Candy Addict » Mint Candy

Candy Review: Oral Fixation Peppermint Mocha Mints

Laurie — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 09:00:56 +0000

My go-to dictionary, the Canadian Oxford, defines “oral,” in part, as “of or concerning a supposed stage of… (infant) development in which the mouth is of central interest.” If this is the case, it would seem that many of us who write for this site never really outgrew the infant stage of development – we’ve never stopped trying to find as many interesting (and hopefully delicious) things to put in our mouths as possible. And apparently, neither have the good folks at Oral Fixation, who continue to provide us with new and increasingly unique flavors of their signature mints.

With flavors like chai, herbal jasmine, and mojito, Oral Fixation keeps pushing the envelope. The lineup has recently been joined by this new Peppermint Mocha flavor, which Oral Fixation’s website describes as providing “the caffeine jolt of a chocolate-covered espresso bean cut with cooling natural mint oil.”

As always, Oral Fixation provides a classy presentation, with their signature flat tin filled with a single layer of fingertip-sized mints. A layer of printed wax paper, in this case bearing a set of red and white stripes reminiscent of a candy canes, protects the mints, keeping them from rattling around and getting all broken. (Have I mentioned how much I love Oral Fixation’s tins? I might just recycle this one into a business card holder, which will have the added effect of making all my business cards smell choco-minty fresh.)

The light brown mints are embedded with the word “fix” on one side, and either the word “choco” or “latte” on the other. They smell mostly minty, with just a hint of chocolate or coffee in the background. Huh, I could swear I once had some sort of scented plastic toy that smelled exactly like these. Holy sense memory!

Chocolate-flavored candies that aren’t actually chocolate are always hit-or-miss, but these have a surprisingly rich, deep flavor, perhaps due to the presence of the coffee. They have a faint coffee bitterness with just a hint of chocolate and the cooling effect of peppermint, without an overwhelming mint flavor. Neither the chocolate or coffee flavor is all that strong individually, but they combine for an almost creamy richness that goes well with the cooling mint. The flavor reminds me of those hard mint candies with the chocolate centers, only classier. And with only 3.5 calories per (artificially-sweetened) mint, this is a chocolate indulgence everyone can enjoy.

In all, these get a thumbs up from me. So if you haven’t already, why not give them a try and start cultivating an oral fixation of your own?

Oral Fixation Website

Buy Oral Fixation Mints Online:

at Amazon.com

Candy Review: Melon Mango Tic Tacs

Laurie — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 09:00:32 +0000

Tic Tacs have never been my favorite mint – they’re just too wimpy for my tastes. I’ve always preferred mints that are strong enough to make my tongue sting. I like the mellow vanilla outside of the white mint ones, but to me it doesn’t really go with the minty center, and the orange-flavored ones were just another fruit and mint combo for me to dislike.

I haven’t had a Tic Tac in years, but it seems like they’ve really expanded their flavor lineup – including this brand-new flavor combination, Melon Mango (two flavors in one!). Armed with a hefty Big Pack courtesy of the All Candy Expo, I endeavored to see if my opinion of them would be improved by these new flavors.

Melon – Melon-mint is a new one to me, so I was intrigued to find out if this combo would prove tastier than most fruit and mint blends.

If I may go off on a tangent here, there are two main artificial flavors used for watermelon-flavored candies – what I’ve somehow come to think of as the “green” one (watermelon Hubba Bubba, green Everlasting Gobstopper) and the “pink” one (watermelon Jolly Ranchers), since the candies that use them usually (but not always) come in those respective colors. The “green” flavor doesn’t actually resemble real watermelon that much, but it’s a nice fresh crisp, almost cooling flavor that doesn’t stray into either the “too sweet” or “too tart” camps. The “pink” flavor tastes more like watermelon – but without the real thing’s crisp, cold juiciness, it kind of tastes like a warm and slightly overripe slice of watermelon that’s been sitting on the counter all day. (Guess which of the two I prefer.)

