NickersSay

As I was driving today and enjoying one of my favorite driving snacks (an original Snickers (registered trademark of Mars, Inc.)), I got to wondering about the fancy pattern on the top of the candy bar. How does it get there? Is it a natural byproduct of the candy bar process, or do they put that pattern there on purpose? Does a Milky Way (also a registered trademark) have the same pattern, a different pattern, or no pattern at all?

So, I did some brief internet surfing, and have not really found a good answer. I even checked the official FAQ website for the candy bar and the "how stuff is made" website, but no dice. Along the way I did learn how nougat is made, that *nickers is the #1 selling candy bar in the U.S., and what an enrober (in chocolate terms) is. So anyway, here's my wild theories on this. These are THEORIES, and my apologies to Nancy for having no data whatsoever to back them up.

• When they first started making the candy bar in 1930 (the 1930 part is fact), it's possible the fancy pattern was some kind of by-product of the process that they couldn't figure out how to get rid of, so they left it that way.
• Soon, the squiggly pattern became part of the trademark "look and feel" of the candy bar.
• Therefore, even though the candy bar process may have changed since then, and the new machines don't have the original fault, the new machines now have to be designed special to put those wavy lines in.
• Due to the very limited information on the internet of the exact process of making this candy bar, maybe how they get those lines in there is a trade secret....
• My alternate theory is that the wavy lines mask the uneven chocolate coating that results from the bumpy peanuts just underneath the coating.
  

Interestingly enough, the new *nickers Charged has a different pattern on its top. And it's been awhile since I've had a *ilky Way. I think maybe it has more of a peak in the center as its pattern instead of the squiggly lines. Can anybody confirm? If you know the "real" story, I would be interested to learn it. If they quit putting those lines on the top, would it be the same anymore, or would it taste different in your mind? Another interesting item of note is that if you bought your *nickers bar in the U.S, it was made in Chicago, IL or Waco, TX. At least that's one thing not made in China.