It was my sister who noticed that the very Indian sounding name “Chupa Chups” is actually a Spanish brand 😛 Did you know, Chupa Chups is one of the oldest lollipop manufacturing companies in the world? And the name Chupa Chups is almost synonymous with a lollipop in Spain (fact: the word chupar means to lick in español, but stop being dirty minded!) So the brand launched in India with a slightly modified version of the traditional lollipop, with a bubblegum filling inside! And then they followed up with Chupa Chups Sour Bites and Sour Belts (I hear they have relaunched Centre Shock, our very favourite crazy sour chewing gum! I’m already salivating!) The company is definitely playing smart by launching innovative products in an otherwise saturated market thronged by local companies. That’s how a stuffed lolli and a sour candy entered our supermarkets!
Packaging: The bite sized candies come in a small, brightly colored packet. The pack is so delightfully colourful that it cheers you up just by looking at it!
How it looks: The candy is equally colourful and pretty appealing to look at! It looks like little pieces of rainbows, to be very imaginative (the order of VIBGYOR gone slightly crazy though :P)! The gummy candy comes in bite sized pieces. There are tiny granules of sugar sprinkled on every piece.
Yeah, I couldn’t anymore resist eating one!
Taste: Once you pop it in your mouth, the sugary granules begin to give you the sour sensation. I wouldn’t call it unbearably sour, but just sour enough initially to open up your senses. If you can recall the sourness factor of Centre Shock, however Chupa Chups Sour Bites candy is about half as sour only. Also, the sourness subsides pretty quickly to leaves behind the sweet, sugary toffee. Frankly, I didn’t like the base candy too much, because once the sourness subsides, the toffee seems like eating sweetened dough (evidently because the toffee is made of maida). Once you pop the second candy, you will not find it that sour. Hence, the initial feel is nice and gives you a kick, but the ending is boring and bland. I would have preferred if the candy was sour too, or at least more pulpy and not as bland. But at this price point, it’s worth a try for your tastebuds!
Price: Rs 30 for 66 grams. Inside the packet, there are some 30 or so pieces of candy.
Try it if: You are fond of experimenting with different kinds of toffee, and particularly if you like sour flavours
Don’t try it if: You are expecting a huge, crazy sour kick.
FFS Rating: 3/5. If it was just a bit more sour, or the base toffee tastier, Chupa Chups Sour Bites would have been a 5 on 5.
Will I be stuffing my mouth with it? Probably yes! It is still an interesting and unique candy in India. Probably they could come up with a Super Sour Bites or something as the next level product?
Have you tried this candy yet? Would you like to try it? Let me know in the comments below!
I like this product. There’s a product like this in Mexico. And it’s delicious. The sour chupa chup candy dough is too hard. Make it more thin. And more sour… It might be better..