your cursor over my name to get my email address if u choose!

Ghosted by Allison @ 08/29/2005 7:15 PM EDT

Oh man, I just saw a commercial for Wacky Packages!  I can’t believe they’re making them again.  I remember everybody had them back in grade school (though I don’t know if they were called Wacky Packages back then).

I’m definitely picking a few packs up if I run across them.

Ghosted by Night_Trekker @ 08/29/2005 8:35 PM EDT

Once again, Kraft has serviced our 80’s Kool Aid needs.  I remember Mountain Berry Punch from the Mountain Twists line (recently discontinued)  I wouldn’t be surprised if you could still find a few packs….our grocery store was loaded with the stuff.

Ghosted by He-Ben @ 08/29/2005 10:34 PM EDT

Speaking of X-Ers getting together, is anyone making plans to go to Lumos ‘06 by any chance? I know somebody once suggested Vegas as the right spot…
Who watched Rome? I thought it was pretty damn cool. Easy to follow too, though there are a lot of names to remember. I’m not going to commit in text to anything too blasphemous for a Carnivale fan, but I can’t deny that I had the thoughts ;)

Ghosted by squee4242 @ 08/29/2005 10:45 PM EDT

Man, kool-aid is so awesome. I wish I had some of the older packets to try. I used to mix packets of kool-aid. Kool-aid alchemy, man.

There should be a bar that only serves kool-aid, and they had all the flavors on tap and had all the packaging and merchandise on display. Maybe show the commercials on TVs.

Ghosted by Anonymous Robot @ 08/29/2005 10:51 PM EDT

A very well put together Wacky Packages site if you click on my name

Ghosted by phunqsauce @ 08/29/2005 10:52 PM EDT

Hey matt, On digital cable ad satelite there is this channel called Nickelodeon Games and Sports. It shows all of the old game shows, like  Double Dare, get the picture and finders keepers, you might check it out. There’s some funny stuff.

Ghosted by BetterThanFew @ 08/29/2005 11:08 PM EDT

To Chiberet:That Hidden Treasures cereal tasted a lot like Wiska’s Salmon cat treats too.

Ghosted by Suren @ 08/29/2005 11:09 PM EDT

To Chiberet:That Hidden Treasures cereal tasted a lot like Wiska’s Salmon cat treats too.

Ghosted by Suren @ 08/29/2005 11:09 PM EDT

Hey BetterThanFew—-what’s the name of the game show where the contestants challenged each other in video games, then at the very end were in a video game themselves???  Also, do they still have the original "Brought to you by…" segments??

Ghosted by He-Ben @ 08/29/2005 11:19 PM EDT

There was some Wacky Packages stickers in my comics a few months ago.  They were cool.

EL Fudge is still being made.  I see it everywhere the Keebler cookies are.

You know what was discontinued recently that I REALLY like?  It’s Pasta Anytime.  It was a package of cooked pasta and sauce that you combine together and nuked for 3 minutes.  WAY better than anything from Chef Boyardee or Franco Americano.

Ghosted by JLAJRC @ 08/29/2005 11:22 PM EDT

He-Ban:  It’s Nick Arcade.  That was a good gameshow.  Even though the video games on it are over a decade old, I think it still holds up.

Ghosted by JLAJRC @ 08/29/2005 11:24 PM EDT

cereal prizez really brought back the memories…I had quite a few of them. and yes, the tony the tiger mini-frisbees, though omnipresent-SUCKED

i also remember apple jacks giving out whistle pops. good times.

and of course i still have my kelloggs characters (incl. tusk the elephant)sleeping bag. it holds a special place in my heart

Ghosted by mm @ 08/30/2005 10:41 AM EDT

During the Nick Arcade days, there were kids that thought the Chroma-Key games at the end were lame.  Now they, or their kids, are going out and getting the Sony Eye Toy for the PS2 and saying, "Why didn’t they think of this before?"  Remind me to hit them in the head with a week-old baguette sometime.

Ghosted by kingklash @ 08/30/2005 11:28 AM EDT

My grandma whom I lived with occasionally got new foods because she had coupons for them.  Cereal was the main one, if there was a cereal we wanted, we had to hope and pray we got it.  It was very random.  Once there was a deal on safeway brand raisin bran so she had like 4 boxes of them!!  It was an endless steam of mushy raisin bran goodness.  Augh.  I am finally ready to try another bowl of them.

