Mars Skittles Blenders

Did anyone else use M&Ms or Smarties in their elementary school math classes? I think it was third grade when my teacher presented every student in the class with their own bag of M&Ms to illustrate simple lessons in percentages and probability. I'm not sure if it was effective, but it was a lot of fun. I still remember that most of the M&Ms in my bag were light brown (I'm dating myself here - this was before the blue M&M).

There are five new flavors in this mix: Melon Berry Burst, Strawberry Lime Blast, Watermelon Green Apple Freeze, Cherry Tropicolada, and Mango Lemonade Freeze. I'm sure it's no accident that those names sound like they came straight off a Sonic Drive-in menu. Now, I mention M&M math because I applied some of the same principles when I sampled this bag of Skittles Blenders. It was immediately apparent that my bag did not contain an even flavor distribution (Mango Lemonade Freeze in particular was underrepresented). Here's a chart to illustrate my point.



Strawberry Lime Blast was similar to a normal red Skittle with a hint of sour lime. It was fruity, tart, and tasty, but it wasn't terribly exciting or special.

Cherry Tropicolada reminded me of cough syrup. The pineapple and coconut flavors were present along with the strong cherry, but it really rubbed me the wrong way.


witness the distinct lack of mango
Watermelon Green Apple Freeze worked well. The initial flavor was an artificial but tasty watermelon, followed by a green apple tartness. I'm not usually a fan of these flavors, but I liked them both here.

Melon Berry Burst reminded me of grape Nerds, but with more of a blueberry flavor. I didn't get much of a sense of melon flavor from this one, and it seemed to just be a rehash of a flavor from Wild Berry Skittles.

Mango Lemonade Freeze reminded me of my favorite smoothie (I've mentioned it before), so it was a bit nostalgic (especially since I just found out that shop is closed). The lemon flavor was sour and almost hit some floor cleaner notes, but it was saved by a good, distinct mango taste. Of all the flavors, this was the most unexpected.

Overall, Skittles Blenders is a decent mix, but it didn't really offer anything new or exciting. Still, it's worth a taste for fans of Skittles and fruity candy in general. Also, it seems like every time I review Skittles, their website just gets more and more cumbersome to navigate. I guess I'm not the target demographic.

B-

Skittles Website

Skittles Fizzl'd Fruits

While filling up at a gas station on the way to see a concert, I stopped in the attached convenience store and was shocked and thrilled to find Skittles Fizzl'd Fruits. Since I wanted to consume them right away, I took pictures in the car, with the candy on my lap and in my hand.

These have been on my mind ever since Cybele's Valentine's Day 2010 candy tease, as I love Skittles and almost all fizzy candy. Unfortunately, the grocery stores near me are very slow to receive new items (they just now carry Crazy Cores on their shelves), but I always forget about gas stations. With pay at pump, I hardly have a reason to go inside and look at all the new, overpriced candy (these Skittles were $1.39 US).


One whiff of the open bag told me that the flavors were the same as the Wild Berry Skittles, so I won't go too deeply into how the flavors differed. They had the appearance of Sour Skittles, but the effect was entirely different.

These were very fizzy on the tongue - surprisingly fizzy! You have to suck on them a bit to get the true effect, but it made me think of a berry soda (close to the point of bubbles up your nose, but without the pain). Fizzl'd Fruits were tasty, nostalgic, and fun. If you like the berry flavors, definitely check these out. I prefer the original fruits, but it was nice to see a new spin on a different flavor set. Now, I wonder if they can combine fizzy with sour?

There's also a review of these at CandyBlog.

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Skittles Website (note: it's very graphic-intense)

Skittles Crazy Cores

These have been out in the United States for quite some time now, and there are a ton of other sites that have reviewed them, but I might as well throw in my 2 cents. Everyone's tastes are different, so if your tastes are similar to mine, maybe you'll relate to my take on these.

I have loved Skittles ever since I was little, so a new variety is extra exciting. I remember when Tropical Skittles were introduced, and I devoured those, despite my feelings about banana flavored candy (hint: negative). So, when I saw that the Crazy Cores would include flavors I typically like, such as mango, peach, and lemonade, they sounded pretty promising.