The melon Tic Tacs seem like a balance between the two, with a faintly cooling sourness that somewhat balances out the overripe notes of the “pink” flavor. To my surprise, they were actually way more sour than minty, with just a cooling hint at the center. (If these and the Sour Patch Chillerz are anything to go by, there’s some kind of trend towards more restrained fruit and mint combinations going on – and I think I like it.) Overall, though, I wish they’d gone more towards the “green” flavor to match their green color.

Mango – In contrast with melon, mango’s not really one of my favorite candy flavors. I like a nice fresh mango as much as anyone, but it’s a notoriously difficult flavor to reproduce in candy form – the balance of fruity, perfumey and piney seems to be a particularly difficult one to replicate.

When sucked, these Tic Tacs start sweet, then go into a piney mango flavor – then get bitter, almost soapy. When chewed up at once, the sourness and faint mintiness of the center helps to balance out those soapy notes some, but not enough to make them really pleasant to eat. They do have a nice mango-y aftertaste, though.

Both at once – Since the two flavors came in the same pack, it seemed only natural to taste them both together and see if it improved them any. Actually, it did – the sweeter melon and more sour mango really helped to balance each other out.

I never considered myself a Tic Tac person, and well, I still don’t. I’m pretty ambivalent about these – writing about the different types of artificial flavors was more interesting than writing about the candy itself. If you like Tic Tacs, these may be your thing – but they’re definitely not mine.

Tic Tac Website

Buy Tic Tacs Online:

at Candy Direct

at Amazon.com

Candy Review: Reese’s, Special Dark, Almond Joy and York Pieces

Laurie — Thu, 28 May 2009 09:00:43 +0000

To me, one of the most exciting announcements at this year’s All Candy Expo was the addition of three new additions to the Pieces lineup. Never knew there was a Pieces lineup? Well, there is now, with Hershey’s Special Dark, Almond Joy and York Pieces joining the familiar Reese’s. But are these new additions worthy successors to the mantle of everyone’s favorite candy-coated peanut butter treat? (The Hershey’s folks threw in a sample pack of Reese’s Pieces too, so I’m doing a bonus review of those as well.)

Reese’s Pieces:

Colors: Orange, yellow, brown
Filling: Peanut butter

When I was a kid, it blew my mind when I discovered that you could put things inside a chocolate shell other than, well, chocolate. That the filling in question was delicious Reese’s peanut butter certainly helped.

If there’s anyone out there who hasn’t had them before, Reese’s Pieces are about the size and shape of M&M’s, and have a similar texture – under the candy coating, the peanut butter filling is denser and smoother than in a Reese’s peanut butter cup, closely mimicking the texture of the more traditional chocolate.

The filling has a milder flavor than a Reese’s cup’s – without the added element of chocolate, it doesn’t need the same intense saltiness. In all, Reese’s Pieces are a good mix of contrasting textures and flavors – the sweet, crunchy candy shell and the creamy, mildly salty peanut butter combine for a taste that’s not too heavy and definitely addictive, and they remain one of my favorite candies to this day.

Almond Joy Pieces:

Colors: Brown, blue, white
Filling: Milk chocolate, coconut, almond

Admittedly, I’ve never eaten an Almond Joy bar before – the similar but nut-free Bounty bar is more commonly available here in Canada. But I love the combination of coconut and chocolate, so I was pretty pumped for these.

They smell like toasty almonds and coconut mixed with milk chocolate – yum. The individual pieces are a little bigger and thicker than Reese’s Pieces, and their shells look a little lumpy and uneven, without the uniform gloss of the Reese’s.

This is definitely a candy for coconut lovers, as that’s the dominant flavor here. The milk chocolate is very creamy and mild, and isn’t overpoweringly sweet. It actually does a good job of mimicking the peanut butter center of Reese’s Pieces, only with the added textural elements of bits of nuts and coconut shreds.

