Candy Review: Nativa Organic Gummy Soda Bottles

Wednesday, October 8, 2008 - by Laurie

Ok, confession time: I’m not into the whole organic/natural food thing, for two main reasons. One, I don’t believe in quick-fix solutions to the complex health, environmental and sociological issues that plague today’s food industry; and two, I just love my artificial flavors and colors too darn much. After all, the candy aisle would be a pretty boring place without them.

Still, the idea of a candy that’s truly guilt-free (I’m talking eco-guilt, not calorie-guilt) remains a tempting one, even if it’s just an illusion. So when I noticed a display of products from Shopper’s Drug Mart’s new organic line, Nativa, it was naturally the candy that jumped out at me. Though Nativa also makes organic gummy bears and fruit gummies with natural flavors and colors, it was the cola bottles (or “soda bottles,” as they’re called on the bag) that grabbed me.

Now, gummy cola bottles are among my all-time favorite candies, especially the sour variety. (Confession number two: I once ate an entire industrial-sized tub of sour cherry cola bottles from Costco – AND I’D DO IT AGAIN.) So I was very curious as to how the organic variety would stack up to the real thing. At $2.99 for a 100 g bag, they were pricey (a common problem with organic foods), but I decided to give them a try.

The bag bears a striking orange and green color scheme that seems to be common to the whole Nativa line. On the back of the bag is a guarantee that “this product is certified organic by an independent third party,” and an ingredient list that doesn’t look significantly different from other gummies, other than being organic: corn syrup, cane sugar, gelatin and so forth. Where they differ is that they contain only natural flavors.

The gummies themselves look pretty similar to those you’d find at any convenience store, except that they’re stamped with the words “Bio Cola.” (Sounds a little like it could be toxic rather than good for you, doesn’t it?) They have the familiar Coke-bottle shape in an opaque white that shades down to cola brown at the bottle’s base. (I guess the white is meant to represent the foamy head on a fizzy beverage, but don’t think about how hard you’d have to shake a real cola bottle to get that kind of cola-to-foam ratio.)

They have as astringent, almost perfume-y scent that reminds me of a citrus-tasting spice I know I’ve eaten at Indian restaurants, but can’t put a name to. (Any suggestions?) The flavor is definitely cola-y, with citrus notes and a lot of spice. All in all, Nativa has done a very good job of replicating the (probably mostly artificial) cola “flavor experience” with only natural flavors.

The gummies are a little sweeter than I’d prefer (I always did like the sour ones better), but they do pretty much taste like drinking a flat glass of Coke (well, OK, a store-brand cola). They’re very firm in texture, like all gummy cola bottles, and if you want to get the full flavor, you have to chew them up and hold them on your tongue for a bit.

In all, they’re pretty much a standard cola-bottle experience. So if you like eating organic but are looking for a candy that tastes like you aren’t, these are your gummy. But if you’re on a budget or just not into the whole organic thing, you’ll probably want to stick to the regular (cheap) kind. I recommend a trip to Costco.

BONUS PHOTO: Why it’s not a good idea to photograph candy on top of the cat’s house, no matter how good the light is there.

• Nativa Organics Website