I know, I know, more jellybeans (I just reviewed the Starburst Sour Jellybeans), but can you blame me? When you find the right jellybean, it’s the perfect combination of crunch and chew and sugary goodness! So, when Candy Addict’s very own Brian professed that Nerds Bumpy Jellybeans are his favorite Easter candy this year, I knew I had to try them. First, if Brian says they are good, then the probability that this is true is extremely high. Second, I am a fan of Nerds, especially of Nerds rope, because you get that crunchy and chewy dual bang with the rope. Do you see where I am headed?

I won’t keep you in suspense – these Nerds Bumpy Jellybeans are keepers. They are kooky and bizarre and incredibly tasty! There are five flavors. The flavors aren’t listed on the packaging, but you can guess that they are the usual suspects: red (strawberry), yellow (lemon), orange (you guessed it, orange), green (watermelon), and purple (grape). As indicated by the descriptive title, these beans sport bumpy exteriors, which makes them a little odd looking and even a tad ugly, but who cares! They rock! The hard candy shell is crunchy but won’t break your teeth. The interior is chewy but smooth, and there’s a perfect balance between crunch and chew.

Read More »

There are many happy unions in the Candy World. Some candy pairs just seem made for each other: chocolate & peanut butter, chocolate & mint, hard candy & bubble gum, strawberry & banana, black licorice & the garbage can… the list goes on and on. Unfortunately, the new Wonka SweeTARTS Rope with Nerds filling is no such union. In fact, it seems to be a marriage of convenience in the Wonka family of products.

The Wonka SweeTARTS Rope consists of a red, chewy gummi tunnel filled with a blue liquid and rainbow Nerds candy. Each package contains two candy ropes, about seven inches long. In my packages of SweeTARTS Ropes, some of the blue liquid candy escaped from the gummy canal and leaked into the bag. This is likely because they came in the mail, but it is worth mentioning because it is rather messy situation.

Luckily, one of the packages is in good condition with not much escaped blue goo. The gummy rope of each SweeTARTS Rope candy is a thick, cherry-flavored tube. The blue liquid inside each one is the consistency of paste. Classics Nerds candy is embedded in the blue paste. I’ll now break down the flavors, part by part.

Read More »

As I was cleaning out my closet the other day, I came across a candy I had totally forgotten about – Dweebs. I found a sealed (yes, unopened and still sealed) box of Dweebs in my closet! Billed as the “Cousins of Nerds”, Dweebs were also made by Willy Wonka, just as Nerds still are.

Dweebs are both larger and more round than Nerds though. In fact, they look almost exactly like the 6mm Airsoft BBs (any other guys remember those?) that go into air pistols, right down to the bright colors. But instead of the hard consistency of Nerds, they’re soft and chewy.

Coming in a 3 flavor pack, Orange, Strawberry, and Punch, the 1.65 oz box had 3 separate (and closeable!) compartments to keep each of your flavors separate. Brad Kent also has a Dweebs package with Cherry listed so we know that Dweebs came in at least four different flavors.

My package has a copyright date of 1990, which means they’re 17 years old at this point, and I more than likely bought them from the general store at the summer camp I went to ever year. How do they taste? Yes readers, I actually tried my Dweebs that have been sitting in my closet for 17 years. Surprisingly, they were still soft. Good job, Willy Wonka! The consistency reminds me of Chiclets, but I don’t know if that’s how they were originally supposed to be. I can honestly say, that if these were a little fresher, I’d definitely eat them over regular Nerds.

Sadly, Dweebs were discontinued in the mid 90s, though they seem to still have a decent following. It seems CandyDirect still has them listed as available, but that must be an old, outdated webpage. No way they still sell them and if they did – wait – mine were still good. Maybe theirs would be too!

• Brad Kent’s Dweebs package (different than the one above)
• Dweebz at Wikipedia (spelled wrong)

candy, sweets, retro, flashback, willy wonka, wonka, nestle, dweebs, nostalgia, 90s

Looking for something new to drool over – or on, as the case may be? There are loads of candy-themed items online… you can find candy-shaped pillows, candy t-shirts, and candy-themed messenger bags – you’re almost sure to find something featuring your favorite candy, past or present.

Be sure and check out this extensive collection of candy-themed t-shirts. You can find Wonka tees with Nerds, Runts, or Laffy Taffy; classic candy like Butterfinger, Crunch, and Goobers; lots of Dubble Bubble clothing, and even “lesser” candies like Chupa Chups, Razzles, Bit-O-Honey, Fun Dip, and Wax Lips. Some of their shirts are really awesome!

Snoop Dogg loves Sour Nerds
(photo by WireImage – used with permission)
Let me just tell you how awesome yesterday was. First, I got an email from a Public Relations person representing Masterfoods’ candy brands (Masterfoods make M&Ms, Snickers, Twix, Skittles, etc.) and he was giving me a press release and introducing himself.

Then, a few hours later I got an email from a PR person from Nestle/WONKA doing much the same. WONKA! One of my favorite brands since I was a kid! She promised to send me samples of their latest candy too!

Do you know how cool it is to get emails from candy companies like that and to know that my little candy site is being noticed by the big boys of the candy biz? It’s like getting email from your favorite music group or your favorite movie star. Too cool.

Sorry, I didn’t mean to gush like that and I promise I won’t do that much, but I just had to share!

candy, sweets, sour, nerds, wonka, nestle, masterfoods, snoop, snoop dogg, rap, rapper