Entertainment
Top 10 Best Candy of the 90’s (Part 3)
Candy of the 90s has always had a special air about it. It wasn’t always the most appealing but they certainly made up for that with big taste, well, for about two minutes anyway. For a blast from the past, let’s check out the Top 10 Best Candy of the 90’s.
10. Bubble Tape
Who would have thought that making gum into the form of a roll of tape would have made it a bestseller? Bubble Tape was made by the Wrigley Company and it is a hard one to forget. The packaging was a bright pink and resembled a measuring tape or regular tape that let you roll out the amount of gum you wanted. It was a kind of genius when you think about it. Most kids at one time pretended to build things – much like Bob the Builder with all his cool tools. Well Bubble Tape was like having your very own measuring tape that you too could hang on the side of your pants. Well, more like put it in your pocket because we weren’t lucky enough to get a clip-on candy package. The candy boasted six feet of gum – which sounded like it would go on forever but for some reason, kids would run through it like nobody’s business. For all those Bubble Tape kids of the 90s, there was no cooler way to deliver bubble gum to the masses. However, many found that they would continuously be adding more gum to the wad already in their mouth or would have to spit it out and start fresh. This was because the flavor of Bubble Tape would disappear almost completely after just a few chews. Nonetheless, this hockey puck-sized gum was a complete blast to eat.
9. Ring Pops
Ring Pops are still a candy that many buy and love to this day. It’s just a simple lollipop made by Topps but it makes people feel so special. Who doesn’t want a lollipop that – A) you don’t have to hold in your hands? And B) is in the shape of a giant diamond. Aren’t diamonds a girl’s best friend? As good as ring pops are, they do have a nasty downside to them. They can get a little messy depending on how sloppy of a lollipop licker you are. I mean seriously, some people actually ended up licking the back of their hand just as much as the pop. The company tried to make flavors that stood them apart from the other lollipop competitors. So, they offered Blue Raspberry, Twisted Berry Blast, Cherry, Watermelon, Strawberry and those are just the original flavors. Since then, the candy has not only thrived but it has come out with a few other flavors and a specialty line of Sour Ring Pops. These pops basically have the same flavors as the originals, but they are, you guessed it, sour. Which makes us wonder who would want to suck on something so sour for so long? The product line has expanded to include twisted flavors, mystery flavors, and even gummies.
8. Push Pop
Topps brand really does have an obsession with lollipops. In addition to creating the Ring Pop, the company also created it’s equally-awkward-to-eat Push Pop. As the name indicates, this candy was pushed up and could retract back down if you wanted to save the rest for later. It was a low-tech yet genius invention for 1986. What other candy company was thinking of the poor souls who couldn’t finish their lollipop in one sitting? When it was initially released, the candy had a single lollipop in it and you could choose from the flavors Blue Raspberry, Strawberry, Watermelon, and Berry Blast. In case you couldn’t tell, these are the exact same flavors as Ring Pops, so Topps basically rebranded their Ring Pop and sold it as a Push Pop. Now fans of the candy can choose from several new flavors and different ways to consume their Push Pop. There are Push Pop Sliders which just look like a differently shaped Push Pop, The Triple Power Push Pop which is the three-in-one mechanism that usually offers three different flavors, and finally, there is the Jumbo Push Pop. This one is just a bigger size for people who can’t get enough. The Push Pop options seem endless.
7. Life Savers Holes
The candy that is supposed to resemble a real life-saving device became popular essentially overnight. Who would have thought that this candy, which really didn’t have anything special about it, would be such a hit? And when something is a hit – you get your own spinoff, just like on TV. Life Savers Holes were supposed to be the holes that were taken out of the middle of the Life Savers. They were chewy and way easier to eat. You didn’t have to suck on them for a crazy amount of time before you could move on to another tasty piece. The candy came in a few flavors including peppermint for the people who wanted to feel like they weren’t eating candy but just enjoying an after-dinner mint. The other flavors included Island Fruits and their Original fruit flavors. One of the fun things about this candy was the packaging. It came in a container that you could easily open and close, and it also resembled the cylinder-like shape that the original Life Savers came in. It was fun to just pop the container open and closed. We can only assume that the Wrigley’s company, who are the makers of the candy, had an overabundance of extra candy they just couldn’t let go to waste. Although this candy is no longer available, have no fear, as there are so many other tasty treats to enjoy, like Skittles.
6. Ouch! Gum
What was with the 90s and turning medical items into candy? Not just any medical item but Band-Aids! Kinda gross, no? Ouch! Bubblegum came complete with 3 different types of band-aids in one package. They all had their own color: neon orange, neon pink, and neon green. The gum was made by the Wrigley’s Company, and they kept the candy pretty simple with just three basic flavors; Strawberry, Watermelon, and Grape. Each piece of gum was wrapped in a package designed to look just like a real band-aid package. The container that held those candy band-aids was a tin box, something resembling a very old band-aid first-aid package. Somewhere along the way, our beloved band-aid gum experienced a rebranding in an effort to probably sell more gum. The gum now offers an incentive if you buy it: you can collect a series of games. They are also really trying to emphasize that Ouch! Gum is sugar-free. The taste of this gum isn’t the greatest and the flavor doesn’t last long, but what can you expect from a novelty candy? This was probably released more for the novelty and as entertainment for the kids than for the quality of the flavor. Most people can now find these at nostalgic candy stores or from marketplace sellers on eBay or Amazon.
