Hismile Reeses Peanut Butter Cup Toothpaste

Rating: ??? Maybe a 2/10???

• 🥜 Category: Not Nut Butter, Toothpaste

This toothpaste was right near the checkout at Chemist Warehouse and, against my better judgement, I decided I had to know...

If you want to brush your teeth with a sugar-free version of Hershey's chocolate topping with a faint, artificial peanut butter note, then sure. I kind of regret buying into the hype (I tried the banana lolly flavour once and apparently did not learn) but I guess did it so you don't have to. 🙈

I am alternating this with normal mint toothpaste because I can't decide whether I am comfortable going to bed with the taste of bad dessert in my mouth. Technically, I think it works as toothpaste??? But maybe I am just being punk'd??? 🙉

Eric's Peanut Butter 100% Peanuts - Creamy

Rating: 4.5/10

• 🥜 Category: Peanut, Smooth, Plain
• Country of origin: Switzerland

Eric’s Peanut Butter was one of the peanut butters I found while doing my pre-trip research - I saw it on Instagram when decided I needed to try an indie peanut butter Switzerland, and then dragged my partner through multiple grocery stores in multiple Swiss cities looking for it. Romantic travel activities. 🥰

When I finally found it, I stood there umm-ing and ahh-ing because I already had Loeen’s and Bonne Maman to put in the cart, and I usually review the no-sugar version where possible, but the original had honey and sea salt, and they also had a Swiss chocolate version. (I am not usually a chocolate person, but I am a Swiss chocolate person.) This was a difficult and important moment.

I went with the naked version: just peanuts. I really wanted to like this, as I love the story and mission (and the social media posts - just look how cute the handwritten posts are! - I took a screenshot from the official Instagram account) but unfortunately, this is where I think naked peanut butter goes wrong. Instead of tasting naturally sweet and toasty, it tastes a little burnt and a bit sad and lacking in flavour.

Maybe the honey and sea salt version makes more sense, so I should try to recreate the experience at home? I haven’t really wanted to reach for this jar given I am spoilt for options. 😔

Loeen Peanut Butter

Rating: 9/10

• 🥜 Category: Peanut, Smooth, Plain
• Country of origin: Switzerland

We begin the European peanut butter reviews with the jar that that got dented in transit and leaked slightly in my luggage. Tragic, but also fitting, because this was the jar that cost CHF15 (a reminder: roughly AUD 30) so clearly it had to make its presence known.

Loeen’s nut butters are made by a family-run Swiss business sourcing their nuts from a farm in Iran. This peanut butter is completely unseasoned: just pure roasted peanuts. No salt, no sugar. Usually I approach "naked" peanut butter with caution because I do like a little salt to wake things up, but this might be the best unseasoned peanut butter I've tried to date (!!!). The natural sweetness is beautiful, the roast is gentle. I guess you could say the whole experience tastes expensive in a minimalist way, like sparse prose meant to be savoured.

So far, it has been extremely welcome spooned over my wintery baked oats with a small sprinkle of (Trader Joe's) pumpkin pie spice. Is part of this the placebo effect of eating rare, gourmet, expensive, international peanut butter? Maybe, but I can't say it's not working...

Incoming: Souvenirs From a Sweet/Savoury Trip to Europe

I have returned from Europe! I am fully back in my original timezone and recovered from jetlag and carrying what I believe to be a very reasonable haul! Some people bring home magnets, postcards, cheesy shot glasses (my partner), or tasteful local ceramics... I brought home jars of PB. One of them was AUD30 because the conversion from Swiss Francs... let's don’t talk about it. My bank account may never recover.

Across various international grocery store visits - one of my favourite travel activities and, frankly, a key pillar of cultural research - I managed to acquire a little lineup of peanut butters from Finland, Estonia, Switerland, Belgium, and Germany. (The trip has also made me more insufferable in other ways, because I have picked up French lessons again and the second thing my class learned about me (after my name) was that J'aime beacoup le beurre de cacahuète.)

Reviews are coming as soon as I come back from the combined effects of marathon recovery, building up a laundry backlog, and the emotional weight that is owning these rare acquisitions and writing about them. Please respect this important work.