Red Band – Wine Gums
Ever the sucker for wine gums, I never pass up a chance to try a brand I haven’t already. Red Band is a Dutch candy company created in 1928 and is one of the big players in Europe from what I can gather. Wine gums were one of the candies I grew up on, so I’m always on the prowl for a challenger that may unseat my usual favourites. Evolution is part of the human experience, right?
The first thing I notice about these is that they feel softer to the touch, and remarkably less greasy than that more common Maynard’s counterpart. Popping them into my mouth, I find that the texture is also a little softer, but still has sufficient firmness and bounce to still make it a wine gum and not just some gummy candy. Like any other wine gum though, these aren’t particularly sticky which I can always appreciate. I personally prefer to leave them in my mouth to let the flavour come through slowly, as opposed to chewing on them off the bat. Because these are softer though, I found myself chewing through them much faster than the other ones.
The variety here is quite similar to the usual mixes – I see lemon, lime, orange, strawberry and blackcurrant. The only flavour that I don’t see in this mix that the North American brands have is pineapple and grapefruit. For the most part, the flavour are very similar to what I expect in the American versions I’ve tried. The only real difference is that as a whole, these taste a tad less sweet, and a little more natural. Specifically the strawberry, it tastes less like the artificial strawberry and more like strawberry jam. That’s a plus or minus depending on who you ask, so it’s really up for preference. I like strawberry jam so it’s a plus for me. All the citrus flavours like orange, lime and lemon aren’t as bright as Maynard’s, but again they taste more natural and subtle. They also don’t leave citrus burn on my mouth so that’s a plus.
The only thing that stops me from downing an entire bag each time is the “mouth fatigue” as I like to call it. Something about the wine gums leaves a weird residue or feeling in my mouth that kind of tells me I need to stop. Not so much with this particular brand, so both goo and bad. Similar to all other varieties of wine gums, blackcurrant is still my favourite, and the strongest flavour is still the tart little berry. European brands just seem to nail the blackcurrant flavour every time.
If these were more readily available without having to go to specialty store, I see no reason I wouldn’t grab this over the usual suspects, assuming i don’t miss the pineapple or grapefruit flavours. These taste more natural than what I’m used to, so I am all for it.