Anyway sprinkly spangly or whatever it was called, appeared in our kitchen.  Guess why!! Coupon!!  But anyway lol my sisters and cousins and I had this fetish I think it was for eating cereal until there was a half of a bowl or a bowl left in the box and then letting it sit there.  We had this rule where you could only have two boxes open and you had to finish a box before you could open another and stuff, and I remember asking before I opened another box.  But one time my grandma got upset and sat my cousins down (my grandma hated wasting food, I hate doing it too now) and made us finish boxes off.

Well, when it got to sprinkly spangly my cousins refused to eat them because they were extremely stale.  They started to get little holes in them?  Tiny ones.  My grandma was like all right I’ll throw away THIS ONE but all the other ones you have to eat.  Then my cousin a little younger then me, he took a little ziplock bag of them because he had this story about the pieces eating themselves from the inside out because they were so old but I think they were just deteriorating.  Stupid, stupid 12 year old logic.

I hope this wasn’t too long but that’s my springly spangly story.  Heh

Ghosted by Goob @ 08/30/2005 12:18 PM EDT

hey Night_Trekker:

I got a few free Wacky Packages in some packs of Garbage Pail Kids I bought a few weeks ago at Wally World.  They look exactly as I remember ( the Wacky Packs and the GPK).

A couple of the GPK packs also had some green gum, I think it was supposed to resemble snot, from the depicted illustrations.  They were the exact size and shape and hardness as Bazooka, not surprising as they are both owned by Topps.  Also, like Bazooka, they had inserts wrapped around the gum.  These were little GPK stickers!!  Like, tiny, I mean.  Not a big deal, but hey, I take what I can get these days, right?

Ghosted by kidneyboy @ 08/30/2005 12:28 PM EDT

kidneyboy: Sweet.  Did you end up with the same damn one EVERYONE had back in the day (Bambo)? :D

Ghosted by Night_Trekker @ 08/30/2005 1:42 PM EDT

If anyone is actively looking for Wacky Packs and lives in the Minneapolis area, go to Fudruckers on France ave in Edina.  There’s a silly arcade game there where you could win a huge box of them, and winning was really easy.  As of Saturday, there were still several left.

Ghosted by kb @ 08/30/2005 1:53 PM EDT

phunqsauce: Thanks for the link!  That really took me back :)

Ghosted by Night_Trekker @ 08/30/2005 2:04 PM EDT

Kingklash- I agree! My friend has me over to his place last year to show me his PS2 Eye Toy thing, and as he was jumping around, hitting fake bugs on his screen, all I could think was "…but- this is Nick Arcade!"

Magic Middles! I forgot about those, but they were great.

Off topic, but I HAVE to share my biggest impulse buy since returning to Canada….last night my friend and I got together and went online and bought tickets to THE ROLLING STONES! Plus, we went nuts and got VIP tickets. Ouch. (For the Canadian folk - The Tragically Hip are there too! As well as Our Lady Peace and Maroon 5!) Yes!

As Finch says, "God Bless the internet!"  XE  AND last minute Rolling Stones tickets.:)

Ghosted by Muppet Baby @ 08/30/2005 5:42 PM EDT

Trekker:  I got a "Mr. Coffin" (Mr. Coffee) and a "Coach Motel" (supposed to be a Roach Motel for f.ball and b.ball coaches?)  That one sucks, but the Mr. Coffin is pretty cool.

Wacky Packs look almost like MAD-ish.  I wonder who the illustrators are, and if they do work for both companies?

Ghosted by kidneyboy @ 08/30/2005 7:38 PM EDT

He Ben: i don’t know about the video game show, but yea, they have brought to you by, and some of the prizes are awesome. One kid won he grand prize.. A NEW VCR!!!!!! sooo sweeeet.

Ghosted by BetterThanFew @ 08/30/2005 11:44 PM EDT

I fear how much Kool-Aid I ingested in the 80s, but it sure was tasty.

Ghosted by nilblogette @ 09/02/2005 7:11 PM EDT

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