MEGA Smarties

Mega Smarties  - Dollar Tree

Things I have learned during quarantine: Vol 2

1. Leggings are not pants, but they are superior to pants in every possible way 
2. Potatoes are the unsung heroes of thrown-together dinners
3. Gossip Girl holds up fabulously, and it's what Riverdale wishes it could be

Smarties, in the US, are compressed tablet-style candies that come in eye-pleasing pastel colors. I have been eating these for years, and they are one of my favorite candies, but do they really taste like they say they should? I know the company says each color corresponds to a flavor, but...do they really? 

According the the company, the flavors are: white-orange cream, yellow-pineapple, pink-cherry, green-strawberry, purple-grape, and orange-orange. 

I find this a little mind blowing, because as a kid, I swore the white ones tasted disgusting, and refused to eat them, but now as an adult I think the white and classic orange are nearly indistinguishable. Was I really discerning as a kid? Or did the white ones just look like medicine so I simply refused to eat them? Who knows! 

Classic Smarties are so small, and delicate, that I never felt like I could get a firm grasp on each individual flavor. Maybe MEGA Smarties will shed some light on this life-long flavor dilemma. 

Looking at this is a little trippy, because everything about it has been perfectly sized up while keeping it's original proportions. For example, looking at these photos, it's easy to mistake it for a normal tiny roll of Smarties when, in fact, it's easily 4 times it's size. Instead of a tiny finger-tip sized tablet, these are roughly quarter sized, and about 4-5 quarters thick. (Side note: Don't eat quarters.)  

 Let's jump right in! 

Purple (grape): Starts out with the classic sweet but tangy Smartie formula, but it does have a hint of grape flavoring that reminds me of flavored medicine from the 90's. It's very mild, and overpowered by the tanginess of the candy, but it definitely isn't my favorite. In small form, I never minded the purple pieces, so I think having a larger size here really does allow the flavors to stand on their own. 

Orange (orange): Okay, orange does taste a bit more like orange to me in it's new, larger, form. It starts out tangy and generic, but the aftertaste has a hint of citrus that reminds me a little bit of Flintstones vitamins. It's tangy, and mild, but I can definitely detect the orange, so I'll give it that. 

White (orange and cream): This one was a little tricky. I ate the first tablet, but it wasn't enough to make a clean cut decision, but there were only two in the package. After eating the second one I felt like I kind of got an oranges and cream vibe, it's tart, tangy, and slightly more vanilla'd than the other flavors, but if I were eating these on their own, I don't think I would ever have guessed that they were orange and cream. Citrus and cream, maybe, but it's more-so a generic tangy treat that is enjoyable (I don't know what little me was thinking back in the day)

Green (strawberry): Okay, I finally get it. It starts out tangy, and a little generic, but if you suck on the candy and let it gradually dissolve the strawberry flavoring really does come through. I am shocked. It's tart, and a little sour, but after eating a ton of strawberries in quarantine, this has a fairly authentic strawberry flavoring. MIND. BLOWN. (Sadly, like the white, there were only 2 in my package. It seems like the colors aren't distributed that evenly.)  

Yellow (pineapple): Wow, another eye opener. Right off the bat, the tangy flavoring has more of a pineapple punch to it than other flavors. It's slightly tropical, but far from the best pineapple candy I've ever had. I'm impressed that I can in fact, taste a difference, but the flavor of this one doesn't leave me wanting more.

Pink (cherry): Probably the least distinct of the bunch. It's tart, and tangy, but doesn't taste like either realistic or artificial fruit. Again, I find myself in Flintstones vitamin-territory, but not as punchy as their take on cherry. It's overall flavoring pairs nicely with the rest of the line-up, since it has the same tartness and texture, but it's not a great stand-alone flavor.  

These Mega candies proved that each color did correspond to a distinct flavor, but they weren't as enjoyable as their normal-sized counterpart.

This larger size, and the way I prefer to eat them, which is to let them slowly dissolve on my tongue, wears my tongue out much faster than the original size. After eating one or two of each flavor for this review my tongue feels like I've eaten a Warhead. It's a little raw and sandpaper-y. Also, these mega candies don't dissolve as satisfyingly as the normal candies.  

If you are looking for something that will really make each individual flavor stand on it's own, MEGA is the way to go, but they do have their faults.

Fans of these would also like: Smarties Squeeze Candy, Smarties 'n Cream,or Kabaya Ju-C Tablets

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