Extra Dessert Delights - Root Beer Float

Flavor: The gum has a definite root beeriness to it, for sure.  There's a slight bit of creaminess as well, but not as much as I'd expect if I were comparing it to an actual root beer float.  Granted it's been a long time since I've had one, but if I recall correctly, the best part of a root beer float, to me, is those little crystals that form when the two entwine together.  Don't confuse that for a "texture," however... it's definitely a taste I'm referring to.  It's a delightfully carbonated sweet slushy cream that refreshes on a hot day as well as satisfies a sweet tooth.  This gum, which super-duper sugary sweet to the point where you marvel at how aspartame can taste so much like actual sugar, doesn't have any of that refreshing quality at all.  I'd forgive them on it, but the Mint Chocolate Chip variety of the same gum illustrates my point very well.

Texture: This is my kinda texture.  For those that like a firmer, meatier chew, this gum is perfect.  It's not sticky, it holds its shape very well, and it makes some fantastic pops and cracks.  If you're a champion bubble blower, look elsewhere - this gum lacks that kind of elasticity.

Presentation: Nothing new here from Extra. They've found a groove with the Dessert Delights line, and they're sticking to the simplicity of color-coordinated waves and an enticing photo of the delight.  It works.

Overall: Another fine showing from Extra here.  While some of the Dessert Delight flavors aren't exactly my cup of tea, they are all fantastic representations of desserts.  While I can't say that chewing a piece of this will quench a craving if I'm actually hankering for a bona fide Root Beer Float, it will soothe a raging sweet tooth and save a few hundred calories.

Rating: oooo (four gumballs)

Trident Vitality Balance

Be sure to read to the end of this one to find out how you can enter to win some free gum!

Flavor: This is a nice, mellow citrus.  While it has a bit of a tang, there's no real power behind the flavor, and that's not necessarily a bad thing.  I've never really been able to pick out a "pomegranate" flavor in anything other than a straight-up pomegranate, but the tangerine comes through really nicely here.

Texture: This is softer than a standard pellet in terms of initial crunch, and it remains soft throughout the chew.  (We've seen this in other Trident Vitality varieties.)  It's not terrible, though, and some chewers might prefer it.

Presentation: We've discussed the Vitality package design before-- it looks nice but lacks real purpose.  I still find the "box" format annoying and would prefer the standard sleeve.

Overall:  According to the Nutrition Information, one piece of this gum contains 10% of your daily Vitamin C.  That's nothing to sneeze at, especially if you're a gum-addict like me.  I could easily chew through half a pack in an afternoon, and there's half my RDV right there.  It's a nice gum, but I can't get past the softness.  I do have to give Trident credit for staying true to the formula with each new addition to the Vitality line (unlike other brands... I'm lookin' at YOU, Wrigley's 5). 

Rating: oooo (four gumballs)

WHO WANTS SOME FREE GUM???  Our friends at Rev7 were nice enough to send us some samples to share with our readers!  To enter to win, just send an email to gumgirls@gumalert.com with the subject line "I WANT FREE GUM."  In the body, tell us what gum you want us to review next!  We'll pick five emails at random and send you some samples of Rev7 gum, and maybe some other surprises from our stash of leftovers.  Get your emails in by April 1st.

Trident Vitality Zen

Flavor: I was delightfully surprised when I bit into my first Trident Vitality Zen pellet to taste a coconut-mint-like flavor. Although I can see where the vanilla comes from (coconut and vanilla are close cousins in flavor, let's be honest), I feel it falls more under the coconut umbrella, but not in an overwhelming way as coconut flavors often are presented. It's a mellow coconut rounded out by a "smooth mint" as they skillfully call it, and it lasts a decent amount of time, twenty minutes or so. It's not a marathon chew, but it's a nice refreshing treat after a meal. I have to say I can't seem to detect the "green tea" that's advertised on the pack, and think it's just another one of those healthy-sounding gimmicks they tack onto the names of gums to make them more marketable.

Texture: As with the other Vitality flavors, it's on the softer side, but doesn't disintegrate or become unpleasantly smooshy after a long chew.

Presentation: The Vitality packs are simple and elegant, and this one follows suit. I like the choice of lavender for the font-- it complements the cream in the vanilla leaves and the silver background.

Overall: It's not too bad. I can't say that I'm on the path to achieving Nirvana with each piece of Vitality Zen that I chew, but I can say it enlightened my taste buds a little.

