encephalon
Member
Like most Americans, my family grasps for tenuous cultural connections that more or less have no relevance to our current lives in an attempt to pretend we're more interesting than we really are. My ancestors moved from The Netherlands to Michigan, cultivating a local culture that seemed to be completely obsessed with the concept of work ethic, up until forties, when my dad was born. So I have childhood memories of tulips, windmills, clogs, ... and black licorice - all viewed, consumed, and purchased within Holland, Michigan.*
Living in Japan now, the latter doesn't exist. And I found myself craving it. Someone mentioned salted licorice to me and I said fuck it. I went ahead and bought an overpriced box of licorice on Amazon. It looks like this, but "vanaf nu meer inhoud!" is also written on it.
I opened the box, took a bite, and began to be overwhelmed by a strange but familiar sensation. It wasn't a flavor as much as it was a smell that filled my nose and grew stronger over time. After some time I pinpointed the sensation. It was the same as cleaning the litter box. It was ammonia.
Apparently this was licorice that wasn't just salty. It's "flavored with ammonium chloride." I guess whatever I was eating as a child wasn't all that traditional, although I remember it being "salty."
Dutch GAF, is there a version of this stuff that doesn't contain this particular trait? Euro GAF, what's your take on the stuff? Does your country home to a particular candy that I'll probably have to import or visit to try out? Acquired tastes?
* I grew up in CA.
Living in Japan now, the latter doesn't exist. And I found myself craving it. Someone mentioned salted licorice to me and I said fuck it. I went ahead and bought an overpriced box of licorice on Amazon. It looks like this, but "vanaf nu meer inhoud!" is also written on it.
I opened the box, took a bite, and began to be overwhelmed by a strange but familiar sensation. It wasn't a flavor as much as it was a smell that filled my nose and grew stronger over time. After some time I pinpointed the sensation. It was the same as cleaning the litter box. It was ammonia.
Apparently this was licorice that wasn't just salty. It's "flavored with ammonium chloride." I guess whatever I was eating as a child wasn't all that traditional, although I remember it being "salty."
Dutch GAF, is there a version of this stuff that doesn't contain this particular trait? Euro GAF, what's your take on the stuff? Does your country home to a particular candy that I'll probably have to import or visit to try out? Acquired tastes?
* I grew up in CA.
