Monday, February 27, 2006

Jolly Rancher Fruit Chews

Jolly Rancher hard candies were quite revolutionary when I first had them as a kid. They were full of flavor and came in varieties that other candies just didn’t have. Watermelon and green apple were the absolute best.

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It’s about time Jolly Ranchers went chewy. I mean, Starbursts are good and have occupied their fruit flavored niche for years, but that doesn’t mean that we don’t deserve a few options in the candy genre. Okay, these have been out for about five years and I’m a little late in trying them, but Starburst have been around for at least 30.

The good thing about Jolly Ranchers Fruit Chews is that they stuck with what they do best. They didn’t go all orange, lemon and strawberry on us. They went with their strong suit - green apple, watermelon and cherry.

These chews are slightly different from Starbursts. First, they’re larger. Not by much, but a little bigger in each dimension. Second, they’re a different chew. It’s hard to describe, but they’re chewy and have a soft give to them, but there’s a latex quality to them that allows you to chew and chew, almost like they’re gum and they give off lots of flavor, but they don’t seem to get any smaller. Starbursts tend to end up in a little bit of a grainy ball towards the end, these just melt away smoothly. This is a cool feature.

The other great thing about them is that the flavor is there all the way. You keep chewing and chewing and it doesn’t end up as a sweet blob, it ends up as a smaller piece of the same gland tingling flavor that you started with. They’re soft and easy on the teeth.

As an adult I’m less fond of watermelon and green apple than I used to be (and regular readers know I’m not a cherry fan). I don’t know if it’s because they’re a little chemical tasting or I probably used too many Bonne Bell Lipsmackers. I just associate the flavor with being a bumbling pre-adult, hanging out at the pool in the summertime with my bony knees and freckles, perhaps trying to cover up the fact that I always smelled like a mix of chlorine and salami (I worked in a pizza place).

My favorite flavor of Jolly Rancher was the Fire Stix - they were awesome - powerfully strong cinnamon in a smooth, sweet hard candy, and every once in a while you’d hit a fire pocket and get a little jolt. I wish they’d make some chews that tasted like that.

Note: this candy was manufactured in Canada and are not Kosher (those thoughts are not related).

Name: Jolly Rancher Fruit Chews
    RATING:
  • 10 SUPERB
  • 9 YUMMY
  • 8 TASTY
  • 7 WORTH IT
  • 6 TEMPTING
  • 5 PLEASANT
  • 4 BENIGN
  • 3 UNAPPEALING
  • 2 APPALLING
  • 1 INEDIBLE
Brand: Jolly Rancher (Hershey's)
Place Purchased: 7-11 (Hollywood)
Price: $.85
Size: 2.05 ounces
Calories per ounce: 115
Categories: Chew, Canada, Hershey's

POSTED BY Cybele AT 6:26 am Tracker Pixel for Entry    

Comments
  1. I can not find the fruit chews any where around here, can you please let me know where I can buy them.

    Thank you,
    Margie Ginther

    Comment by Margie Ginther on 4/30/06 at 4:37 pm #
  2. i bought a pack of fruit chews in topeka, ks. buti dont live in that town so i really wish i knew where i could sfind some in my area. HELP ME!

    Comment by courtney on 11/20/06 at 12:17 pm #
  3. I can not find Jolly Rancher Fruit Chews any where. Do you know if i can order them?

    Comment by Kim on 12/29/06 at 2:15 pm #
  4. You can buy Jolly Rancher fruit chews online here:
    http://www.candywarehouse.com/jollychews.html
    Enjoy!

    Comment by Lauren on 1/07/07 at 8:25 am #
  5. yo can find them on amazon.com search jolly rancher fruit chews.
    cheapest price

    Comment by Tom on 2/23/07 at 8:59 am #
  6. I find these too strong. I still prefer Starburst over these.

    I would appreciate orange and Strawberry flavors and even grape though. I probably don’t like these as much as I should because Watermelon and Cherry aren’t my favorite jolly rancher flavors. I used to find Watermelon too strong (and artificial) as a kid- I always went for Grape or Lemon first. I’ve warmed up to the watermelon but it’s still not my favorite.