Rating: oooo (four gumballs)

Extra Smooth Mint

Flavor: The name says it all. It's a Smooth (dare I say "smoove?") Mint. It's heavier on peppermint than spearmint, but it's a nice mellow coolness that'll freshen your breath without taking your breath away like, say, Extra Polar Ice or a Dentyne pellet would do. The flavor lasts a really long time, too. It's not groundbreaking, but it's definitely nice to have another mint option that won't overwhelm the sinuses.

Texture: Starts off way too soft and a bit gritty, it takes a while for this one to really firm up into a chewable wad. But once it does, it's got a fantastic texture. Of course you can't blow any sort of respectable bubble, but if you're an experienced popper or cracker, you'll be able to annoy your officemate with a symphony of snaps.

Presentation: Nothing to write home about here. As we've said of Extra's packaging before, they let the gum do the legwork and shine for itself. They're certainly not wasting dollars in their graphic design department.

Overall: You know how some smells or tastes stick with you for life? As a Gum Girl, there are some gum flavors that will always take me back. A stick of Carefree Original Bubble will send me straight to the passenger seat of my mom's car. I know that Katie is in Boston at a Dispatch concert when she chews Trident Tropical Twist. And I don't ever think I'll be able to chew Winterfresh again, because it tastes like a badly-masked smoker's kiss to me.

Earlier this month, I had the pleasure of traveling for work to Sonoma, California to visit several wineries. It was the business trip of a lifetime. One of the most amazing wineries I went to was St. Francis Winery & Vineyards, in beautiful Santa Rosa. It was truly an awe-inspiring place. The facilities were pristine, the grounds were breathtaking, and the wine was a treat to the taste buds. After a special tour and dinner, our host, President & CEO Chris Silva brought our group into the vineyard where we toasted to good wine and good company. It was a moment that I won't soon forget.

I can always "return" to St. Francis at dinnertime by uncorking a bottle of Red Splash, but during work hours that's not really a possibility. Fortunately for me, just as we were leaving the winery, I popped a piece of Extra Smooth Mint for the car ride through the mountains from Sonoma into Napa. I put my head back and watched the full moon rise out the window, reflecting on St. Francis Winery and the amazing time I just had.

Now, whenever I chew this gum, my mind is transported back to the tranquil grounds of St. Francis, and the feeling of serenity I had while on my trip.


I don't expect you to feel that same feeling when chewing this gum, of course, but aside from the texture at the outset, it's a pretty great gum in an unexpected package.

Rating: oooo (four gumballs)

5 React2 - Fruit

Flavor: It's really, really hard, if not impossible, to find a good sugarfree grape gum. This right here? Is a good sugarfree grape gum. So why did Wrigley's muck it all up with their stupid "React" shenanigans? The original 5 React Fruit was a tropical explosion, all pineapple-mangoey. I would think someone who's tried the original recipe and is not gum-obsessed like me would gloss over the teeny "2" on the package, assuming it was your same-old, same-old. What's WRONG with you, Wrigley's? You've got a good thing, here! This is GRAPE! A GOOD grape! If you were itching to add to the 5 lineup, why not come up with a clever descripive word and call it something like "5 BLAM"? At least then, you'd get to stick a little tagline on the packaging, "A gooey, grapey grape" or something. No one who isn't a fan of Gum Alert will know that the new 5 React Fruit is grape. (Note: Katie said that after a few minutes this gets a distinct "Children's Chewable Tylenol" taste, but I never really minded Children's Chewable Tylenol, anyway.)

Texture: 5 always comes through with the good texture. This one gets a little tough on prolonged chewing, but it's a nice kind of tough, it's a very meaty chew.

Presentation: 5 packaging, blah blah blah. More of the same. It's all great, but it's all the same. The gum itself continues to be black, and I maintain: Why?

Overall: This is a solid gum. It has its flaws, but it's really the first gum, at least since the inception of this blog, that has succeeded as a sugarfree grape. If you're a grape fan, pick this one up and give it a try. The wee "2" packs a big surprize.

Rating: oooo (four gumballs)

Mentos Pure Fresh Cooler Lemonade

Flavor: This one's really quite spot-on lemony. It's tart and sour, with even a little bit of rind-like bitterness thrown in. At times it might be a little TOO much for the taste buds - once or twice I've had to ditch the piece because I wasn't feeling it. Also of note is the teeniest bit of minty-menthol. Normally this doesn't work all that well in citrus flacors, but this one works great. The only thing I have to take a small issue with here is the -ade part of the equation. Lemonade is sour and tart, yes, but it's also refreshingly sweet. This gum is really too sour to be called "Lemonade." If I was bought a lemonade on the boardwalk and it tasted like this, I'd give it back for another scoop of sugar, for sure. They should have just called this gum "Cooler Lemon."

