Fruity Pebbles Jelly Beans

After reviewing Froot Loops Jelly Beans, here comes another cereal-inspired bag: Fruity Pebbles Jelly Beans! (These apparently came out last year, but I missed them.) They’re not made by the same company that made the Froot Loops Jelly Beans, but this company, Flix Candy is behind two other sets I’ll be reviewing this year.

Similar to Froot Loops, we weren’t a big Fruity Pebbles household. For me, though, that was less about the flavor than it was about the texture. The little tiny bits got soggy so quickly! In any case, let’s see how the jelly beans fare.

Size and shape

The appearance of these beans is outstanding. Average size is perfect, they have a distinct bean shape, and the consistency is impeccable. No notes!

5 out of 5 beans

Chewability

While size and shape were great, this is a dicier category for these beans. They are significantly over the line into too-tough territory. The tooth-stick factor is also unfortunately high.

2 out of 5 beans

Texture

The texture of these beans is initially promising, with a satisfying crackle as you bit into one, but the thin shell quickly disintegrates into fine crystals. The insides may be acceptably smooth, but it’s somewhat hard to tell if they are being overwhelmed by the shell.

They’re not altogether texturally unpleasant, but nor are they impressive.

Taking texture and chewability together, these beans remind me a lot of Jolly Rancher Jelly Beans, though my research doesn’t indicate any shared lineage.

3 out of 5 beans

Taste and flavor

The Fruity Pebbles Jelly Beans packaging does not provide a flavor list, which is a shame, because I can’t confidently identify any of these flavors.

There might be the faintest whiff of lime in the green bean and orange in the orange bean, but those are almost gimmes. The red, pink, and blue beans could each be one of several flavors.

I think they have also added a bit of lactose to simulate the milk in a bowl of Fruity Pebbles cereal, but it’s pretty subtle.

Not an impressive array of flavor here, sadly.

3 out of 10 beans

The one-of-each test

Perhaps the ultimate test of a bag of jelly beans is how enjoyable it is to take one of each flavor and eat them all at the same time.¹

Somehow, the whole is greater than the sum of the parts in this case. While the chewability makes having five of these beans at once a challenge, the flavors combine in a really nice way that brings some acidity to the forefront about halfway through the chew. It’s nothing to write home about, but better than I expected here.

5 out of 10 beans

Conclusion

I wasn’t expecting a whole lot going in, so I’d say my expectations were met, but ultimately I can’t recommend these beans to anyone. It’s just another disappointing case of a cross-branding cash grab.