Going to Food Lion

By Michael Hastings | Journal Food Editor

If you like a little Cheerwine with your doughnut, now you can get the same taste without the soda.

Krispy Kreme, based in Winston-Salem, and Cheerwine, based in Salisbury, is rolling out the new, limited-edition Cheerwine Kreme Filled Doughnut Thursday.

The doughnut has a crème filling flavored with Cheerwine concentrate. It comes with a chocolate glaze and red and white sprinkles that mirror the colors of Cheerwine's logo.

The doughnut will not be sold in Krispy Kreme stores. Instead, it will be sold only in major supermarkets -Lowes Foods, Bi-Lo, and select Food Lion and Harris Teeter stores. You can't even get it at Wal-Mart.

The doughnut will only be sold in July and only in North Carolina and South Carolina.

"This is a celebration of the Carolinas," said Tom Barbitta, the vice president of marketing for Cheerwine. "These two brands have become what they are because of the people in the Carolinas. They taste like home."

The doughnuts look like they are made for the Fourth of July, with red and white sprinkles. A smudge of pink, crème filling can be seen on the outside.

The filling does taste like Cheerwine. The rest of the doughnut is another story. The chocolate in the glaze mingles with Cheerwine's signature cherry flavor in the filling to create a whole new experience.

If you like chocolate and Cheerwine, you're probably going to like this doughnut.

Of course, it helps if you have a serious sweet tooth. One of these doughnuts has 26 grams of sugar.