Texture: It's the predictable mentos gum texture we've grown to love. Nice initial crunch fading into an easy-to-chew wad. Prolonged chews will get slightly waxy, but not in a bad way.

Presentation: We've discussed the mentos tube and its pros and cons before. It's nice packaging, and the graphics are holographic minimalist. mentos doesn't need to slap a lemon on the label, they want to feature the product itself. I love the shiny, metallic printing - very eye-catching.

Overall: Another nice showing from mentos. Solid chew, nice true flavor. This one's recommended as a summertime treat.

Rating: oooo (four gumballs)

Mentos UP2U Mandarin Strawberry and Spearmint

Flavor: Oh my goodness, there's just so much to talk about here. A recurring theme in gum marketing is the combination of fruity and minty, as seen in such varieties as Stride Shift and Orbit Maui Melon Mint. Something about them always seems to come up short, though, and I think that's true in this case as well. UP2U gives gum chewers the "choice" between two flavors, which is novel, I guess, in the same way that it's cool that the candy Nerds always packs two flavors in one box. But for me, this presents an immediate predicament-- what if I don't like one of the flavors? Then I am forever spending twice the money for half the amount of gum, and I'm way less likely to do so when there are so many other great gums on the shelf. In my conversations on gum, I've discovered that there really aren't too many people who equally prefer fruity and minty gum, usually it's way more swayed to one side or the other. That said, if you are a fruity gum lover, this might be the gum for you, as the spearmint isn't very minty at all. It has almost a melony taste to it, which I attribute possibly to the packaging and its being subjected to fruity fumes until the time of purchase. It is minty, but I don't taste any of the standard spearmint flavors here. It's just a sweet mint, basically, reminiscent of Trident Layers Cool Mint + Melon Fresco. The Mandarin Strawberry doesn't taste anything like mandarin to me, really. I detect strawberry, maybe a little melon, definitely no mandarin, but maybe I'm just missing it. The flavor in each could last a little longer, admittedly.

Texture: For their first venture into stick gums (as opposed to the classic mentos pellet), they do a pretty good job. The initial bite leaves something to be desired, it's maybe a little rubbery and lacking that nice softness that happens at the start of stick gum, but all-in-all it's a standup, consistent chew that doesn't get hard or sticky or fall apart in your mouth. Well done.

Presentation: The first day I had this gum I avoided saying the name out loud as I couldn't really figure out what it meant (ok, ok, maybe I'm not the sharpest tack in the box). But something about the label makes me want to read the letters and numbers aloud. I still find myself calling it "That you-pee-two-you or whatever gum" even though I know now that it's a clever way of writing "Up to you." (Maybe I'm not hip enough to really grasp the text-language here.) It's a neat way to package it, opening from the side rather than the top (as seen in other gums of this shape) and closing with an over-the-top flap. I don't have any real problem with the new packaging except that I predict the two sides will separate when the pack is being beaten up in my bag, since it's only connected by one short side. The packaging is peppered with clever little phrases like "Emperor Lothar I" and "Times change and we with time," which adds to that hip young thing that's trending in gum these days (and which I don't really understand).

Overall: Both varieties of gum are delightful, and I surprisingly did enjoy both flavors, so I would consider buying this again. I think, though, that I would much rather buy two packs (or three or four or five) of all different varieties to keep in my purse in case I want a choice. I just think mentos is trying a little too hard here; they could have made waves by simply releasing their first stick-shaped gum in lots of delicious, dual-colored pieces. Instead it's their first stick-ed gum, a dual-flavor pack, a new type of packaging, a crazy clever logo... I just need a moment to digest all this newness here. I'm torn on the rating here, so I'm going to break the rules and give a half-gumball...

Rating: oooc (three-and-a-half gumballs)

Bubble Tape Mystery Flavor

Flavor: Blue Raspberry. Mystery solved. Starts off crazy awesome tart, stopping just short of the "too sour" mark (though I think that it may be too sour for some, if you're sensitive to that kinda thing). It settles nicely into your standard sweet blue raspberry, and lasts surprizingly long for a sugar-based gum. Delicious.

Texture: Perfection. Not too soft, not too hard, Its pliability lends itself to fantastic bubbles that don't stick.

Presentation: It's your standard Bubble Tape hockey puck-sized plastic container. Nothing really to note here, Hubba Bubba again tries to stump the chewer by slathering question marks all over to create an aura of great mysteriousness. It's getting old.

Overall: This is a fine gum, but it'd have been just as fine if they'd have packaged it as "Blue Raspberry" and been done with it. With a mystery flavor, I feel there has to be at least SOME semblance of mystery: Is it white grape, or purple? Is it a tropical punch, or fruit punch? What berry am I tasting? But no, they just took one of the most recognizable flavors and slapped some question marks on it. Whatever. It's a good gum, definitely worth trying more than one.

