I’m sure all you jelly bean fans are excited to hear that Jelly Belly is adding a new variety to their official 50 flavors Jelly Belly Bean family. Can you guess what it is? It’s dark chocolate!
I’m find this addition very interesting, because Jelly Belly already has some chocolate based flavors: milk chocolate and chocolate pudding to be exact. I was curious to see how they managed to, in the form of a jelly bean, make one “chocolate” flavor taste different from the other. The press kit included with these new Jelly Bellys says these new beans are dairy free and certified OU Kosher, so it’s good to know that they are safe to consume for those of us who have dietary concerns.
The beans themselves are very attractive to look at: matte dark brown in color, not spots to them at all like some of their Jelly Belly Bean siblings. When I tore open the packet to let the new beans tumble into my hand, I noticed a wonderful strong cocoa smell, yet it doesn’t entirely remind me of chocolate. The first thing that came to mind was tootsie roll; but no, it’s not quite that either. After sniffing and pondering the aroma for awhile, I realized what it was: hot chocolate mix.
I was unable to wait any longer and popped a few of them in my mouth: the flavor is not as intense as the smell is, but it is certainly more authentic. They are mildly sweet so the bean does read as “dark chocolate” as opposed to their milk chocolate and chocolate pudding flavors which I find have a creamier, sweeter and more dairy like essence to them. The bean’s dark chocolate flavor reminds me a bit of a tootsie roll in terms of intensity since the overall taste is mild. But rest assured that’s where the similarity ends, since here in the bean the cocoa flavor is much more pronounced and real since they use dark chocolate to make these little beauties. After polishing off my sample packet I can say that I really like them. I’m pleased with how these turned out.
So when will you be able to find the dark chocolate Jelly Belly Bean in stores? The planned release is this spring, so I recommend keeping an eye out for them amongst the Easter candies this year; I know I’m going to be on the lookout for them. Once you do see them, be sure to report back here and let me know how you like them!
Editor’s Note: Both Brian and myself found these to have a bitter/chemical-y taste. We don’t eat as much dark chocolate as Sera, so it’s possible this difference in opinion is due to a dark chocolate/milk chocolate preference. Try them and let us know how they measure up for you!
Buy Jelly Belly Beans online:
- at Candy Direct
- at Old Time Candy Co.
- at Amazon.com
- in bulk at Candy Crate
Hmmm. I was thinking that it would probably taste chemical-y if it didn’t have any dairy. The editor’s note says I’m right. Too bad, it might have been a new favorite of mine but I hate that chemical-y taste. I finally got to try the Chocolate Skittles, and they were wrought with chemical-mess. Pretty gross.
And I am impressed that I got to use the word “wrought”.)
By the way, has anyone out there in Candy Addict land entered the Jelly Belly Dream Bean contest?
February 18th, 2008 at 3:17 pmso i knew jelly belly made a Chocolate Pudding, and they had a limited release of Hot Chocolate, but did i really completely miss Milk Chocolate? When did that ever exist?
February 18th, 2008 at 4:40 pmThanks for the heads-up!
February 18th, 2008 at 5:27 pmHee – my anti-spam word is Nestle! How appropriate!
February 18th, 2008 at 8:28 pmI’m always impressed by Jelly Belly’s flavors – if they can make one that really tastes like black pepper, so much that I remember it as feeling grainy even though it certainly didn’t, I’m sure they can do something with dark chocolate. And I probably don’t want to know how they did it.
Yum! Can’t wait to try ‘em since I love both dark chocolate and Jelly Belly’s flavor “rightness.” Having braved the Bertie Botts’ Beans and survived (jeez, some of them were truly awful and awfully “right on” in their disgustingly accurate tastes), I can and will try anything Jelly Belly puts out.
The only way I’ll know if they’re chemical-ey is to pop ‘em in my mouth, chew and savor! And then do that once more to be sure (my mom always said that your head is too involved in the first bite, so give it a second try to get your tastebuds attached to the true flavor; works for me)! I’ll be looking for ‘em in my favorite Walgreens, home of all the latest candy!
February 19th, 2008 at 12:10 amThanks for the comments everyone. :)
lolita1006, I looked into that since you brought it up. The press release mentions a “milk chocolate inspired” flavor, so I was assuming there was a milk chocolate Jelly Belly. After glancing over the 50 flavor list, they must be referring to the Chocolate Pudding and/or the Hot Chocolate ones you mention. Sorry for the confusion!
February 19th, 2008 at 12:39 amWell given that Jelly Bean is an artificial candy, it doesn’t surprise me that it would be chemically. But I can’t say till I try them. I just think that if Jelly bean can make one taste like ear wax, then I think they could make one taste like dark chocolate with a bigger success.
February 19th, 2008 at 9:33 amI don’t think it was as much chemical-y as just bitter.
@oakling – I got to pick all the captcha/anti-spam words so i chose all candy-related ones :)
February 19th, 2008 at 1:07 pm