The candy shell isn’t terribly thick, but thanks to the almond and coconut bits, these have a pretty substantial crunch. I can see where they might not be everyone’s thing, though – if the idea of little gritty bits in a chocolate shell doesn’t appeal to you, these probably aren’t for you. I, however, found them just as addictive as the originals.

Hershey’s Special Dark Pieces:

Colors: Red, brown, dark brown
Filling: Dark chocolate

For mass-market dark chocolate, Hershey’s Special Dark is actually not bad. But much as I love dark chocolate, I have to question whether a Pieces with a straight chocolate center really belongs in the same lineup as the chocolate-free Reese’s Pieces.

The Special Dark Pieces match the Almond Joy ones in terms of shape and texture – they’re a little bigger and thicker than the Reese’s, with a less glossy and even coating.

Unsurprisingly, they remind me a lot of M&M’s, but I find the chocolate center a bit acidic – it reminds me of semisweet Chipits rather than anything I would want to eat by the piece. Maybe I haven’t eaten enough dark chocolate M&M’s, but I just kind of expect a creamier, richer filling inside a chocolate lentil, especially one that’s being marketed as a variation of Reese’s Pieces. Overall, I’m not a fan of these.

York Pieces:

Colors: Blue, white
Filling: Peppermint-flavored dark chocolate

I was really hoping these would take a page from the Reese’s ones and just be peppermint fondant inside a candy shell, but they’re actually just filled with mint-flavored dark chocolate. (Boy, I’m really ragging on chocolate today, aren’t I? I must be sick or something.)

They don’t have the fondant, but the dark chocolate filling does have the same intense mintiness of a Peppermint Pattie, plus the slight sweetness and crunch of the candy shell. Not the original taste sensation I was hoping for, but really, you can’t go wrong with peppermint and chocolate, and the texture element of the candy crunch is a very nice addition.

Overall, all of these flavors were really tasty except for the Special Dark. I just wish they had been a little less chocolate-focused. None of them really blew my mind like the original Reese’s Pieces did back in the day – it seems like the purpose of them is just to compete with all the new flavors of M&M’s rather than doing anything truly innovative. There have to be more interesting non-chocolate things that you can put inside a candy lentil – but it doesn’t seem like Hershey’s is trying very hard to find them.

Hershey’s Website

Buy Reese’s Pieces Online:

at Candy Direct

at Amazon.com

Candy Review: Altoids Smalls Sugar Free Mints

Cindy — Mon, 11 May 2009 09:00:31 +0000

Altoids – the name frightens me. I immediately get an image of my head bursting into flames as a small white tablet of destruction sears the inside of my mouth and then wreaks its havoc on the rest of my body. My husband and my mother love Altoids. They laugh at me because I ~~am afraid of them~~ don’t care for them.

Of course I’m talking about the dreaded peppermint Altoids. Whoever created those things must have been a sadistic former Gulag prison guard. Imagine my ~~inconsolable weeping~~ hesitation when I received two packages of Altoids in the mail to review.

Fortunately, they were not of the peppermint variety. Instead I’ve been able to sample the wintergreen and cinnamon flavors from the new Altoids Smalls Sugar Free line.

Now these aren’t new flavors, but they are being sold in a new small size. The tin is about 3″ by 2″ which means it can fit nicely in your pocket or purse. The mints themselves are smaller too – about the size of a corn kernel as opposed to the normal lima bean size. (Yeah, as if you Candy Addicts ever eat lima beans.) These Altoids Smalls are sugar free, unlike their larger cousins. They’re sweetened with sorbitol and sucralose, and according to Wikipedia they contain a pork gelatin. You vegetarians will just have to resist.

