It’s January, and you know what that means: it’s almost Valentine’s Day, which means it’s almost Easter! That is apparently the marketing mindset at M&M’s, because they’ve gone ahead and released White Strawberry Shortcake M&M’s despite my Christmas tree still being up. It’s a ballsy move. I don’t know about you, but I like it when my seasonal candy is actually, you know, in the right season. You wouldn’t want to eat peppermint cheesecake in the middle of summer, and I’m not sure I’ll want to eat Easter candy when I’m still drunk from New Year’s.

I’d argue this is more of a Valentine’s Day candy, but the M&M lady is wearing bunny ears, so I guess that’s that.

White Strawberry Shortcake M&M’s are a flavor that no one was asking for, but are intriguing nonetheless. It’s been a mixed bag with their other attempts at fruit flavors, and this seems like a risky addition: after all, there is traditionally no chocolate anywhere whatsoever in strawberry shortcake.
Additionally (not that this should be a surprise), there is nothing remotely resembling the word “strawberry” in the ingredients list. You gotta applaud the hubris of M&M’s for not caring at all and just barrelling forward with this idea.

I’ll admit, for a product that sounded like a terrible idea, White Strawberry Shortcake M&M’s are damn good. Just opening the bag, there is an overwhelming sweet strawberry scent. The flavor is creamy and the white chocolate was a fantastic choice–it adds that pure sweetness and lets the strawberry flavor shine. And boy, is that some good strawberry! It tastes exactly like that Strawberry Nesquik syrup that I used to add to my milk when I was a kid, back when “diabetes” was just a funny-sounding word that Wilford Brimley said in commercials. They absolutely nail the balance of fruity, sweet, and creamy here. Considering that the strawberry flavoring in these M&M’s is 100% chemicals, I’m even more impressed at how enjoyable it is. Chemicals are rapidly becoming some of my favorite flavors. Your move, nature.

That said, I don’t really get the “shortcake” part in White Strawberry Shortcake M&M’s. It’s pretty much all strawberry and creaminess. I think it would be more appropriate to call them “Strawberry Milkshake M&M’s” or “Tasty Chemical and Red Dye #40 M&M’s”. Regardless, it didn’t feel too weird to eat these M&M’s almost four months before their designated holiday. They’re pretty classic tasting; not too gimmicky or seasonal. I’d be happy if they stuck around after Easter, but we all know that the day after Easter is basically Halloween, so I’ll just have to wait a couple extra months until the whole damn thing cycles back around.

Strawberryness Rating: 9 out of 10
Shortcakiness Rating: 1 out of 10
Overall Rating: 8 out of 10