Rating: oooo (four gumballs)

America's Choice Superfresh Peppermint

Texture: Growing up in a tightly budgeted household, I've developed an appreciation for store-brand grocery products. In many cases, I even prefer the store brand to brand name products, and have come to refer to them by their strange, generic titles-- "Pick up a pack of Shoprite Chocolate Stripe Cookies while you're out?" A true connoisseur of store brands, however, understands that there are things you buy store brand (cookies), and things you don't buy store brand (frozen pizza). In this case, folks, we're in luck. The texture here is of standard pellet construction-- crunchy start, consistent finish. It doesn't stale and maintains a nice bite throughout the chew. The pieces are a little small for me after a while, but I find that's true with most pellet gums.

Flavor: It's a fine representation of the peppermint flavor we all know and love, slightly sweet at first, followed by a cooling, fresh mint flavor that lasts and lasts. It doesn't last forever, in this case, but long enough for a refreshing half hour chew. And if you want more, just take another from the whopping twenty pieces you're afforded in each pack.

Presentation: Ok, so the design leaves something to be desired. But what do you want from a store-brand? It almost is helpful that the design is sort of lo-fi and cheesy, as it signals the bargain nerve in your brain that shouts "That looks crappy, so it must be cheap!" When I was a kid, my mom would buy products that came in all-white packaging with plain black lettering that said "NO FRILLS" on the front and indicated the exact title of the product ("MICROWAVABLE MACARONI AND CHEESE;" or "CANNED BEETS") beneath it. And who cares about a design when you discover there are not one-- but TWO sleeves of pellets to enjoy inside!

Overall: America's Choice gum ought to be a true competitor against such gum giants as Dentyne Ice and Trident. Indeed, they surpass all of the others in cost alone-- I paid $1.09 for this pack, which contained twice as many pellets as a brand-name package (at a higher cost, no less). Next time you're in Pathmark or Safeway or A&P or whatever local grocery store near you carries American Choice, grab a pack or two and delight in the inexpensive sensation of Superfresh!

Rating: oooo (four gumballs)

mentos Pure Fresh Fresh Mint

This review was sponsored by our friends at mentos.

Flavor: mentos Pure Fresh Fresh Mint reminds me a lot of Extra Polar Ice in its minty simplicity, offering a cold burst of freshness without any frills. The packaging suggests otherwise, however, as it indicates that I will detect green tea extract somewhere in there. Alas, much like Trident Vitality Rejuve's failed promise of white tea, you'll be hard pressed to taste anything tea-like here. That said, I like to imagine that I'm benefiting from some of the antioxidants in the green tea extract in this gum, so it doesn't bother me too much that there's nothing very unique about the flavor.

Texture: Although it doesn't say it directly, I was led to believe by the illustration on the package that there would be some kind of liquid center in each pellet. I didn't experience that at all, so I cut a piece in half and took a look to see what was going on in there. There is indeed something different happening in the center of this gum, but if you're looking for a juicy center, look elsewhere. Otherwise, this is a good chew, consistent, a bit on the soft side, but quite enjoyable.

Presentation: The hard plastic pack does a good job of keeping the pieces contained while rattling around in a purse, which is a hard characteristic to find in packaging these days. I'm not sure if it was intentional that the name of this gum is redundant-- the other variety of Pure is called "Pure Fresh Wintergreen." This one is called "Pure Fresh Fresh Mint." Why the double fresh? Another adjective might have worked better, "Cool mint," maybe.

Overall: The Pure line is delightful, when you get past all the aforementioned nerdy packaging critiques. Recently a reader asked what gum we recommended to be the best straight up breath-freshening gum. I'm going to go ahead and add this one to the list, a simple, cool burst of fresh fresh freshness.

Rating: oooo (four gumballs)

Trident Vitality Rejuve

Flavor: So this gum is called "Rejuve," with the subtext, "A rejuvenating blend of luscious mint and white tea." Uh. I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that this is...spearmint. And I think subliminally, that's what they're telling you with the packaging-- it's the green package in the Vitality trio (alongside blue and orange). It's a really good spearmint, actually, sweet and long-lasting. The taste reminds me a lot of those gelly spearmint candies that are covered in sugar, which my mom used to buy a lot when I was a kid. I loved those things, but I haven't found the urge to buy those sugarbombs myself in my adult life, so it's nice to have this throwback to an old classic, without rotting my teeth. That said, I don't see anything "luscious" about the flavor, nor do I detect any semblance of white tea. At all.

