We’re not new to Aldi’s Clancy line of potato chips. Honestly, for years we’ve been sampling the array of flavors this Aldi-exclusive brand rolls out, from Fried Pickle Ranch to Pumpkin Spiced Kettle Corn, and even the flavor many fans are praising as the standout.
So when we learned that Clancy would launch a Maple Sweet Potato chips edition with a distinctly autumnal vibe, we were hopeful. Like other Aldi-exclusive brands, Clancy’s has shown creativity in the flavors it introduces—if not always the smoothest execution. The pairing of “maple” with “sweet potato” feels natural in the context of pancakes, pies, and most anything on a Thanksgiving spread. The only reservation at the outset was the potential overabundance of sweetness during fall.
Clancy’s Maple Sweet Potato Chips
Pros: The chips present themselves well. Indeed, we’ll say it: they’re attractive. While it may sound odd, they’re crisp, thick-cut wedges of sweet potato that sometimes curl at the edges, lightly dusted with a cinnamon-sugar-looking coating. The thicker cut is a definite plus, and there’s no obvious greasiness even after you cradle a chip for a moment—think of the familiar gesture of pausing mid-conversation to nibble without the oiliness showing.
The maple note remains gentle. This softness could be seen as a drawback, but given the mix of maple and honey, it’s tricky to assert a bold presence without tipping the balance toward sweetness. Maple tends to be a direct, assertive flavor (it’s almost like a resinous sap), and what you taste is a maple aroma that arrives early and mostly through the nose. It’s a fragrance first, with a trace of maple sweetness that gets crowded by cinnamon sugar and the inherent sweetness of the potato.
Interestingly, the sweet potato itself leans into a savory character here. In many sweet potato chips or fries, the yam’s natural sweetness often leans into a salty or spicy profile. In this case, the potato chips drift toward a mildly buttery, savory note that softens the maple-cinnamon sweetness. A bit more salt might have nudged the balance into a crisper harmony, but thankfully the potato’s savoriness keeps the overall profile from tipping fully into dessert territory—leaning instead toward a richer, slightly buttery finish.
Cons: The maple flavor remains restrained and a touch perfumed. The cinnamon-sugar coating tends to dominate, giving the bite a cereal-like sweetness rather than a chip-like snap. While the sweet potato tries to ground things with a buttery savoriness, the overall vibe still feels uncertain about its place—somewhere between a Thanksgiving hors d’oeuvre and a bowl of cereal-laced sweetness, rather than a distinct chip experience.