The Wintergreen Altoids Smalls are a pretty blue color and, in my opinion, deliciously fresh. They have a nice typically wintergreen flavor and are not hot or overpowering like the peppermint Altoids. They have a bit of a “sting” in a pleasant sort of way. Their breath-freshening capacity is very good. Just one of the tiny mints left my mouth feeling as if I had just brushed with an expensive toothpaste and rinsed with a stinky brown mouthwash. (And I mean that in the best possible way.)

Because I live in a household of “non-returning borrowers,” I was not able to personally sample the Cinnamon Altoids Smalls. Of the two tins that arrived in my mail, my husband took one and my five-year-old took the other. Yes, my five-year-old. He prides himself on liking “the hot stuff.” I asked my husband for his opinion of the cinnamon flavor. He describes it this way: “There’s an intense burst of cinnamon flavor at first. It doesn’t overpower you with too much cinnamon or heat but has an excellent taste. Every time I ate one, it left me wanting another.” So there you have it, straight from the horse’s mouth. (Don’t tell him I said that.)

Why I ended the last two paragraphs with a sentence in parentheses, I do not know. Unusual prose aside, the new Altoids Smalls Sugar Free Mints are a delightful bit of tasty freshness that will slip into your pocket.

Altoids Website

Buy Altoids Small Sugar Free Mints Online:

at Amazon.com

at Candy Direct

Gum Review: Search for Spearmint Mini-Roundup Part 2

Cindy — Fri, 08 May 2009 07:00:03 +0000

1911 Wrigley’s Spearmint Gum Advertisement
Click Image to View Larger Size

I’m the girl with the Spearmint Eyes. Once a Spearmint Girl, always a Spearmint Girl… only Wrigley let me down. So I’ve been on a quest to replace my first love, and it’s time for the second part of my stroll down Spearmint Lane. (Don’t forget to read Part 1 of the Spearmint Mini-Roundup.) Out of the nine varieties of spearmint gum I’ve tried, I liked only three well enough to buy them again. Does that mean that most gum is lousy or that I’m picky?

Whatever the case, I’m going to share four more spearmint gums with you today. Some hot, some mild, some made with milk – it’s all here! Come on, let’s go.

Trident White is packaged in the same thin box with slide-out “gum sheet” as Eclipse. The white pellets are basically the same size and have the same Chiclets-style crunch. And, oh my, they ooze a hot liquid from the first chew. Fortunately, that goes away quickly but the overall taste remains mediocre at best. It has a slight sweetness that is nice but is almost undetectable underneath the residual heat. Trident White says it will “strengthen and whiten” teeth with something called ReCaldent – a milk derived substance. If you’re allergic to milk, don’t try Trident White. If you like to chew hot, crunchy milk, give it a try.

Wrigley’s Orbit is one of my top picks out of all the spearmint gums I’ve tried. A package has 14 individual strips about as wide as my pinkie finger, as long as two keys on the keyboard, and as tall as three CDs stacked together. (How’s that for a creative and confusing description?) They are soft to begin chewing and release a nice, mellow, sweet juice. The taste is quite possibly the epitome of a good spearmint, in my opinion. It’s long-lasting – over an hour. Anything over 20 minutes is great – more than an hour is phenomenal. Orbit has ridiculously irritating commercials, but the long-lasting, incredibly delicious flavor more than makes up for it.

Trident – I suppose this would be the “classic” version. They have the same small strip shape that Trident has had for as long as I can remember – the same shape now used by Stride and Orbit. Trident classic is very soft to begin chewing, the softest of any gum I’ve ever eaten. An extremely sweet juice is released and fills up your whole mouth. Deliciously sweet, perhaps even too sweet. Before I can decide, however, it’s gone – just like that! From “Is this sickeningly sweet?” to nothing in less than ten seconds. The gum also became a bit tough when the sweetness disappeared. A very strange experience.