Texture: The crunch at the beginning is really pleasant, and contributes to that memory of the crunchy sugar coating on the aforementioned spearmint leaf candies. It might be a little soft for some, but I think the consistency is just firm enough. Again, I wouldn't describe it as "luscious." The soft center varies from piece to piece, I find, some pieces pumped with a firm gel, others with almost no variation in texture at all.

Presentation: They're going for sophisticated, healthy. "Rejuve," "Awaken," and "Vigorate" sounds like the names of the Tazo Teas they sell at Starbucks, but there's nothing tea-like about any of these gums. It's just gum--good gum, don't get me wrong, but just... gum. The marketing here is just misleading.

Overall: I'd buy this again, but not for the reasons they want me to buy it. I offered it to folks in the office, and they didn't seem to care about the added benefits, whether or not it wakes you up or spikes your daily vitamin intake. For the most part, when co-workers saw it on my desk, they picked up the package and just asked one question-- "Is it any good?" Oh yeah, it's pretty good. So good, in fact, that I took it out of the free gum and candy basket on my desk.

Rating: oooo (four gumballs)

vitamingum Cinnamon

This review is sponsored by our friends at vitamingum!

Flavor: Cinnamon seems to be a hard flavor to get right in the gum world, and a really good cinnamon gum is hard to find. I always tend to judge cinnamon gums against my all-time favorite cinnamon treat, the Atomic Fireball. To me, the Atomic Fireball was always so perfect - it had a brief period of mouth-tingling hotness, and just when you think it's getting to be too hot to handle, the sweet layer kicks in and lulls the fire into a perfect warmth. This gum is pretty similar to that - starts off awesomely strong, and settles down nicely. vitamingum really did a nice job with the cinnamon.

Texture: When I bit down into my first piece, I was concerned. Although it's a pellet, there's no discernible candy shell crunch, and the first few chews are really way too hard. Thankfully, within 5 - 10 chews it softens up nicely. The chew has a slight stickiness, but nothing too horrible. It does have a little squeak, as well.

Presentation: Minimalist, standard pellet pop-out pack. Stark white with the perfect shade of cinnamon-red. The logo is reminiscent of vitaminwater, with the space between the words removed. I've said before that I like when cinnamon gum packaging features actual cinnamon sticks, and we've got that here.

Overall: vitamingum has hopped on the Gum Friends-with-Benefits bandwagon, but instead of claims to "vigorate," "vitalize," "release energy," or any other other vibrant marketing terms other brands have conjured up, vitamingum just claims to have vitamins. In and of itself, that's pretty cool. I know that I am pretty terrible at remembering to take my multivitamin each day, and this makes me feel a little better about that. It should be noted, though, that each two-piece serving of vitamingum only contains 10% of the recommended daily value of 12 vitamins, so you'd have to chew 20 pieces of this (almost 2 whole packs) to get your 100% of vitamins for the day.

Rating: oooo (four gumballs)

Hubba Bubba Max Strawberry Watermelon

This review is sponsored by our friends at BestCandyStore.com!

Flavor: Unlike many of its sister gums (Hubba Bubba Sweet n' Sassy Cherry, for instance), this gum does not pack a sour punch, not even a little. It's as sweet as a sugar cube, with a hint of watermelon. The first bite was really pleasant, your standard fake-watermelon flavor that doesn't at all come close to real watermelon (but then, if it did, kids probably wouldn't beg their parents for dollar bills to buy it with their friends at 7-11). The strawberry and watermelon are both present, and the flavor is simple and fairly classic in terms of Hubba Bubba-esque gums.

Texture: The chunks are huge! It's like stuffing a big old hunk of taffy in your mouth on the boardwalk, a true delight. The chew is hearty and consistent for at least ten minutes, which says a lot for a sugar-based gum. The bubbles are, as with all Hubba Bubba, really impressive.

Presentation: I was curious what qualities made this particular Hubba Bubba "max," and discovered on the Wrigley website this explanation: "...Hubba Bubba Max gum - a unique and captivating product with extraordinarily long lasting flavor and the combinations of two colors and two flavors in one chunk." I don't know that the flavor of this gum is "extraordinarily long lasting," although it does last longer than I remember the original Hubba Bubba lasting when I was a kid. The hunks themselves seem to me to be much larger, and since things usually seem smaller the older you get, I'm assuming that the size of the pieces must have actually increased in size over time.

Overall: I wouldn't pick this one over, say, Bubblicious Cotton Candy or the aforementioned Hubba Bubba Sweet n' Sassy Cherry. When compared to some of the other gums that punch you in the face with flavor, this one really doesn't stand on its own. But it is what it is, and I'm sure it's plenty of kids' favorite.

