Candy Review: Soda Pop Tops

Tuesday, November 13, 2007 - by Sera

Out of all the really unique and new items that were being showcased at the All Candy Expo, one stood out to me as a real winner: The Soda Pop Top. Here’s how it works – it’s a dome shaped lollipop that has a hollow center and it sits on a base that you screw onto any bottle top, and voila! You can have your candy and drink it too!

At first I was skeptical with this because really, who’d want to drink their beverage though a flavored lollipop? But once I sat and thought about it, it really dawned on my what a great idea it is! The soda pop top comes in six flavors (Cherry, Grape, Orange, Blue Raspberry, Watermelon and Green Apple) and you’re encouraged to try drinking them with anything you please. I received four of the six flavors to sample, so let’s see how they taste!

Green Apple: Thankfully this is NOT sour and it doesn’t taste like that artificial Jolly Rancher flavor. This is much more fruity and floral tasting, like a good mix of a Granny Smith and a Red Delicious apple. I liked it and I found it paired very well with ginger ale. Together they made a tropical guava flavor I didn’t expect. It was good!

Watermelon: I don’t remember too much about this one unfortunately, since I ate it during a five hour car drive. I paired it with root beer and I really liked how the two flavors went together. The watermelon didn’t taste artificial and somehow managed to get that wonderful “watery” flavor and sensation which real watermelon has. I was very impressed by it.

Cherry: Beautiful bright red color. The candy is clear and you can see all the little air bubbles in it; it’s stunning to look at. The flavor is very faint, unlike most cherry flavored hard candies. It’s surprisingly subtle and medicinal tasting. I get hits of bitterness and herbs in there. I paired it with a lemon-lime soda and the flavors matched well. My least favorite of the bunch.

Blue Raspberry: I paired it with store brand cola since I wanted something different! The lollipop is a turquoise color and smells very fruity and light. Considering how the first two tasted, I was interested to see how this flavor would be since it’s an artificial flavor concept to begin with. I didn’t know if I should expect the more natural flavoring like I experienced with the first two or if it would taste artificial since there isn’t blue raspberry in nature.

Ohhh, it was is nice. Not blue raspberry at all, but real raspberry dyed blue (did that even make sense?). This is very light, fruity and floral and I’m reminded strongly of a raspberry Jelly Belly jellybean. I also got a little watermelon-ness to it, and it was very tasty. I don’t know how this company manages to nail these flavors so well, but whatever they’re doing I hope they keep it up! It matched nicely with the cola too, since the sweetness of the raspberry really balanced out the spiciness of the dark cola.

Aside from the wonderful flavors, I also love the Soda Pop top because of its interactivity. You can enjoy them with anything that comes in a bottle and I haven’t even begun to explore the flavor ranges with these in regard to seltzer, tea, water, etc. There’s so much room for experimentation. I think that’s why these are so much fun! I also really enjoyed being able to chew on the lollipop long after the beverage was gone and it just makes the whole experience longer and more satisfying. So don’t just take my word for it, if you see these be sure to give them a go!

• Soda Pop Top Website

lollipop, soda, All Candy Expo, watermelon, blue raspberry, cherry, green apple