5. Sweetarts
Sweetarts have come a very long way from that chalky, hard candy that we all used to buy as kids back in the day. The Nestle-brand candy now offers multiple versions of Sweetarts like fruit chews, sugar ropes, chewy sweetarts, and other different flavors. However, when the candy debuted, they only offered the one candy. The pill-like tablet candy was a mix between sweet and tangy. The flavors available in each pack were cherry, grape, lemon, lime, and orange. Although today, lime has been replaced by green apple, and the orange flavor was retired in 2013. In addition, Nestle added a new blue punch color and flavor to the bunch. We aren’t sure what blue punch flavor means but we can assure you, it’s likely sweet… and tart. Sweetarts have become somewhat of a gimmick now, and Nestle is going along for the ride. They continue to release the popular candy and have also come up with bigger and flatter Sweetarts. They taste the same only they’re larger. They were clearly trying to target the fans of the candy who just can’t get enough. The Sweetarts brand also makes Pixie Stix which are basically Sweetarts in powdered form delivered to the mouth via plastic tube. They also make giant chewy Sweetarts, Sweetart jelly beans (normally around Easter), and the adorable skull and bones Sweetarts around Halloween.
4. 7up Soda-Licious
7up Soda-Licious was a favorite fruit snack for many in the 90s. They were chewy, covered in sugar, and the flavors were so tasty. Red Berry, Lemon-Lime, and Grape were delicious, and the package even bragged about being made with real 7up and real Cherry 7up. This is probably why they tasted so darn good. These fruit snacks were made by Betty Crocker. This could be why the flavor always tasted more authentic than most candy snacks on the shelf. Seeing as they were so good, the company decided to try their luck at striking gold twice. They brought out a new line of Soda-Licious fruit snacks featuring other sodas. The line featured orange, cherry cola, and root beer. They tasted just as great as the originals and to top it off, they were shaped like little soda bottles and the root beer ones were shaped like mugs of root beer with the froth on top. Not only was this snack clever, but it also had so much potential. The snack was unfortunately discontinued some time back, and people have been longing for them ever since. At the time, they were some of the best snacks on the shelf.
3. Snap n Glow Lollipop
Kids were reviewing these lollipops online all the way up until 2018. The Snap n Glow Lollipop featured a lollipop that was on a glow stick. This lollipop was supposed to be appealing because it glowed in the dark. Not just the stick but the lollipop as well. Inside the package, the contents were a sugary powder much like the tasty candy powder you get in Fun Dip. The idea was to open the package, crack the stick, then lick the lollipop and dip it in the powder. Sounds easy but cracking it and dipping it while turning the lights on and off to see that cool glow stick effect sometimes made things a little messy. Once the lollipop is covered and you’ve had that first glow in the dark lick, you look in the mirror and discover your freakishly colored tongue. The original flavors included Blue Raspberry, Cherry, and Green Apple. Yeah, not many to choose from. Unfortunately, the lollipops were rather basic and the powdered sugar they put in the package didn’t have the greatest taste. Some online reviews described them as kind of sour for some reason, and the powder always had a weird taste. But, don’t let the glow effect scare you, the makers of the candy have assured everyone that it is not toxic and the candy powder is just that – a sugary powder with a little bit of food coloring of course.
2. Gummy Blue Sharks
This has to be one of the most basic candies on this list. They were also easy to find, and the simple taste was appealing to everyone. These aqua blue shark babies actually featured two flavors in one – the aqua blue gummy area was Blue Raspberry and the white part was a sweet marshmallow. These used to be 99 cents a pack, which was more than a lot of other candy cost at the time, but they were considered to be one of the higher-end candies. Though easy to find, they were not as readily found as say, Skittles or Smarties. It seems like recently, Gummy Blue Sharks have regained their popularity and are experiencing a resurgence in excitement. They are made by the Ferrera Candy Company and can even be found in 5 pound bags on Amazon – that should last at least a couple of days. We can only assume that this was the only flavor and color combination at the time because blue was the only color gummy shark in the 90s. But who says there can’t be or aren’t any other flavors? Now, in some places, usually bulk candy shops, you can find a few other colors. Red, which is Cherry, green which is Green Apple, and even yellow which is…well it’s hard to make out the taste of that one. 90s kids fondly remember this candy, and when they are made by people who have been in the candy business for over 100 years, well, you kind of don’t need anyone else’s opinion.
1. Airheads
Now we have come to Airheads. The candy that eats like a taffy but could never really live up to the ever popular Laffy Taffy. Many people even describe this candy as “taffy-like”. It was made in the mid-80s but didn’t gain traction until the early 90s. Airheads are manufactured by a Dutch-Italian company but are only sold nationwide in America. There are now well over 10 flavors of this candy including the original flavors (well, the ones that people know). There’s Cherry which is red, Blue Raspberry which is blue, Orange which is obviously orange colored, and Strawberry, which is a light pink so it doesn’t get confused with the dark red cherry. Since then, the company has tried to keep up with the times and expanded their candy flavors, and they weren’t shy about the combinations. They now have Mango-Chile which is an orange base with red dots. Another way out-of-the-box flavor is Maple which is only available in Canada (makes sense), Strawberry-Kiwi, Chocolate which is a dark brown, Pink Lemonade which we would assume would be maybe yellow to set it apart, but it’s actually pink. And finally, Pear which is a light green color. Since the 90s, Airheads has continued to expand the line with new offerings. They now have Airhead Bites, a candy with a bit of a harder shell and a soft, chewy, tangy, sweet inside. You can also get Airhead gum and Airhead Extreme Sourfuls – all with the sweet and tangy taste that Airheads are known for.