Rating: oooo (four gumballs)

Bubbaloo Peppermint

This review is sponsored by our friends at BestCandyStore.com!

Flavor: It's a nice peppermint flavor, not too strong and not too weak. It's definitely a breath freshener. It's got an initial burst of goo inside that doesn't blow you away, but is nice "for a change."

Texture: This is a weird one. I don't really understand the deal with peppermint-flavored bubblegums. While the gum itself is a fine texture, and blows fantastic bubbles like its sister gum, Bubbaloo Sour Cherry, I don't think that peppermint is a very logical bubble-blowing choice. It kinda hurts! Like, you blow a bubble, and when it gets big, either A.) it pops, or B.) you have to suck it back in. With A, you get a minty blast into your eyes that stings. And with B, the minty air inside the bubble unpleasantly fills your sinuses and esophagus. Minty gums should be reserved for the breath-freshening varieties, I think.

Presentation: See my review of Bubbaloo Sour Cherry, it's the same thing with this one.

Overall: This is a difficult one to rate overall. Like, I want to rate it highly because it has a fantastic texture and taste, but the design is just all wrong. I guess I'll have to err on the positive side, because really, the target market for this gum is kids, and I guess kids like a borderline painful experience. Makes it more EXXXTREEEEEEME or something.

Rating: oooo (four gumballs)

Bazooka Bubble Juice Bubblegum Nuggets Slammin' Blue Raspberry

Flavor: Bazooka lovers out there, do not be fooled-- Bubble Juice is not for you! Ladies and gentlemen, the creators of the tame, sugary block of bubblegum wrapped in punny comic strips present to the facebook generation a fresh new burst of blue raspberry zing to match the other crazy gums out there on the market today. Has Bazooka Joe sold out? Or has he just adapted to the sour, sweet and neat innovations that many gums offer today? This gum will, like Hubba Bubba or Bubblicious, knock your socks off upon first mouthful, an overwhelming surge of sour blue raspberry goodness that fades almost as quickly as the texture hardens to a barely malleable hunk of rubber. But come on, who said gum was about a lasting chew? Kids aren't buying Bubble Juice because they're looking to keep their breath fresh throughout the duration of a date or a business meeting. They're buying it because it's fun-- and this flavor is as fun as the packaging. Plus, I fear it might induce seizures or something if the flavor lasted for much longer than it does.

Texture: This gum, although marketed as "juice," is a bunch of blue pebbles that resemble the rocks at the bottom of a fish tank. Much like its predecessor Big League Chew, it's fun for kids to chew-- we had contests when we were kids for who could stuff the most "chew" into their cheeks without gagging. I can imagine a really cool kid someplace who brags about being able to pour a whole bag of Bazooka Bubble Juice into his mouth. The gum hardens up almost immediately, as I've said, but who cares. Oh, and P.S.-- it blows a pretty slammin' bubble.

Presentation: So, I'm a little confused about the gimmick here, but for some reason I'm not too bothered by the inconsistency. It's supposed to be bubble juice-- it comes in a little Capri Sun-like pouch and there are pink droplets bursting out of the logo. But inside the pouch, there are... rocks. I feel like I've seen plenty of goo-like gums, tubes of gum, bottles of gum liquid that solidify upon chewing, that I'm not sure why the rocks are necessary here. They could be totally re-marketed and sold in pales, "Rockin' Gum Rocks!" or "Poppin' Pebbles!" It's got a lot of potential, and I think the "juice" was sort of a cop-out. I'd be kind of disappointed if I were a kid and opened it up to find a bunch of fish tank rocks. But then... you can pour them into your mouth like juice. I suppose I'll let it pass.

Overall: Conscientious parents be warned, although I guess it's pretty obvious-- Bubble Juice will most definitely rot the teeth out of your child's mouth. But... look at my tongue! As far as I can remember, anything that turned your tongue this color was definitely a must-have for kids under twelve (and oftentimes, over twelve). If you'll excuse me, I need to spit out this disgusting gob of rubber and drink some more JUICE!

Rating: oooo (four gumballs)

Stride Always Mandarin

Flavor: A shockingly accurate "mandarin orange" flavor. Normally when we have such a specific citrus call-out in the flavor name (like tangerine), all we get is a vague "orange" flavor, but this gum actually does taste like mandarin oranges, the kind cute tiny ones you eat out of a can. Good job, Stride.

Texture: A little bit too tough for my tastes. This is a super firm chew.

Presentation: Stride doesn't mess around with fruit imagery, "fashion packs," or anything like that. Stride's packaging is friendly and predictable.

