2K12 GREASY CHIPS ROUND-UP PART 2 - XTREME EDITION TO THE MAXX

A typical day at TZEEEAC HQ

Greetings and welcome to the second and final installment of the 2012 Greasy Chips Round-Up, the special TZEEEAC feature where I review various bags of chips because fuck you, I only eat chips once per week and I deserve to treat myself. With this post, I will be wrapping up the expose on chips that can be found in Romanian supermarkets - obviously, I won't be talking about stuff everyone is familiar with, but rather about the more special products on offer. Well, perhaps "special" is an overstatement. Anyway, here are, as promised, 10 different kinds of chips that I have sampled since the previous installment of this feature and my notes on them. THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT SO PAY ATTENTION.

Read part 1 here.

First up, we have Sam Mills Tex-Mex Tortilla Chips, which I first tasted back when I did  the first episode of the TZEEEAC Podcast (holy shit, has it really been that long? We need to do more episodes). They come in three flavors: salted, nacho cheese and chili. They're pretty jacked and they're caked with orange dust, which makes them very flavorful, although they are also pretty salty, requiring copious amounts of beer to wash them down with. Still, they are pretty cheap and the package is very nice, so I would definitely recommend them as an alternative to more expensive tortilla chips. Sam Mills also produces dips - do try the Nacho Cheese dip along with the nacho cheese tortilla chips. They're damn good. Overall, these left a good impression on me and I have since bought them several more times. Good stuff. 

At my local Auchan supermarket, they sell their own branded Auchan Tortilla Chips. Granted, they're cheap, but they are unimpressive. I honestly don't remember anything about them, except that I once tried to eat them with ketchup and it tasted awful. Anyway, they're nothing to write home about. Same goes for Carrefour Tortilla Chips. Maybe they'd be alright for a party. A lame one. 

Beer sausage chips. I thought Lay's really hit the jackpot when I first saw these on the shelf and I immediately bought a bag. Turns out they're really gross. There's just something about the flavoring that doesn't sit right with me. I'd rather just have the sausages with some good mustard. Get these chips away from me.

Since the last time we talked about chips, Chio added two more flavors to its XTREME line. The first one is Chio Xtreme Hot Red Curry. I don't have much to say about these. They're pretty much what you'd expect: hot curry flavored chips. They're alright, I guess, but I wouldn't seek them out.

Chio Xtreme Stormy Mint & Sour Cream, on the other hand, are horrible. I was at Marco's place back in September or whatever and we were at the store, buying some snacks to eat while watching Pineapple Express for the 40th time. I bought these based on how crazy the flavor sounded, but it was the worst decision of my life. They taste like regular sour cream chips, only with a faint minty aftertaste. They might have been better if the Chio scientists would have gone bonkers and made them have a really intense minty flavor, but as they are, they're just boring. The only XTREME thing about these is how bland they are. 2/10 would not buy. While we're at it, fuck Pringles Sour Cream & Onion. They taste like toilet. I'm never eating sour cream chips again.

Now, on the previous installment of our greasy feature, reader Mitzah was complaining that we overlooked Pringles completely. Well, not to worry! Turns out the mustachioed man has released his own series of Xtreme Pringles, of which only a small variety is to be found in Romania. Still, some of you might see all these crazy flavors on the supermarket shelf and become all confused and start crying. Fear not, for I am here to walk you through what's on offer and help you decide which kind of Pringles to gorge on.

First up, we have Pringles Extreme Exploding Cheese & Chilli. These could be my favorite Pringles ever. "Exploding" is a suitable adjective here - what you have is a savory nacho cheese flavor combined with a fiery chilli taste, resulting in a totally intense mix that's simply delicious. I could eat these day and night. Pair them with some cold beers and you're on a stairway to heaven.

Next up, we have Pringles Xtreme Blazing BBQ. They are the best BBQ chips I've ever had, and I don't even like BBQ chips. But unlike most other chips of their kind, which only taste like a chunk of charcoaled meat, these have a much better flavor, incorporating grilled vegetables along the meaty taste. You can taste tomatoes, bell peppers, onion and garlic in there, with just a small hint of smoky paprika. It's not what I would call an "extreme" flavor, but they're delicious. 

I'm kinda on the fence about Pringles Xtreme Flamin' Chilli Sauce. They're pretty hot and they have a nice Cayenne pepper flavor going on, but I don't think I'd buy them again. They just don't stand out from the crowd. Pity.

Last up, we have Pringles Xtreme Take Away Smokin Ribs. I'm a bit ambivalent towards these. The first time I had them, I didn't like them at all. They tasted like cheap fried meat. The other day, I saw them again in the supermarket and, with the hope that maybe I got a bad can the first time, I bought them again. This time, they left a much better impression on me. They have a sweet and smoky taste with a grilled meat taste lurking in the background. I don't really think they taste anything like ribs, but they're pretty good and I've gone from "GET THEM AWAY FROM ME" to "Yeah, sure, I'll buy some". 

Well, there you have it. An informed view on the most interesting chips you can buy at your local supermarket. Sadly, as you can infer from this post, the current trend is slapping the word XTREME on anything, no matter how bland, boring or totally regular it actually is. The Pringles Xtreme line is very good and I've become a loyal customer, but the huge X and the bold, smashing font in which the word XTREME is written bugs me every time. The only way these chips could become XTREME is if I was eating them while sky-diving or bungee-jumping. 

As always, feel free to voice your opinions and concerns in the comments section below. I'm always ready to  discuss snacks with like-minded individuals. Rest assured, more junk food posts will come on our beloved blog. I've already spotted some very interesting candidates around supermarkets in Greece. I shall document my greasy exploits and relate everything back to you. PEACE OUT, BROS!