3 Musketeers is a candy bar made in the United States by Mars, Incorporated. It is a chocolate-covered fluffy whipped chocolate bar. The 3 Musketeers Bar was the third brand produced and manufactured by M&M/Mars, introduced in 1932. Originally, it had three pieces in one package, flavored chocolate, strawberry and vanilla, hence the name. Rising costs and wartime restrictions on sugar saw the phasing out of the vanilla and strawberry pieces to leave only the more popular chocolate.[1] Costing five cents when it was introduced, it was marketed as one of the largest chocolate bars available, one that could be shared by friends.[2]
During their 75th anniversary, 3 Musketeers introduced their first candy bar brand extension, 3 Musketeers Mint in August 2007.[3]
Also in 2007, 3 Musketeers issued a limited-edition "Autumn Minis Mix." It featured French Vanilla, Mocha Cappuccino and Strawberry.[4] This was followed by Cherry 3 Musketeers for 2008, and Raspberry 3 Musketeers and Orange 3 Musketeers for Easter 2008. Orange was coated in regular chocolate while the cherry and raspberry were coated with dark chocolate.[5][6]
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Most recently, the 3 Musketeers bar has been advertised in television spots which featured women. The candy bar is promoted as a "Nice, Light Snack" which features "45% less fat" than other chocolate bars.[7]
In the mid-late 1990s the bar's advertisements also featured three men dressed as the legendary Three Musketeers to market the "45% less fat" campaign. The product's original slogan, "Big on Chocolate!", was expanded in these advertisements to "Big on Chocolate, Not on Fat!".
3 Musketeers was advertised on television on the 1950s-era Howdy Doody Show, along with a song that Buffalo Bob Smith encouraged children to sing.
A standard-size 3 Musketeers bar (60g) has 260 calories (1,100 kJ), 8 grams of fat, 5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 110 milligrams of sodium and 40 grams of sugar. Peanuts may be added.[8]
Today, 3 Musketeers comes in seven package varieties:[9]
The candy is made of a fluffy whipped chocolate filling covered with milk chocolate. The fluffy whipped chocolate center is first formed into very large slabs, which are cut to size, and after the centers are formed they are coated with milk chocolate through a process called "enrobing" wherein the centers pass through a continuous (?) the same time, a rotating chocolate covered wheel beneath the mesh belt coats the base of the bar. The bar is then cooled and prepared for wrapping. The candy is made in Chicago, Illinois, Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania and Newmarket, Ontario.
The Fluffy Whipped Chocolate is made by whipping egg whites until they are light and frothy. Sugar syrup is then added, stabilizing the foam and creating "frappé." Other flavoring ingredients are then added to the frappe to create specific flavors.[10]
The candy bar is available in various territories, but not under the "3 Musketeers" name. In Europe, the brand name was used for the Curly Wurly candybar in the 1970s and 1980s, but the name has switched back to Curly Wurly since.
Although the American version of the 3 Musketeers bar is not available in many European countries, its texture and size is very reminiscent of the European version of the Milky Way bar.
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