Mango Peach, peach with an orange core, had a tropical feel and a nice amount of tartness. Peach seems kind of neglected in American candy, and this tasted like a passable mix of peach and mango. It was my favorite of the bunch.

Melon Berry, which was pink with a green core, tasted berry sweet and not too melony. It was my least favorite, and just didn't have that tart punch that even the Wild Berry Skittles carry.

Cherry Lemonade was red with a yellow core, and the outside tasted like a cherry cough drop. That was a big negative right off the bat, but I did enjoy the citrus zing of the lemonade core.

Blue Raspberry Lemon was blue with a yellow core, and a little perplexing. The coating had an almost perfumy taste to start with, and that was downright gross. But it faded quickly, leaving a classic blue raspberry flavor (like Blow Pops). The lemon was mellow and sweet, and could have used a little more sourness.

Strawberry Watermelon, green with a pink core, was my second favorite. The strawberry was like a good sucker - bright and a little tart. The watermelon core tasted fresh and light (and fake), and it wasn't too sweet.

I am not sure why there are two flavors with lemon-based cores, but these Skittles were at least enjoyable. The regular flavors are better, but the Crazy Core concept was fun to eat. After my third Skittle, I could feel a sugary film in the back of my throat, which one of my coworkers calls The Skittle Spits. Just thought I should warn everyone.

B-

Skittles Website

Skittles Unlimited

I picked these up at a gas station in London, Ontario last year and it was the last bag left. In America, these came out as Skittles Carnival, but in Canada, they were the Unlimited limited edition. One of my Flickr contacts pointed out what a contradiction that is.

Anyhow, these were a little old when I bought them, and since I didn't eat them right away, they were harder than usual, so I'm going to ignore the texture for the purposes of this review. Also, I apologize for only having a picture of the bag. In any case, here are my thoughts on the flavors.

Cotton Candy was very sweet and definitely tasted like the real thing. It was light blue in color, but reminded me of bubble gum, which brings me to...

Bubble Gum was pink, and also tasted like the real thing. It was that Dubble Bubble flavor of classic bubble gum, but also reminded me of some bubble gum flavored medicine I had to take as a child.

Candy Apple was a pale yellow, and made me nervous before I ate it. Apple doesn't always translate well to candy, but this wasn't too bad. It reminded me of apple cider.

Red Licorice was red, obviously, and tasted like Twizzlers. It even had some of the licorice texture, but that could have been my imagination.

Green Slushy was light green, and so tasty. This one was my favorite, and I could have eaten a whole bag of them. It had a nice sour lime flavor.

As a huge fan of tangy candy, the Green Slushy flavor stood out the most to me, but there weren't any bad flavors. I do prefer the regular Skittles, but these were a lot of fun to eat and share.

B

Skittles Website

Skittles Shakes

Does anyone remember Skittles Shakes? I got them about a four years ago at a foreign goods store in Nagoya, Japan in the Australia section. It's been four years, but I still remember these things as the nastiest candy I've ever had. We get to catch a glimpse of them with the chocolate Skittles that are out now, but for some reason, I remember the Skittles Shakes being worse. I looked up the flavors, so I'll see if I can remember what they tasted like, in order from most to least tolerable.

Lime Spider: This was the only one I could swallow. That's not saying much, because even that was hard.

Strawberry Vanilla: I think the problem here was trying to make the Skittles taste like milk. It just tasted sick and sweet and rotten.

Banana Split: As a general rule, I hate banana flavored candy, and this was no exception. You know how if you mix a bunch of colors together, you get brown? This was the taste equivalent.

Chocolate Honeycomb: This was just like the chocolate Skittles out now - wrong texture, wrong taste, just wrong wrong wrong. And I'm not even sure about the honeycomb part, but maybe they're referring to the waxy aftertaste.

Caramel Cream: I've saved the worst for last. Can you imagine a butter and sour milk flavored Skittle? If so, then you're pretty close. I still remember how disgusting that one was, and I don't think I ate more than one.

Luckily, these are no longer made. To get the idea, try Chocolate Skittles. Or actually, don't, because they're just awful.

F

Skittles Website