Red Apple Jelly Belly Jelly Beans In Bulk; More Fun Than A Bushel Of Apples!

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

The Good: Good taste - despite realistic sourness, Environmentally responsible bulk
The Bad: No real nutritional value
The Basics: Red Apply Jelly Belly jelly beans taste truly like red apple, but that means they are as sour as they are sweet, which might turn off some consumers.


Sometimes in my sampling and reviewing of things like Jelly Belly jelly beans, I encounter something that is good, but I know is not perfect. Usually, I can define a reason and make an articulate argument for recommending it, despite its imperfections. As a result, I can say with full clarity and authority that anyone who truly loves fresh red, ripe apples will love Red Apple Jelly Bellys. They have a taste that is precisely that of red apples, not apple pie, not Apple Jacks, not green apples. But these just aren't something that is so indispensable that I feel rating as perfect. Yes, they are exactly like what they claim to be, but they're somehow hard to get excited about.

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 Sour Apple, Margarita, Orange Sherbet or their signature flavor Buttered Popcorn.

Who needs ten pounds of Red Apple flavored Jelly Bellys? I suppose they are ideal for the people who would eat a whole bushel of apples, but for some reason does not want the nutritional benefits of apples or as much space taken up. Anyone who might like Red Apple 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

Red Apple 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 Red Apple and they live up to that well. In fact, many consumers are likely to be turned off because the taste incorporates the bitter sourness of true red apples.

Red Apple 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 say "Apple man and his fans." I suspect that for most people, a ten pound case is a year's supply of these jelly beans, though mine will certainly not last six months.

Red Apple flavored Jelly Bellys are a pain in the butt to differentiate from the Raspberry Jelly Bellys. Both are red and the opaque red that is Red Apple is strangely almost identical to the shade of translucent red that is Raspberry. Both are easy enough to differentiate from other Jelly Bellys, but those who eat food based on color alone, mixing up your Red Apple and Raspberry Jelly Bellys would not yield a good time if one chose to try to unmix them!

Ease Of Preparation

These are jelly beans, not making apple pies for all of your friends or powering your house on apple cores! 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, taking them out of the box might remind one of taking apples out of a bushel basket, so go ahead; eat them right out of the box!

Taste

Red Apple is actually a very true embodiment of that flavor. Red Apple has no aroma or scent to speak of. The moment one bites into the Jelly Belly, though, they get the tartness of a Mackintosh apple and the flavor actually is unpleasant at first, much the way the initial bite into a true red apple is! However after a second or two, the flavor becomes more watery and fruity; the perfect embodiment of apple!

Bite after bite, Red Apple maintains its flavor well, never tasting like any diluted form of apple or the standard apple cinnamon flavor one might expect. Instead, this flavor tastes just like biting into fresh fruit and believe me; I grew up in New York State's apple country! This is the flavor of ripe red apples, bitter and right off the tree!

Red Apple Jelly Belly jelly beans do not fade when one eats them in quantity, so this is a great flavor for those going on a streak of Jelly Belly gluttony. Of course, it is hard to get excited about gorging on sour red apples, but . . .

Nutrition

Again, these are jelly beans, so anyone looking to them for nutrition needs to understand that none of the vitamins or even water present in real apples are found in these beans. 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, it's not like these are rain washed apples or your fingers are naturally spotless!). I've never had Red Apple Jelly Bellys stain anything. Still, it's pretty wild to eat something so like Red Apple without getting one's fingers sticky from the apple's juices.

Overall

Red Apple Jelly Belly jelly beans are a wonderful flavor for those looking for a Jelly Belly that perfectly embodies the fruit flavor it claims to. Unfortunately, though, red apples are not the most amazing taste in the world and Jelly Belly captures expertly the range of their taste, not just the best of it!

For other Jelly Belly flavors reviewed by me, please check out:
Sunkist Orange
Cotton Candy
Kiwi

9/10

For other food or drink reviews, please be sure to visit my index page on the subject by clicking here!

© 2011, 2008 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.

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