5 Gum – Technically, this gum is called “Rain” but it has an emerald green wrapper which makes it a spearmint gum in my book. It is definitely a mild gum with a pleasantly sweet taste right from the beginning. It’s soft to chew and stays that way for as long as the sweetness lasts. It’s funny (in a strange sort of way) that the sweetness and softness go hand-in-hand on many of these gums. When the sweet flavor fades, the gum gets tougher. I wonder why that is. Anyway, on the lack of hotness (which is what I want in a spearmint gum) 5 Gum is a winner. The good flavor just doesn’t last long enough, though, and I doubt I’ll buy another pack.

I still find it fascinating that so many varieties of spearmint gum are available on the market. I suppose the same is true for peppermint and other classic flavors. No matter what your preferences are in a spearmint flavor, you’re bound to find a gum to make you happy. My top three favorites are (in random order) Orbit, Stride, and Trident Xtra Care. Sweet, mild, long-lasting, mmm.

Buy Spearmint Gum Online:

at Old Time Candy

at Amazon.com

at Candy Direct

Candy History: Orbit Gum, Then and Now

Jim — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 07:00:24 +0000

Image from Gasoline Alley Antiques

I’ve always enjoyed studying history, especially U.S. history. When I learn something new I’m amazed at how ignorant and totally clueless I can be, even when it comes to something as simple as gum.

For years I thought Orbit gum was a relatively new product from Wrigley. Wrong!

Orbit has been around since World War II when Wrigley began shipping all of their gum production overseas to the Armed Forces. With no JuicyFruit, Spearmint or Doublemint available for civilians in the U.S., Wrigley introduced Orbit.

After the war, in 1946, Wrigley brought the big three back to the States and phased out Orbit. It wasn’t until 1976 that Orbit returned – only to Germany, Switzerland, and the Netherlands – as the first sugar-free gum ever released under the Wrigley name.

In 2001, Orbit returned to the U.S. with the introduction of Spearmint and Wintermint flavors. 2007 brought the Mint Mojito, and today Orbit Mist features “MicroBursts that deliver a hydrating sensation.”

I recently tried the Mint Mojito and the Mist Mango Surf. (Although we reviewed the latter just recently, I thought it might be worth another taste.)

Orbit Mint Mojito: The stick smelled of spearmint and bathroom cleanser. At first chew there was a strong yet unidentifiable citrus high note. After 30 seconds of thoughtful chewing, a subtle lime flavor whispered within a faint and pleasant spearmint. After about five minutes, it was something not quite lime and not quite spearmint. The confusion was rather amusing, but like a doomed relationship, the intriguing beginning couldn’t survive the long haul. Still, not a bad chewing experience.

Funny thing, later that evening I enjoyed a real Mojito at a rooftop beach bar. (Hey, I was on vacation. See, even during my down time I’m out there working for all you Candy Addicts. My pleasure.)

Orbit Mango Surf: The stick smelled of cough syrup and cinnamon-apple potpourri. (I’m not making this up.) On first chew it was crunchy – yes, crunchy! A very strong and authentic mango high note that dissipated as the “MicroBurst” crystals softened. Where the Mint Mojito was soft, the Mango Surf was tough, more akin to a bubble gum texture. The mango flavor subsided considerably after two minutes but was still present and provided a mildly enjoyable chew.

Ingredients in both gums were identical, but the Mist contained erythritol (a natural sugar alcohol found in fruits and fermented foods), sucralose (super-sweet artificial sweetener marketed as Splenda) and gelatin.

After a little bit of digging, I now see Orbit in a whole new light. That’s the beauty of history.

Orbit Gum Website

Buy Orbit Gum Online:

at Candy Direct

at Amazon.com

Gum Review: Orbit Mist

Cindy — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 07:00:42 +0000

Orbit Mist is a new line of gum from The Wrigley Company. It’s touted as a premium gum and contains little crystals – called Micro-Bursts – that the Orbit website says will “deliver a hydrating sensation to consumers.”

Now I can only assume that it means “to consumers who purchase and chew Orbit Mist.” When I first read the description, I had a vision of Orbit Mist boxes shooting “hydrating sensation beams” at random consumers in the grocery store. “Hello, ma’am, welcome to Food Land. How are you?”

