Tangerine Jelly Belly Jelly Beans: More Than Just Orange (I Guess)!

Tangerine Jelly Belly Jelly Beans - 10 lbs bulk
Click to buy directly from Jelly Belly!

The Good: Sweet and taste like tangerines, Environmentally responsible bulk
The Bad: Taste fades quickly
The Basics: After much debate (and tasting) I find Tangerine Jelly Bellys to be good, but too tough a sell on their own to bulk up on; better as a support bean in an assortment.


Tangerine: it's orange enough for me. I'll be straightforward, I can tell the difference between an orange orange, like a Florida navel orange, and a tangerine. I recognize the difference in tastes, at least. But I am finding it increasingly difficult to describe the differences for my review of Tangerine flavored Jelly Belly jelly beans. So, here, at the outset, let me say that Tangerine Jelly Bellys truly are the sweeter orange flavor that make them distinct from just plain orange flavoring.

For those who might never have had Jelly Belly jelly beans, these are easily the best jelly beans on the planet, packing a lot of flavor into a very small size. Unlike most jelly beans which are only vaguely flavored and are more based on colors, Jelly Belly jelly beans have a wide variety of actual flavors, like A & W Root Beer, Cotton Candy, Sour Strawberry or their signature flavor Buttered Popcorn.

Who needs ten pounds of Tangerine flavored Jelly Bellys? I suppose they are ideal for the people who would eat ten pounds of actual Tangerines, but would rather not have all that vitamin C (whatwith vitamin C being an international conspiracy to get us all to eat more oranges). Anyone who might like Tangerine Jelly Belly jelly beans will likely find that this is the best way to get them in bulk in an environmentally responsible way for the least amount of money.

Basics

Tangerine is a flavor of Jelly Belly jelly beans. Jelly Belly jelly beans are approximately one half inch long by one quarter inch wide and they are roughly bean-shaped. These little candies are marketed to taste precisely like Tangerine and they live up to that well, though it is a pretty subtle taste difference between tangerines and orange.

Tangerine flavored Jelly Bellys are available in a wide array of quantities, but the largest quantity available is the ten pound bulk case. This is a decent-sized box with a plastic lining and while some might wonder why anyone would need a ten pound box, I declare, "It's the only way to fight the conspiracy!" (I also use them as part of favors for parties involving local sports teams, a few teams called the Orangemen) I suspect that for most people, a ten pound case is a year's supply of these jelly beans.

Tangerine flavored Jelly Bellys are remarkably easy to recognize and distinguish from other Jelly Bellys, except the Orange Juice beans. Both Jelly Bellys are translucent orange without an spots. The Tangerine beans are a little more pale orange than the darker orange Orange Juice beans.

Ease Of Preparation

These are jelly beans, not taking on the Vitamin C Conspiracy alone, without proof or, truly, a clue as to who the players are (just think of well rested, generally healthy politicians and officers . . .); preparing them is as easy as opening the box and popping one (or a handful) into your mouth. In the case of the ten pound box, one might want to put them in a candy dish of some form as opposed to always going into the box. Then again, you are free to enjoy them any way you wish! Don't let anyone tell you differently!

Taste

Tangerine is a good Jelly Belly jelly bean. The beans do not have any sort of strong bouquet, so much of their taste comes from the actual taste, not the scent. They taste, as one might expect, just like tangerines. There is the sweet, vaguely citrus taste that spreads over the tongue and rewards the person eating them with the solid, fruit taste of tangerines. They lack the tang of pure tangerines in their unadulterated form, but they also lack the rinds, so it's a good tradeoff as far as I am concerned!

The drawback to Tangerine Jelly Bellys, in addition to being a more subtle flavor than a straight out orange might have been, is that the taste of these jelly beans fades quickly. After eating a handful, these beans begin to taste generically sugary and vaguely fruity as opposed to precisely like Tangerine.

Tangerine Jelly Bellys, I have discovered might well be best in mixes of Jelly Bellys. They are a pleasant surprise and they taste good and mix well with other Jelly Bellys. But on their own, the taste does fade quickly and it is easy to tire of them.

Nutrition

Again, these are jelly beans, so anyone looking to them for nutrition needs to understand they don't even have any of the nutritional properties that actual Tangerines would have. Jelly beans, even Jelly Belly jelly beans, are not a legitimate source of nutrition. These are a snack food, a dessert, and are in no way an adequate substitute for a real meal. A serving is listed at thirty-five beans, with each Jelly Belly jelly bean having approximately four calories. This means that in a single serving, there are 140 calories, which is 12% of your daily recommended intake.

The thing is, Jelly Belly jelly beans are not as bad as they could be in the nutrition area. They have no fat and no protein, but for those who have ever dated a Vegan, these are Vegan compliant because they contain no gelatin! They have only one percent of the daily sodium with 15 mg and they are gluten free! The main ingredients are sugar, corn syrup and modified food starch, so it's not like this is an all-natural food, but they could be far, far worse.

Storage/Clean-up

Jelly Belly jelly beans have a shelf life of approximately one year and I have yet to run across a stale Jelly Belly (though that could have something to do with a package never surviving a year around me . . .). They remain freshest when they are kept in an airtight container (the bag in the bulk box is sufficient if it is kept closed) and they ought to be kept in a lukewarm environment. Storing them in hot places is likely to make the beans stick together and be gross. Kept in a cool, dry place, the beans retain their flavor perfectly.

As for cleanup, unless one allows the Jelly Belly to get hot to the point that the waxy coating on the bean melts, the dyes on these do not bleed or denature, so there is usually no cleanup necessary, not even washing one's hands after eating them (always wash your hands before eating Jelly Bellys, these aren't sticky, but you should wash your hands anyway!). I've never had Tangerine Jelly Bellys stain anything.

Overall

Tangerine Jelly Belly jelly beans are a good, not great, flavor from Jelly Belly. If you have to stock up on them, this is the way to go. Otherwise, this is a good support bean and ultimately, I could not justify recommending a whole case of this entirely average Jelly Belly!

For other Jelly Belly flavors reviewed by me, please check out:
Island Punch
Sour Peach
Orange Juice

5/10

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© 2011, 2009 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.




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