Venco – Dropmix Fruitig

Venco is an established, tenured brand that does mass market licorice. I’m always on the look out for licorice mixes since I’m not quite at the point of loving licorice on it’s own in most of it’s classic, salty European forms. This seems like a good hedge and the fruitiness will help ease into the salty stuff.

So this mix has some licorice pieces and fruit jellies in the assortment. I’m honestly not sure how this is different from jujubes. But here we are.

Probably the most shocking thing for me is the texture of the fruit jellies. They are like a really soft wine gum – they don’t stuck to the teeth too well but have a nice pleasant texture. They remind me of Swedish Berries, but again not as sticky. They have a more jelly like feel but also less sticky. I love these.

The licorice pieces come in a few varieties and the texture seems a little different between them. The one with no sugar coating is a little firm on the outside, but the inside is somewhat softer. It’s like a slightly firmer jujube, in that it’s soft but not as sticky. I guess it’s sort of like a jelly baby, if you’ve had those. The licorice that has a sugar coating is more bouncy and gummy in texture and I enjoy them way more than the other one.

The flavour of these is not bad, but not the best. I would summarize it as, slightly better version of the super generic jujubes. Allow me to explain. The licorice is got a bit of a salty note to it and has a strong anise flavour. You can tell it’s a quality licorice because you feel your nasal cavity clear up a little from the intensity.

The fruit flavours remind me more of wine gums than jujubes, they have a more complex fruity flavour as opposed to the very one note flavour you get from jujubes. They are a bit more on the floral side, but it’s good.

I’d definitely get this mix again – everything in this assortment speaks to me in some way, and I love them all. The licorice is also not of the super salty variety so again these are a great way to ease someone into the world of licorice. Plus the fruity pieces on their own are great so I’m sure there’s something for everyone in this box.