“I’m good, tha-” (*Hydrating sensation beam fires.*) “Ohhh, I suddenly feel so… moistly healthy…”

Oh, ah-hem, I’m supposed to be writing a review. Sorry…

Wrigley has graciously sent me the three new flavors of the Orbit Mist line to try. Two fruity flavors – Watermelon Spring and Mango Surf – and one mint flavor – Peppermint Spray.

Watermelon Spring – With the first chew, this lime green gum gives a very strong watermelon flavor – followed by a flood of sourness so strong that I was squinting my eye like Popeye the Sailor Man. I’m no fan of sour candies so I was happy when the sour flavor faded in less than a minute. Tiny crystals in the gum must be tiny sour factories, though, because every time I crunched one, a little more sourness came out. Besides that, the main flavor is a sweet, mild watermelon. It’s a nice, pleasant flavor – not overly strong. Reminiscent of kids’ watermelon-flavored gums (like Hubba Bubba) but nowhere near as overpowering. Lasting factor is good – I chewed for over an hour.

Mango Surf – I was a bit hesitant to try this flavor since I don’t particularly care for mango (natural or artificial). As a dedicated Candy Addict, I pressed through my fears and popped a piece in my mouth. I was expecting a rush of sour flavor similar to what I’d experienced with Watermelon Spring. While the Mango Surf crystals did release sour bursts for the first minute or two, the pucker-factor of this orangish-yellow gum wasn’t nearly so intense. The sweet flavor that lasted for about an hour was typically mango and happily mild. I never felt assaulted by the mango-ness of it. A pretty good flavor.

Peppermint Spray – Mint gums are my forte… what can be better than a quick, tasty way to freshen breath after a meal loaded with garlic, onions, and oregano? Okay, so I don’t eat onions. I do prefer spearmint, but this Peppermint Spray from Orbit Mist was quite enjoyable. It had less heat than the new Wrigley’s Spearmint while retaining a strong peppermint flavor. It’s actually inspired me to want to chew more peppermint gum. (Please don’t tell my package of Stride Spearmint.) Like the other Orbit Mist gums, the flavor lasted a long time before I was ready to spit it out.

Orbit Website

Buy Orbit Mist Online:

at Amazon.com

at Candy Direct

Gum Review: Search for Spearmint Mini-Roundup Part 1

Cindy — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 09:00:02 +0000

Spearmint leaves image from katrinket at Flickr
Some time ago, I bought a package of Wrigley’s Spearmint gum only to discover that the flavor had been changed dramatically. To put it mildly, the spearmint flavor I knew and loved had careened downhill and crashed into a muddy, mucky river. I wrote a review of it and a review of Wrigley’s other “improved” flavors. Since then I’ve been on a search to find a spearmint gum that matches my expectations of a good, mellow, sweet spearmint.

I’ve been slightly overwhelmed by the number of brands and varieties of spearmint-flavored gum. Without even looking very hard, I’ve found nine different varieties. Who knew spearmint could taste so many different ways? Trident alone makes three kinds of spearmint gum. It’s mind boggling.

It has been quite an adventure tasting all the varieties and thinking about the nuances in their differences and similarities. I’m feeling like quite the gum expert lately. And I have the freshest breath in the county.

Today I’ll tell you about five of the gums I’ve tried. To save your palate from overexertion, I’ll save the rest for another post.

Eclipse by Wrigley – In a pack of Eclipse, you’ll get 12 little pieces of gum. The pieces measure only about 1/2″ by 3/4″ – they’re like little pellets. The initial feel when I begin to chew one is similar, almost identical, to those little square gums I used to get for a penny out of candy machines… right down to the “crunch” required to begin chewing. (Were those Chicklets or a cheap imitation?) After crunching it open, my mouth was immediately flooded with heat. An amazing surge of fire spread through my mouth and into my throat. Ahhh! Within 20 chews, I could feel the heat up my nose too. It’s very reminiscent of eating a peppermint Altoid. The first time I chewed Eclipse Spearmint, it was so hot, I had to spit it out in just a couple minutes. The second time I persevered through the heat, and surprisingly a little sweetness came out after a few minutes of chewing. The heat was still too much, though, so in the trash it went.

