Tootsie Fruit Chews Sour Review: Tasty, But Not As Tart As The Name Suggests

The Tootsie Roll came into the world in1896 as a penny candy, thanks to Leo Hirschfield who borrowed the nickname of his daughter. By the tail end of 1971, a fruity take on them, in Midgees size, was born as Tootsie Rolls Flavor Rolls. Flavor Rolls was renamed Fruit Chews (perhaps to give Starbursts a run for their yummy), and it took five decades to branch out into a new world of taste — sour — with the brand's newest candy in the lineup: Tootsie Fruit Chews Sour.

Tootsie Fruit Chews seems like it would lend itself naturally to a sour version, and it's surprising that it took this long to get here. Now that such an option exists, it's time to open a bag, unwrap the colorful candies, and see if Tootsie Roll Fruit Chews Sour has the power to make us pucker.

On the package and under the wrappers' surface, Tootsie Roll Fruit Chews Sours look a lot like the original Tootsie Fruit Chews. Cherry, lemon, and orange are carryover flavors in the Sour bag, but the lime was replaced by pink watermelon and blue raspberry was added into the mix.

The enjoyable chewy, taffy-like consistency is present in the Sour version like they are in the original, but oddly enough, not a single one of them actually tastes remotely sour. Sour orange and cherry are pretty much carbon copies of their original versions, and while the lemon candy is more bitter and maybe even better than its predecessor counterpart, it isn't nearly as tart as it perhaps should be. The mild and cool blue raspberry and sweet and delicious watermelon flavors are nice additions to the Fruit Chews family, but again, aren't sour as advertised.

Tootsie Roll Fruit Chews Sour has a very similar ingredient makeup to the regular Fruit Chews, containing sugar, corn syrup, palm oil, condensed skim milk, whey, artificial and natural flavors, soy lecithin, and even the same artificial colors, including FD&C Yellow 5, Red 40, Blue 1. The Sours skip out on malic acid, and in its place are fumaric acid and citric acid — which apparently aren't providing any sourness. These candies are peanut-free, artificially flavored, and contain a bioengineered food ingredient made from U.S. crops. They are also one of the junk food items you didn't know were gluten-free.

In a 7-ounce package, the serving size is five pieces, with about six servings per bag. A single serving nets 110 calories, 2.5 grams of fat, 10 milligrams of sodium, and 24 grams of total carbohydrates, 17 grams of which are total sugars. 

Tootsie Roll Chews Sour is available in 3.73- and 7-ounce bags. The smaller bag sells for $1.25 at Dollar Tree, while Walmart offers the larger size for $2.18. eBay is another solid option, especially for buyers who reside outside of the U.S., but the prices run a little higher than retail. 

For those who need a lot more candy, Tootsie Roll Chews Sour is also sold in bulk. Retailers like All City Candy sell a 3-pound bag for $19.00.

The idea of a sour take on Tootsie Fruit Chews was too good not to make a reality, but this step forward for the company turned out to be more of a standing in place. That's not necessarily a bad thing, as the watermelon and blue raspberry flavors are a welcome addition to the Fruit Chew family.

Tootsie Roll Fruit Chew Sours were tasty, but they were simply plain and not at all sour. And come to think of it, why didn't the brand try using the grape flavor to make... sour grapes? Nonetheless, the candy is still delicious, and worth trying, but perhaps it's best to buy a bag and mix it together with a bag of regular Tootsie Fruit Chews to make a delicious Tootsie fruit salad.