probably my least favorite of the Necco chews. i think they are just a peanut butter-flavored taffy. the same consistency as the Mary Janes, but without the delicious gush from the inside. rather boring, not very much peanut flavor. aside from the chewiness, there really isn't much here.
rating: 3
i don't even know what i was thinking when i bought these. perhaps it was "i hope these will taste like Hi-Chews." or maybe "these probably won't taste like salt water taffy mixed with Starbursts." it could even have been, "if this is like a Now and Later, i'm ok with that." whatever it was, i was wrong.
Strawberry Shortcake - this is the one that makes me think of a Starburst the most. the initial scent is very sweet and fruity, but as soon as it hits the tongue it's much more bland. kind of a diluted fruit chew with generic red fruit flavor. it does have a good chewiness, softer than a Now & Later, much like salt water taffy.
Mint Julep - this was weird because it really doesn't have a minty smell or taste at all. maybe a very slight hint of mint near the middle, but really it's more like a sweet fruity taste. not really lime, but there does seem to be a bit of citrus in there. not at all what i was expecting. same chewiness as the Strawberry Shortcake.
Banana Split - a little disappointing in the flavor department - artificial banana in play here, so i didn't have high hopes, but this was pretty blah. it had a slight walnut taste, but that quickly turned into more of a cardboard taste. again, the texture was nice but i'd much rather have a Hi-Chew.
overall rating: 3
for some reason i never had a Mary Jane until earlier this year. i guess i just always thought they would be gross. i was finally suckered in by the cute wrapper and tried one. lo and behold, it was not gross. in fact, it was downright tasty. it's a molasses-flavored taffy with a little pocket of peanut butter inside. these are the best when they're room temperature or warmer, when it's cold you don't get the nice little gush of peanut butter when you bite into it. the chewiness here is great, similar to Bit-O-Honey. alas, this is another one of those "feel bad about it" candies, again with the hydrogenated oils and whatnot.
rating: 8
i suppose the appeal of this bar is that you get four candies in one: vanilla, fudge, peanut butter and caramel. i like the sound of that. the taste of it is not as exciting. first of all, the chocolate here tastes sort of...chalky. or powdery, like powdered milk. that's kind of gross. then there's the filling. the caramel wasn't bad, it was gooey which i like and the flavor wasn't too sweet. i'm not a huge fan of vanilla creams in general, but this tastes almost like frosting. very, very sweet. the peanut butter was the biggest surprise, it was gooey like the caramel, but with a hint of peanut butter. and i loved it. then the fudge came along and crapped in my mouth. it was stiff and way too sugary sweet. strange how they made two out of four so good. ah well, i guess i'll just have to keep buying all of my candy bars separately. what a pity.
rating: 4