Ice Breakers Ice Cubes with cooling xylitol by The Hershey Co. – Ice Cubes are funny little square cubes – a shape I’ve never seen in any other gum. They require a little initial crunch to start chewing, nothing too jaw cracking though. Much to my dismay, they have lots of crunchy ‘crystals’ inside. Like I’ve said before, I don’t want my gum crunchy. The flavor, while decent, was gone unbelievably fast. I started chewing at 4:34 and all traces of flavor were gone by 4:52. No exaggeration. The Ice Breakers Ice Cubes box says “Whoa!™”

I totally agree – Whoa! Where’d the flavor go?

Stride by Cadbury – Stride comes in a thin, large rectangle package like all these new-fangled gums. (What was wrong with the little rectangle pack?) Remember on movies and television shows when a proud grandparent or new daddy flips out a long row of wallet photos to show any unsuspecting soul nearby? That’s what I thought of when I flipped open the Stride pack. The top flap “holding area” releases two gum-holding flaps. Each flap has seven little “bits” of gum, for 14 total pieces.

The bits (I can’t bring myself to call them sticks) are about the size I can remember Trident being when I was growing up. About 1/4″ by 1/2″. They are soft and easy to chew – a big plus as far as I’m concerned – and a sweet juice is released with the first chew. The flavor is very good, smooth and sweet… no heat whatsoever. It’s long lasting too. I’d say I chewed for at least an hour before the flavor started to fade. We have a winner here – I like Stride very much!

Extra by Wrigley – These ordinarily-shaped sticks of gum have a pale green color and the strange initial flavor that I’ve always associated with Extra brand gums. There’s an underlying sweetness that is pleasant, but it’s barely detectable under that unusual flavor that I can’t even give a name to. After quite a few chews, a bit of heat started to ooze out of the gum. Nothing major, nothing I can’t handle. Shortly after the heat came out, the sweet flavor was gone. Not a hint of it remained.

That weird flavor, though? Still there. After a while, I think I actually got used to it because the gum started to taste decent. Not so bad that I wanted to spit it out… but not so great that I want to go out and buy another pack. Sorry, Extra, get rid of that weird taste and we’ll talk.

Trident Xtra Care – Does anyone besides me think it’s strange that Trident markets three different versions of spearmint gum? It is even weirder that all three versions taste dramatically different? For today, I’ll tell you about Trident Xtra Care Spearmint, which for some reason isn’t listed on the Trident website. Only Peppermint and Cool Mint are listed, but I assure you that I have a lovely emerald green package of Spearmint in my hand – see the picture?

The Trident Xtra Care package flips open just like the Stride package, but the pieces of gum are larger. They are narrow ’strips’ more than an inch long and about a quarter inch thick. They’re a little tough to start chewing – not crunchy at all, just tough. Immediately, though, a sweet flavor is released. It’s a mild spearmint flavor with plenty of sweetness and only a hint of warmth. In a way, it’s almost too sweet especially for the first few minutes of chewing. The flavor lasts a decent amount of time but not as long as other gums. Trident Xtra Care claims to “strengthen and rebuild teeth” – an interesting, if unusual, bonus to gum chewing.

There you have it – pellets, cubes, bits, sticks, and strips. Quite an array of gum variety. I figure anyone could find a spearmint they like in this list, but I’ve got four more to bring you next time.

