Still Delightful And Kind Of Gross After All These Years: Sour Patch Kids Are Fun!

The Good: Inexpensive, Do not taste bad, Nothing really bad in them
The Bad: No real nutritional benefit, The sour aspect of them can be pretty disgusting
The Basics: Sour Patch Kids are a fun occasional candy, but hard to recommend as a staple for those who love sweets.


Recently, as part of a date with my wife, I decided to pick up a treat that I had not had in a long time. When we went out together to see Warm Bodies (reviewed here!), I picked up a bag of Sour Patch Kids because I thought it might be a fun addition to our date night. As it turns out, my wife is not a fan. As for me, while I have tried a few sour candies since I started reviewing – most notably the Jelly Belly Sour Assortment (reviewed here!) -, I have been largely pleased that the sour fad has mostly come and gone. Still, I was surprised by how much I actually still enjoyed the Sour Patch Kids!

Basics

Sour Patch Kids are small, soft gummy candies that come in four colors and are each shaped like tiny gummy babies. They are each thoroughly coated in fine white crystals of sour sugar. Each yellow bag comes with yellow, red, green, and orange sour gummy candies. The Sour Patch Kids are available in standard packages like a 5 oz. bag, fun sized, and bulk packages.

Ease Of Preparation

These are candy, not making your own blend of sweet and sour sugar crystals! Consuming these is as easy as opening the bag and placing them in your mouth. There is no additional prep needed.

Taste

Opening a pack of Sour Patch Kids, there is no discernable scent.

Regardless of the color of the Sour Patch Kid, the taste is the same. Because the sour sugar crystals coat every millimeter of the Sour Patch Kids, consumers get about a second of sweetness, as if they have been given a regular gumdrop. However, that flavor dissipates almost immediately and one’s tastebuds are overwhelmed by a sour, slightly bitter and dry taste. Only after the sugar coating is completely dissolved does the gummy candy below the coating exhibit any flavor. If these are flavored differently, based upon the color, it is of no consequence; one’s tastebuds are essentially burned from the sour sugar such that they cannot register the subtleties of flavor for several minutes thereafter.

There is no aftertaste to Sour Patch Kids, as the sour flavor dissipates after about thirty seconds after the last of the sugar is dissolved from the candy.

Nutrition

Again, these are sour candies, nothing more, so Sour Patch Kids are not a legitimate source of most necessary nutrients. These are a snack food, a dessert, and are in no way an adequate substitute for a real meal. A serving is listed as sixteen pieces (40 grams), with each serving having 150 calories.

Sour Patch Kids are mediocre 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 25mg sodium! The main ingredients are sugar, invert sugar, and corn syrup. There are no allergies warnings on the bag.

Storage/Clean-up

Sour Patch Kids bite-sized fruit candies have a shelf life of approximately six months, though mine did not last more than two days after I opened the bag (two very different problems!). They remain freshest when they are kept in an airtight container (the bag is sufficient if it is kept closed and tightly resealed) and they ought to be kept in a lukewarm environment. Storing them in hot places is likely to make the candies stick together and they get gross. Kept in a cool, dry place, they retain their flavor perfectly.

As for cleanup, unless one allows them to get hot to the point that the coating melts, there should be no cleanup necessary. The bottom of the bag usually has excess sour sugar, though.

Overall

Sour Patch Kids are fun and for the experience of burning off one’s tastebuds for fun, they fit the bill . . . about once every decade. Beyond that, they are really only for those who love sour things and hate the subtleties of actual flavor.

For other candies reviewed by me, please check out:
Cadbury Screme Eggs
Coconut 3 Musketeers
Vanilla Tootsie Rolls

6/10

For other candy reviews, please visit my Candy Review Index Page for an organized listing!

© 2013 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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