Overall: A friend of Gum Alert requested this gum a long, long time ago with the warning that it was really hard to find. Since then, I've been on the lookout for it, so it was like hitting the jackpot when I found a display with 3 packs left. I have to say that, despite the tough texture (which may, in part, have to do with the fact that I've had this gum opened in my purse for about 3 weeks [and we know from experience that, once opened, Stride tends to turn for the worst really fast]) this is a really great gum. Nicely done, Stride.

Rating: oooo (four gumballs)

Orbit Tropical Remix

First, I'd like to apologize for the dearth of posts lately at GumAlert. We know it's no excuse, but we both have been at sort of a cross-roads lately career-wise and it's reflected upon this blog. We know you depend on GumAlert for your weekly dose of gummy verbosity, and these last couple weeks, we've let you down. The good news is that we're both on track again, and both of our gum queues are epic, so there's lots to come!

Flavor: First chew is phenomenal, however, it's nothing new - this exact flavor profile has been duplicated time and again by every manufacturer. There's nothing new about this remix - it's a tropical drink in stick form. This one's heavy on the mandarin flavor. I think that to call a gum "remix," something needs to be changed up here. It's just more of the same. The initial punch lasts pleasantly long, but when it fades, it gets kid of bitter, like an orange peel.

Texture: No huge complaints on texture. There's a period about 4 - 6 minutes into the chew that you think you might have a dissolver on your hands, but it re-adheres to itself and the crisis is averted. It's a nice gum for snapping.

Presentation: Alright, this has to be addressed, and I suppose now is as good a time as any. Orbit's all over the TV lately touting their new "fashion packs," and I, for one, say "WTF, Orbit?" I mean, sure. They look ok, I guess? But what's the point? Orbit always had eye-pleasing packaging to begin with, and they spent what I can only guess to be millions of dollars on redesigning every package in their line. What of the reason we're buying it in the first place - the GUM itself? Orbit's at the top of the pack when it comes to quality of the brand as a whole, but there's so much more that can be done. Can you imagine the new and interesting flavors they could come up with if they invested some of the wasted packaging marketing dollars on food scientists? Or if they fiddled around with the texture of Citrusmint? We could be missing out on a potentially perfect gum, all because Orbit is wasting their efforts on silly "fashion packs." And my biggest complaint about them? There's no indication on the outside of the pack what the flavor is, and that's a serious issue for someone like Katie or I who has upwards of 15 packs of gum in our purse at any given time. It's a pain in the rear to have to open the pack to see what the flavor is. Fail, Orbit.

Overall: Packaging issues aside, this is a great gum, and definitely worth a try. It would have gotten 5 gumballs if the whole tropical thing wasn't so overplayed and imitated; gums this good are a dime a dozen, really.

Rating: oooo (four gumballs)

Extra Dessert Delights Strawberry Shortcake

Flavor: I have to admit right off the bat that I'm not the biggest fan of strawberry shortcake. If you put it in front of me, like any other sugary treat, of course I'll devour it, but I'd never choose it out of a lineup. All prejudices aside, though, I'd say this gum is just all right. It's got all the elements you'd expect out of a strawberry shortcake gum-- it's sweet and creamy and tastes of the familiar artificial strawberry flavor. I think I would have loved this gum when I was ten or eleven; it's got that really phony, terrible sweetness that reminds me very much of my smelly Strawberry Shortcake doll. I remember most adults gagging at the smell of her, though, a reaction that I finally now understand, thanks to Extra.

Texture: As a gum, it's a quality chew-- thick, not too soft, not too firm, keeps consistency for a long time. But I think that the reason I feel this gum falls short for "strawberry shortcake" is because so much of strawberry shortcake is about the texture-- the soft flesh of the strawberries, the spongy bread, the smoothness of the cream. That's what I most enjoy about it, anyway, and I feel like it loses half its appeal here. Again, I would not have given texture a second thought back in the day, if a free pack of this stuff had come with my awesome smelly dolly.

Presentation: I wonder if it might suit Extra better to market these three "Dessert Delights" independently from one another. I mean, it's true, they do have lots in common-- they're all desserts, they all have that unique creaminess to them, and they're all in one way or another delightful. But I think that, unlike Extra Dessert Delights Mint Chocolate Chip, and even Key Lime Pie to an extent, I wouldn't categorize this particular gum as a "sinful indulgence," per se. It's a kid's gum, simple and sickeningly sweet. Smack a cartoon character on there and Extra will be selling these by the handful. As for the way it's packaged now, though, I doubt it would have caught my eye as a kid, when lined up on the shelf beside such masterpieces as Hubba Bubba Max Sweet and Sassy Cherry or straight up Big League Chew.

