Gustaf's Candy

Candy.  Not an area I have reviewed much before, but, uh, I *do* eat a lot of candy, particularly gummy candy.  It is the other thing I love to munch on all afternoon long, the balance to my popcorn and salty savory snacks.  I never claimed to be a healthy eater!

I adore trying all sorts of new candy, and that phrase, "kid in a candy store" entirely describes me.  You have no idea how much I *love* those bulk candy stores, the pay by weight ones, where you know better and try to have restraint but the bag you leave with is somehow always 5x bigger than you intend, and the cost is always ridiculously high.  Yeah.  Those places are my serious weakness.  Particularly if they are in airports, where I am a captive audience, and know I'll be sitting bored on a flight soon.

I also love candy clubs, the kinds that send you different candy to try every month, from bulk suppliers.  It is through one of these that I learned about products from Gustaf's, a bulk wholesale candy supplier.  I can't tell you much about Gustaf's, as it is shockingly hard to find out details about individual manufacturers.  If you've ever shopped at a bulk candy store, chances are high that you've had some of their products.  I'm sure I've had more than I cover here, these all came from the candy club, so I was able to identify them.

I've tried a few categories of their candy, some just not my style (laces), but others were great, my absolute favorite type of chewy gummy candy.  I'll continue to seek Gustaf's candy out.

Laces

Rainbow Laces.

"Whether you enjoy them strand by strand or pound them by the pile, these lusciously chewy, super-fruity laces guarantee a colorful candy experience in every bite!"

"Lace the rainbow with colorful strands of licorice goodness."

These were ok, but not great.

Chewier than the texture I prefer for my gummy candy,   Not really flavored, just, sweet, although they were supposed to be flavors like apple, blue raspberry, and tutti-frutti.

Sour Strawberry Laces.

"They might look like spaghetti, but these sour sugar-coated candy laces pack boatloads of tart, fruity, succulent strawberry flavor in every slender strand!"

"The thrill of the lace! Long, luscious strands of sour strawberry goodness deliver tasty tartness in every bite."

Eh.  These were fine.  But not particularly fruity, not particularly sour, and a bit more firm and hard to bite into than I like.

Sour Apple Laces.

"Glistening with sour sugar coating, these soft and chewy laces provide a crisp burst of tart apple flavor in every bright green bite! Non-GMO."

These delivered in the sour pucker department!  Wow.  Serious sour punch.  Great flavor.

I don't love the straws though, more chewy than I prefer, but flavor-wise these were winners.

Animals

Jelly Babies.

"These classic UK-produced candies were a favorite of Beatle George Harrison. “Come Together” with all your friends over their unique texture and tasty fruity flavors." 

"You'll go ga-ga over these delightfully soft and fruity tots!" 

"Gustaf's Jelly Babies are very soft jelly candies which are coated in powdered sugar. They are made in Holland. These are very delicious, and have a unique soft, jellied texture."

JELLY BABIES!

I stayed at a hotel in London that had these, self-serve, on every floor, in little candy jars (er, lolly jars?), in little pantries.  Let's just say ... I consumed my entire room rate's worth of these!

I adored them all.  Slightly chewy on the outside, but really soft and pliable inside, the ideal chew level no question.  Dusted in powdered sugar.  Each distinct in flavor:

• Red Berries (red)
• Orange (orange)
• Lemon (yellow)
• Apple (green)
• Cassis (black)
• Banana (white)

The black ones are always my favorite, followed closely by the white.  But really, I like them all.

Tropical Starfish.

"Soft and chewy tropical-flavored gummies in the shape of starfish, dusted with sugar."

"Cue up the calypso for tropical fruit flavored gummies in a beachy-keen shape!"

These were a surprise hit for me.

I liked the level of chew, soft yet actually chewy, and the sugar coating was a nice touch.  The fruity flavors were fairly intense, and I liked the flavors too, although I couldn't identify as any particularly flavor.

Overall, winners, and I would be happy to get these again.

Sour Mini Gummy Piglets.

"Go ham on these adorable gummy piggies! Infused with sweet-tart berry flavor, these little piglets pack serious lip-smacking power to make you squeal with delight!"

Ok, seriously, how cute were these?  They really are little piggies.

Looks aside, these were also an enjoyable candy.  Good chew, great sugar and tart coating, nice fruity flavor to the base biggies.

Other

Sour Mini Bubblegum Flavored Bottles.

"Bubblegum-flavored, bottle-shaped gummies with a fizzy, sweet-tart coating."

"Enjoy a combination of sweet and sour flavors in every bite of these mini gummy bubble gum bottles. Each fat-free blue and red bottle is filled with a sweet bubble gum taste, then dusted with sour sugar to create a flavor combination that will make your mouth pucker. "

These were wild!

Like most of Gustaf's candies, I enjoyed the chew to them, and the sour coating on outside.  They didn't taste anything like bubblegum to me, but rather ... almost like cola?  They really had a fizz to them.  It confused my brain greatly.

I liked them, but I'm still not sure why I don't taste bubble gum.