Wonka Laffy Taffy Caramel Apple (Limited Edition) is part of the new flavor craze for Halloween. The package is loud and strange, as are many Wonka designs. It features the purple Wonka branding around the sides, but the center is a banded swirl of browns on the top and greens on the bottom. It speaks more of wood grain than apples and caramel to me, but at least it did stand out on the shelves.
For those who have never had it, Laffy Taffy (once known as Tangy Taffy) is simply a taffy chew. Instead of the nuggets or rods that come in twisted waxed paper wrapers that you’d get on vacation, Laffy Taffy comes in little bars that form fit the candy. They come in a variety of fruity flavors, but the key aspect of Laffy Taffy is that it’s tangy. Instead of just sweet and flavor, there’s also a tart note to the chew.
For the actual taste of Tangy Taffy ... imagine if you will, a fruit flavored caulk. Add some citric acid. Add some coloring. You’re getting close…
Candyfreak: A Journey through the Chocolate Underbelly of America by Steve Almond
The little snack sized bars are larger than a regular taffy piece, they’re really two bites. Each clocks in at about 35 calories and doesn’t take into account the energy you expend chewing. The wrappers feature bad jokes, usually two, depending on how well the wrapper is glued together.
The pieces are soft and easy to remove from the package, though you have to destroy the wrapper completely in order to do so. The color is strange, like hot chocolate and not at all what I would have expected.
It does smell sweet and creamy. The flavor on the tongue, though, is immediately tangy with a rather authentic, if overly tart, apple flavor. The caramel part comes in as the chew goes on and the sour fades as a real caramel note, a sort of toffee/toasted flavor.
What I was hoping for was a stripe of apple taffy and a stripe of caramel flavored taffy, and you’d mix them together as you chewed them. Instead it’s a fully mixed experience, like the kind a baby bird would get if momma birds at caramel apples.
The most successful candy I’ve had to date that emulates a caramel covered apple are the Tootsie Caramel Apple Pops - which are an apple flavored lollipop covered in actual caramel.
There’s no statement about gluten, nuts or peanuts, but the wrapper does say that the candy contains soy.
Related Candies
- Twizzlers Caramel Apple Filled Twists
- Charms Super Blow Pop Caramel Apple
- Werther’s Original Caramel Apple Filled
- Mehlenbacher’s Taffy
- Wonka Laffy Taffy
- Tootsie Caramel Apple Pops
- Bonomo & Doscher Banana Taffy
- Milk Maid Caramel Apple Candy Corn
this is an example of “brand synergy” at it’s worst. Growing up, Laffy Taffy was from Beich’s, were square pieces, and had the bad jokes on them. They were also not very good - very weak flavor.
Tangy Taffy, on the other hand, was very flavorful - and tangy, like the label said. Not sour, but tangy. They were the Jolly Ranchers of taffy as far as flavoring went. And they were BIG, compared to the little squares of Laffy Taffy. They even experimented with various add-ins like chocolate “seeds” in the Watermelon taffy, or sugar sprinkles/jimmies on the “Sparkle” Cherry. Tangy Taffy was a go-to candy for me and my family, especially in the summer when chocolate melted.
and then, through corporate mergers and such, Nestle ended up owning both brands and somehow decided that the Laffy Taffy brand had more value. They also seem to have softened the Tangy Taffy formulas, as they don’t seem to be quite as tangy as before, nor as chewy. I still keep buying it every so often hoping it will be good again, but it continues to disappoint.
I absolutely LOVE laffy taffy especially the Caramel Apple laffy taffy that comes out during this time of year. I want to know how to order it. Thanks Melissa
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I need these where can I get them
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