Overall: I feel like I can't give this an objective rating, since it tastes like it's intended primarily for kids. But then, I feel like the packaging is not marketing to kids, so I shouldn't have to censor my adult opinions. So in honor of my old friend Miss Shortcake, in all of her stinky glory, I'll err on the favorable side of the gumball scale this time around.

Rating: oooo (four gumballs)

Trident Splash Summer Spearmint

Flavor: I could be wrong, but this gum tastes an awful lot like its cousin Trident layers Cool Mint + Melon Fresco . It's a subtle sweet melon, much like a cantaloupe, with the cooling sensation of mint. It's such a nice flavor, why not re-purpose this flavor into pellet-form? It's common in the gum world to offer several varieties of the same flavor for folks who prefer pellets to sticks or vice-versa. But I really hate when companies try to trick their customers by re-packaging a flavor and wrapping it in a flashy "New!" label with a name that appeals to different senses. In this case, I'm not even sure what "Summer Spearmint" is supposed to taste like. It's actually sort of gross to imagine a spearmint flavor combined with a watermelon flavor-- they're just not compatible, they're no peanut butter and chocolate. Luckily, I detect no spearmint undertones here, so it works. But why not just offer the Cool mint + Melon fresco in pellet form? As a fan of that gum, I definitely would have been interested and would have offered it to my pellet-loving friends to whom I've never recommended the Trident Layer varieties.

Texture: This is a really substantial chew for a pellet, it's hearty and maintains a nice bite for a long time. The outer shell feels thinner than others upon first bite, a nice delicate crunch at the get-go. I think my pack sat on the racks for too long, though, as the inner goo was all but dissolved in many of the pieces. In the pieces that did have the goo, though, it wasn't even really that noticeable. Oh-- and vegetarians, put the pack down. This one's got gelatin, too.

Presentation: The packaging on this gum seems more out-of-date to me than Trident Layers. It's got bold greens and pinks, large font-size, very little white space and no artsy-fartsy designs. If I weren't hunting for new gum (as I always do...) I would have assumed this was an older gum that slipped by us until now.

Overall: Packaging and masquerading of delicious flavors aside, this is a really good gum. I think the goo falls a little short, but I love the flavor so much that I really don't care. If it were between this and Trident Layers, though, I'd probably go with that.

Rating: oooo (four gumballs)

Clorets

This review is sponsored by our friends at BestCandyStore.com!

Flavor: According to the Wikipedia article on Clorets, there are a few different flavors of Clorets in existence, but a quick Google search really only yields one flavor widely for sale: Green. There's no mention on the pack of a flavor at all, let alone a specific mint, be it pepper or spear or winter. Green, in the gum world, generally denotes a spearmint, but Clorets bucks that trend. Clorets mint isn't a spearmint at all; if I had to classify it, I'd say it were much more peppermint-like. Specifics aside, this gum packs a really great flavor. It starts off nicely strong, but not overly so, and fades to a smooth breath-freshening coolness. I had no idea about this, but the "Clor" in Clorets is a little play on words - Clorets contain Chlorophyll, which apparently has odor-absorbing qualities. Who knew? It's certainly not a factoid that is taught in fifth grade science in the Chlorophyll and You: Fun with Photosynthesis chapter.

Texture: The initial candy shell crunch of Clorets is one of the best I've encountered, and once the shell shards dissolve, the resulting wad is perfectly soft and pliable. I feel it's necessary to point out that Clorets is, surprisingly, a sugared gum. It doesn't feel like it, in either flavor or texture. It seems like kind of a waste... if I wanted to promote tooth decay I'd rather chew some Bubble Tape or Hubba Bubba and have some fun with it. Clorets, as good as it is, isn't really much fun. No bubbles to speak of - it's much too thin and sticky for that.

Presentation: It's old school. A cardstock paper box, minimal graphics, white text. Pretty boring. One plus is that the package is bilingual. It's good that our Spanish-speaking friends know that the FENILCETONURICS CONTIENE FENILALANINA.

Overall: Man. If I asked someone for a piece of gum and they pulled THIS out of their pocket? They'd be relentlessly made fun of for the rest of the day. Clorets is "old people gum," much like Freedent or Choward's Violet Gum. Who chews Clorets, anyway? Clorets is one of those gums that I've always known existed, but I've never really thought to pick up a pack. I'm always kind of surprised to see it's still around at all. When our buddy at BestCandyStore.com offered to send us some gum of our choosing to review, I was immediately drawn to the Clorets, because I would have NEVER bought it myself. I'm glad they sent it over to us, though... it's a surprizingly good gum.

Rating: oooo (four gumballs)