Dentyne Pure Mint with Herbal Accents

Flavor: Shannon has already reviewed the basics of the Pure gum varieties in her review of Dentyne Pure Mint with Melon Accents, but I think we disagree on some points. As with Siskel and Ebert, I suppose the occasional disagreement is healthy. To avoid redundancy, I'll speak on some different features of the flavor that are unique to Mint with Herbal Accents. Lots of gums these days claim to taste like "real" things-- Orbit's "Real fruit flavor!" claim, to name just one, is smacked on every phony uber-sucralose strawberry-esque gum (I'm not sticking Strawberry Mint in my rhubarb pie any time soon.). Dentyne Pure really does pack a "real" flavor-- an almost peppery, subtle spice undertone that's most noticable with the first bite but is present throughout the entire chew. Although I don't know any natural element that would cool my mouth quite so much other than, say, ice, but there's something natural in there that does come through.

Texture: The initial bite is the best part-- a thin crunchy outer shell and a rather soft gum base, with a little burst of liquid on the inside. It's a delicate chew, softer than other gums, and I have to admit that it can get a little too soft after a while. But pack after pack, I've looked forward to that first refreshing crunch, so much so that I've been through at least four packs before saving a pellet for a review. It should be noted, however, that leaving a pack in the car will cause the inner goo to dissolve into the gum base, providing for a much less exciting, but still delightful, bite.

Presentation: Another day, another gimmick. This one's supposed to "purify your breath," and yammers on lots of sciency sounding reasons why this gum will make your breath smell better than other gum. "Neutralizes bad breath odors caused by bacteria and food." I think "neutralize" implies a stable balance-- a tasteless ground zero that would leave your palate untainted and prepared for new flavors. I'm not sure I'd want a sip of say, red wine or orange juice after chewing a piece of this gum (although I'm sure it wouldn't take much convincing). In the end, it's just a tasty piece of gum to me. There's nothing sanitizing, neutralizing, or purifying about it.

Overall: It's yummy, it tastes natural, and I'm sure there are some kind of sciency benefits to chewing "NeutraFRESH." This gum has quickly become a go-to gum for me.

Rating: ooooo (five gumballs)

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Dentyne pure - Mint with Melon Accents

Flavor: This new gum by Dentyne is just fantastic. It packs a punch on first bite, but it's not so cold that it would make your sinuses hurt on a cold day. Although the package labels this gum as "mint," it's pretty obviously a spearmint. The self-described "Melon Accents" are just that, accents, and you really have to pay attention to notice them. I'm not quite sure what the claims of breath purification mean, but apparently the addition of something called "NeutraFRESH" is what makes it happen. Research on NeutraFRESH doesn't yeild much information, but I'm sure it's yet another concoction of chemicals (Retsyn, anyone?) that will eventually lead to our demise. But, for now, NeutraFRESH seems to do a fine job of freshening (purifying) the breath and giving your mouth a clean feeling. There's a liquid goo in the center, though it's not advertised on the package. (I imagine that's the NeutraFRESH. The sweet, sweet NeutraFRESH.)

Texture: With such a good flavor profile and hiply designed packaging, you'd think that Cadbury would have paid more attention to the chewability of the gum. Like most pellet gums, you're presented with a candy shell that provides initial crunch, and then dissolves. The gum that's left here is way too soft, and it doesn't seem to be firming up the longer I chew. It's almost mushy. Between the liquid center, the crunchy shell, and the mushy texture, there's just too much going on here.

Presentation: Although it's the standard pop-out pellet blister pack, the package itself is very nicely done, featuring those "swirlies" that are so popular now. It's really playing up to the iPod generation. I imagine my New York hipster friend, who doesn't own a television and rides his bike everywhere he goes, pulling this gum out of his pocket and offering me a piece as he tries to cleanse his palate of the taste of a soy latte.

Overall: This would be a fantastic, 5-gumball gum if it weren't for the awful texture. It's definitely worth a chew, though, even if only for the NeutraFRESH. And it sure does look impressive when you pull it out at your Favorite Band That No One's Ever Heard of show in the Village.

Rating: ooo (three gumballs)

Dentyne Arctic Chill

Flavor: In a word: WOW. This gum is, by far, the blastiest blast of flavor I've ever tried to date. The candy shell is like infused with menthol or something, and on first bite it really will clear your sinuses. If you need some freshening, I don't think there's any gum out there better for you than this one. It stays pretty strong for a fair amount of time as well - it fades from explosive to quite pleasant, and as long as you have a piece of this in your mouth, you will never be exposed for your affinity to garlic bread or red wine.

Texture: Again, fantastic. As a rule, pellet gum texture leaves something to be desired, but Dentyne Arctic Chill is alright by me. It's a tiny bit softer than my personal perfect preference, and it has an ever-so-slight squeak, but it's absolutely got the best texture in pellets out there. My only legitimate qualm is that the pieces are small, but that's no biggie and certainly not worth negative points.

Overall: If I didn't prefer stick gum over pellet gum, I find it safe to say that this would be my favorite gum. I just don't like popping pellets out of blisters. One time I had one of those 50-piece cups of this in my car and it was gone within a week. I almost looked forward to my trips to the grocery store just because I knew that I could chew a couple pieces of this gum. And so, Dentyne Arctic Chill, this gumblogger is proud to proclaim you the first pellet gum worthy of the coveted five gumballs.

Rating: ooooo (five gumballs)

Dentyne Ice Mint Medley

Flavor: The packaging of this gum calls out a "sweet blend of flavors." I don't know if they're referring actual flavor of the mint blend being sweet, or if they're using the word "sweet" in a slang sense like all the kids are doing nowadays. (Get off my lawn.) Either way, I don't get "sweet" from this gum very much at all. Like all pellet gums, it's got a hard candy shell that is jam-packed with flavor. Once that powerful burst subsides, it's just like any old mint gum. I suppose it's a nice "medley," I can sense spearmint along with the requisite peppermint, and if I concentrate hard enough I even think I can taste a little wintermint in there. It's nothing special, but it certainly doesn't suck.

Texture: Standard pellet texture. Starts off crunchy which I always like, and when the shell dissolves it's got a nice, if somewhat firm, texture. One thing about this gums, like most other pellet gums, it's that the pieces are small. I am generally a two-stick chewer, and even two pellets don't cut it for me. If I'm going to chew this gum for any length of time, I'm gonna need at least three pieces, and that's just not economical. Also? It kind of squeaks.

Overall: A decent gum. Nothing special, certainly not horrible, but not a gum I would tout very highly. It's average, at best.

Rating: ooo (Three gumballs)