Apparently Starburst released this "new" Duo-themed candy. Juts in case the quotes didn't tip you off, get ready for some old man yells at cloud-level grumpiness in this review.
Instead of four individual flavors in this mix, you only get two. Kind of. One could argue that you still get four, since these are just two different flavors of fruity taffy fused in the center to create one piece of candy. So if you nibble each side individually, you still have four flavors here, but that sounds a little too sticky and inconvenient.
As a concept, this is something we've seen before. More recently I feel like Airheads has leaned into this two-flavors-as-one trend, and while it can be a fun idea conceptually, I feel like this particular take is falling flat.
None of these flavors are new, and a consumer could always eat any two Starburst candies together to make your own DIY Duo mixes. Mixing and matching flavors of preexisting candy is something foodies like Cybele have been advocating for for ages, but I guess the appeal of this item is that these particular flavors have never been in the same mix before? There is some minor convenience there, but is that enough to warrant a whole new candy with fanfare and blog posts? We shall see...
Blue Raspberry Lemonade - There is an artificial "blue" flavoring similar to blue raspberry flavored Jolly Ranchers with a zesty lemon-Skittle flavoring mixed in for good measure. When eaten together, it's tart, sweet, and pretty satisfying. Almost like a Blue Sour Patch Kid.
Individually, the blue side tastes sweet and surprisingly mild. The lemon side is sweet, zesty, and tangy. It's somewhere between a Lemonhead and a Sour Patch Kid in terms of sourness, and it's pretty punchy. We've never had a sour lemon flavor released before, so there's something new after all, but the blue flavoring is either a re-branding of their blue raspberry rush or blue raspberry freeze flavors. If you took a normal lemon and a sour blue raspberry Starburst and ate them together, I think the taste would be nearly identical.
Strawberry Watermelon - The taste is exactly what you would expect. A normal pink Starburst mixed with a Watermelon Starburst. If this sounds familiar, it's because it is! This exact mash-up is from the California Baja mix a few years back and I still had some dark pink wrappers of it in my collection from when I was in high school and made a messenger bag out of clear vinyl and candy wrappers. I guess this flavor has since left circulation, so there's a plus-side if any of you are feeling nostalgic.
The strawberry side is the classic pink Starburst flavor was all know and love, no complaints there, and the watermelon side is also sweet with a slight artificial tang similar to Tangy Taffy. This duo is significantly sweeter than the Blue Raspberry Lemonade, but even though these are two of my favorite flavors, together they're just a little too similar. It makes for a slightly boring snacking experience
Having done it, I can say eating just one side at a time isn't convenient, so in the end I feel justified in calling this a two flavor mix, and while both flavors are decent enough, I miss the variety that comes with normal 4-flavor packs. But I am willing to admit, I'm older, less into getting sticky, and I've been around the Starburst-flavor-block more than once. Fresh eyes, and tastebuds, would probably eat these up. Literally.
All of these individual flavors still exist in the Starburst candy line, so if these were to disappear before you got to give them a try, fear not! You could easily mash-up these exact combos by buying a pack of Normal, Sour, and FaveReds. In fact, this seems like a mash-up of (almost) all the flavors from the 2010 Sweet & Sour mix, which has sour watermelon, sweet strawberry, and sour blue raspberry. Add in lemon, and there you go.
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I want to see a cotton candy & bubble gum flavor Starburst. They need to step up with flavors. Caramel Apple would be ideal too.
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