Disclaimer: I don’t really chew gum. I’m not really sure why – I enjoy the flavor (while it lasts) and the chewing action, and it’s nice to have something in my mouth to fiddle with while I do other things. When I do chew gum, I’m partial to the old-school bubblegum-style – big, soft pieces that yield face-sized bubbles and pack more sugar than some small chocolate bars. Unfortunately for me, though, it’s the skinny sticks or Chiclet-style pieces of sugar-free gum, usually heavily mentholated and bearing promises of tooth-cleaning action, that are most popular these days.
All that being said, Trident Splash Orange Swirl is definitely not a product I would have bought for myself, but nonetheless, I decided to try and approach this All Candy Expo freebie with an open mind.
Like most Chiclet-type gums, this comes in a foil-backed blister pack. Unlike most Chiclet-style gums, it also comes with the gimmick of a liquid center – something I remember seeing pretty often back in the day, but always in products aimed at kids rather than adults. Inside the blister pack, the little tabs seem thicker than usual – probably due to the extra “burst of sweet indulgence,†as the package calls it.
Removed from the package, the tabs have an orange-vanilla scent, which sounds appetizing enough. However, there’s something a little mediciney about it that actually turns my stomach. You know how when you were a kid, the dentist would let you pick your flavor of that fluoride foam? And the flavors all sounded really yummy, like bubblegum and Creamsicle, so you always picked one of those, conveniently forgetting the important kid rule that the tastier the flavor of a medicinal product sounds, the nastier it’s actually going to be? This gum smells exactly like Creamsicle-flavored fluoride treatment foam. And that stuff was pretty darn vile.
Fortunately, though, the flavor doesn’t resemble said dental product at all. I was expecting menthol, but it’s actually just a bright orange soda flavor, almost sickly sweet. The crisp candy shell, soft gum, and gooey center make a nice texture contrast, and they don’t skimp on the goo either, but as is usual for this type of gum, I find the pieces too darn small.
As you chew, the sweet orange flavor wears off fast, leaving just a mild sweetness – and a strong aftertaste of aspartame. The flavor does last for a pretty long time – but it’s the flavor of artificial sweetener rather than delicious orange. I never thought I’d hear myself say this, but I think some menthol might actually have helped, since it seems to cover up the flavor of artificial sweeteners better than fruit flavors do. A second piece was admittedly better than the first – the aspartame shock seems to wear off a bit after the first piece.
Like other products marketed more as dental aids than candy, the flavor of this gum left a lot to be desired. When the best thing you can say about a product is “it tastes better than fluoride treatment foam,†there’s not really very much to recommend. Thanks but no thanks – I’m sticking with my Hubba Bubba.
Buy Trident Gum Online:
- at Candy Direct
- at Amazon.com
Nothing beats good ole Orange Bubbalicious.
June 24th, 2009 at 4:01 pm