Buy Spearmint Gum Online:

at Amazon.com

Candy Review: Buzz Bites Mint Chocolate Energy Chews

Diana — Fri, 27 Mar 2009 09:00:06 +0000

After my not-so-good experience with Kickbrix energy chews, I was sent a sample of Buzz Bite Mint Chocolate Energy Chews.

Since I love everything chocolate, I was excited to try these because they contained not only chocolate, but also mint. Combine that with some good old caffeine, and I was ready to go.

I decided to try the Buzz Bite Mint Chocolate Energy Chews on a morning where I had not gotten much sleep the night before. Since buying a Nintendo DS, I haven’t gotten much sleep on the days I have to get up for work. On the morning in question, I crawled out of bed, showered, brushed my teeth and got dressed. As soon as I walked into the kitchen, I noticed the nice green tin can that contained the energy chews.

First of all, I like the packaging. Anything that comes in a cute little tin is all right in my book. That way, the energy chews are easily contained inside their tin and not spilling out all over the place in my purse.

I discovered that while opening a chew, they came off easily from the wrapper, whereas the previously mentioned energy chews kind of stuck to the wrapper and were hard to pry loose. Not the case with these. They look like a chocolate version of a Starburst but were much chewier and easy on the teeth. I definitely tasted the chocolate, and while there was a little of the bitterness of the caffeine in it, the chocolate flavor kind of drowned that out. Definitely edible as an energy chew. As for the aftertaste, there was a slight mint flavor, but no lingering aftereffects.

As for giving me energy, it seemed to boost my work productivity that day. I’m kind of a lazy worker, and lose energy early in the day, so these chews seemed to provide me with the extra energy that I needed to get through the day. I even think these mints were responsible for keeping me up all afternoon, thereby eliminating my four-hour nap that I take in the middle of the day. Hmmm… I think I might definitely use these again. Who needs a nap, right?

Buzz Bites Website

Buy Buzz Bite Energy Chews Online:

Amazon.com

Candy Review: Archie McPhee Mints & Maggots

Jim — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 06:00:29 +0000

Yesterday I heard words I’ve never heard another human being speak. Ever. Not even Andrew Zimmern. “Mmmm, these maggots are delicious!” Maybe Zimmern has said this, but I’ve never made it more than five minutes into his show before changing channels. I’m more of an Anthony Bourdain guy. But I digress.

From the wacky folks at Archie McPhee I got a package containing Commie Mints, Green Buddha Mints, and Gummy Maggots. Of all the hundreds of items they sell, these are probably among the least interesting, i.e., safest.

The tins each contained roughly 100 chalky white mints the size of baby aspirins. Both the Commies and Buddhas had identical ingredients and were so mild that eating less than six at a time elicited very little minty flavor. I’ll keep the tins and maybe fill ‘em with Altoids or Fisherman’s Friend mints.

The Gummy Maggots looked very lifelike (larvaelike?), but had a distinct rubbery taste over the green apple flavor. (Better than natural maggot flavor, I guess.) Also, the package depicts a smiling cartoon worm exiting an apple – I’m sure a true depiction of maggots squirming around in rotting garbage or a days-old summertime animal carcass would be too off-putting. These seem to be geared toward goofy kids anyway, along with a few people in my office – they’ll eat anything that sounds gross, and usually enjoy it.

Celebrating their silver anniversary in business, Archie McPhee is the retail segment of wholesalers Accoutrements, known more for their kooky and kitschy toys than candy, although we’ve reviewed plenty of their offbeat candy here before. Still, I wish I’d gotten something more fun than mints and maggots. Perhaps a Cherry Flavored Marie Antoinette Head Lollipop, Gummy Human Heart, Black Lung Lemon Flavored Bubblegum Cigarettes, or Shakesperean Insult Gum would’ve been a bit more “krazy.” And they seem to be obsessed with bacon-flavored candy. Why’d I get no bacon?

Despite the subpar candy – the emphasis here is on novelty, not candy – I can’t help lingering over their “Stupid Products” section: Man, I need some Inflatable Toast!