Back in January, fellow blogger Carrot Jello posted about a food I had never heard of, the Grapple. It looks like an apple, tastes like a grape. Not only is it something I had never heard of, but it's a concept I didn't quite understand. If you want grapes, why not eat... grapes? Did focus groups lead them to believe that the only thing holding back grapes from worldwide success is their texture? Their size?

I don't want to give off the impression that I'm critical of the makers of the Grapple, I'm just perplexed by the fact that their product exists. I was so intrigued, I decided that I had to have one. The problem is - or rather, was - that I couldn't find them anywhere. After a month or so of checking local grocery stores, I gave up.

I had completely forgotten about them until I ran into a Grapple display at the store Tuesday night. I broke into song, threw a package in my cart, and drove home. I'll have to go check the files, but I'm fairly certain that prior to this, I had never once been excited to eat a fruit or vegetable. Ever. Never ever.

So I picked one out of the package. First impression is that it was kind of waxy feeling. I shrugged it off, because it's probably just some sort of grape-scented preservative so that they have a longer shelf life. I'm not above eating some preservatives, and the fact that they smell like grapes just made it all the more appealing. Out of habit (and per the instructions on the packaging), I washed one off in the sink, then I eagerly took a bite.

Then another. And another.

It tasted like an APPLE. A good apple, sure. But I didn't even taste a hint of grape (though it did smell like grape Kool-Aid). I was so hyped up to try this thing, it makes me wonder if I expected too much. But in fairness to me, at the root of my expectations was the idea that this apple would taste like a grape. I think I got that idea from the packaging that reads, "Looks like an apple. Tastes like a grape."

My current theory is that Carrot Jello collaborated with my wife and my doctor to concoct this whole scheme to get me to buy and eat fruit. Well guys, I concede. You win. But I will not fall for that one again.