    Comment by Trish on 4/17/07 at 6:30 pm #
  7. i luv jolly ranchers.can u send me some.u will be my favorite company.yall r the best.luv yall 4 eva.my hole family luv yall

    Comment by evonna on 12/07/07 at 10:21 am #
  8. I really wish that Jolly Ranchers would make a blueberry or a grape fruit chew. They have them in hard candy and I really enjoy them as hard candy so I’m sure I would love them in a fruit chew. I would have to say that Jolly Ranchers fruit chew are by far my favorite chewy candy. They are way better than starburst, because they keep the fruit-full flavor going unlike how starburst tend to get a weird taste at the end. Either way I enjoy them both. I’m a candy addict.

    Comment by ashley on 2/28/08 at 11:27 am #
  9. my best candy is the fire stix——
    what happen to the fire stix——

    Comment by wt wadel on 8/28/09 at 6:48 pm #
  10. I wa stationed on the USS Nimitz during my five years in the navy.  On board the ship we would get the Jolly rancher fruit chews in the vending machines.  I havent sen the sticks since i have gotten out though.  I have bought a couple of the little boxes they have now, and they dont taste the same nor are they that big.  I liked the older fruit chews better when they came in the stick lik estarburst..  anyone with me on that??

    Comment by Tony on 9/15/09 at 5:39 pm #
  11. They do not make these kind of fruit chews anymore and have been replaced by a smaller less intense, plasticky fruit chew.  As far as I am concerned it was a huge change and for the worse.  i called the number on teh package to complain to no avail…I loved the flavor burst in these original ones.

    Comment by Jacob on 3/16/11 at 12:44 pm #
  12. @Jacob - You are correct, unfortunatley.  I only had these once from a vending machine in a Chicago hotel.  Have searched for them time and time again afterwards.  The “new & improved” ones suck in comparison, sorry.  The original was a candy that I just couldn’t resist if it was in front of me.  :(

    Comment by Eric on 3/31/11 at 4:03 am #
  13. I would like to note that there is a pretty annoying quality control issue with the boxed replacements for these (I can’t remember the originals in the roll). I do like these in the boxes, but oftentimes they’ll be melty and/or inexplicably sticky and it will be impossible to remove the wrappers. Sometimes I’m talking about a bit of leftover wrappage, but sometimes I am talking about a literal jolly rancher soup with wrapper floating in it.

    Comment by mgambrell on 4/08/11 at 1:51 am #
  14. Fire stix?!?!? Oh god! Gimme some!?!? Do thru make em?

    Comment by Taylor on 5/03/11 at 9:34 pm #
  15. I buy these candies all the time I love them! I seem to have bad luck with eating my favorite foods because just 9 months earlier I was at a Wendy’s fast food restaurant and I always order chilli when I eat there. I was on my last few bites and noticed an odd texture in my mouth and pulled out the corner of a plastic bag!! I was so disgusted ! I did not say anything to the restaurant! Bad luck ,but since then I have not had another chilli from there lol…anyways I was unwrapping a handful of the delicious jolly rancher chews a long while after that incident and noticed a thin sharp yellow piece of plastic..I tried to pull it out and couldn’t so I showed my fiancĂ© and he told me to leave it .I still have the candy I can show photos if anybody wants to see what I mean! It is so sharp and pointy!

    Comment by Caitlin deeley on 11/12/11 at 8:51 pm #
  16. I had these today and they tasted very strange. They have an extremely bitter taste at first, but then they mellow out into how they’re supposed to taste.

    Comment by Rita on 9/21/12 at 11:27 am #
  17. I reviewed this thingy for Arena: It’s great, but all the demo songs sound like Photek or someone & I have to confess that i struggled to make a tune that didn’t either.

    Comment by business promotional products on 10/18/12 at 2:38 am #
  18. Epic fail Jolly Ranchers! The older chews were soft and tasty. The new ones are hard and flavorless. Won’t be buying them again.

    Comment by Mindy on 3/08/14 at 3:14 pm #
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