Ice Breakers Ice Cubes, Raspberry Sorbet

The Ice Breakers Ice Cubes package has a nice flip top design that stayed closed in my handbag for over a week. In fact, the entire box is still in very good shape--no dents, no wear, and the foil printing is still shiny.

The box contains 10 pieces of cube shaped gum--white with red dots that I assume are "flavor crystals" of some sort. It looks nice.

The sugar-free raspberry sorbet flavor has a nice tartness that's not too sweet. One cube is just a tad too small. The biggest problem is that the flavor runs out after 10 minutes or less, making Chompers very sad.

rating: 3 chomps; price: $$

Dentyne Fire Spicy Cinnamon

Unlike their Arctic Chill "flavor," Spicy Cinnamon is a delightfully chewable gum that will not mess with your brain by giving you visions of fossil fuel-drilling aliens. Typical adult premium gum package with the same not-quite-big-enough piece, but the flava is nice--a not too sweet warm cinnamon that almost tingles like Cinnaburst did, back in the day. A good substitute for Flare in a pinch.

price: $; rating: 3 chomps; other: sugar free

Trident Wild Blueberry Twist

I thought the Denytyne Arctic Ice was bad, but this one has it beat. Trident Wild Blueberry Twist, packed in the economical 18-piece paper and foil short-pack, not only tastes bad but stunk up my Faux-ki-doki with overwhelming fake berry cloying sweetness. Reviews from others ranged from, "I'd rather chew ear wax," to "That gum is evil." Yet another must-to-avoid.

price: $; rating: 0 chomps

Dentyne Ice: Arctic Chill

This Dentyne Ice flavor, packed in the short-end opened box and blister pack, is among the worst gums I've ever chewed. Like all Dentyne Ice gums, one piece is too small, but two is too expensive. But even one piece is too much. It tastes like Vick's Vapo-rub mixed with a vinyl by-product. There was some undertaste that reminded me of the black-oil aliens from X-Files. Avoid at all costs.

price: $; rating: 0 chomps; other: sugar free

Starbucks After Coffee Chewing Gum, Cinnamon

The Starbucks After Coffee Chewing Gum is sold at the counter at Starbucks Coffee stores in their own little POP display. It comes in a variety of flavors, and is packaged in an oblong tin with a flip top on the short side. The tin, and the retro-referencing type makes this vaguely similar to the Altoids gum.

The gum itself is candy-coated rectangles, white speckled with red. The candy coating breaks away after 2 or three chews, opening up to a slightly hard gum that takes a few more chews to soften. The most surprising thing about Starbucks Cinnamon is the fruit burst that first appears when you get to the gum. The cinnamon comes after. It's a hot cinnamon, but mixed with the fruit it seems a little less strong than the stronger cinnamon gums. The fruit flavor dissolves after a few minutes, but it leaves a sweet aftertaste that mixes nicely with the cinnamon.

I personally didn't love this gum, but I offered it around and everyone else thought it was great. I don't know if it's more effective than other gums at getting rid of coffee breath, but at only 25 cents more that I paid for Orbit, it's definitely worth the price.

price: $$; rating: 3 chomps

Trident White Cinnamon Tingle

Trident White Cinnamon Tingle is an acceptable cinnamon gum, and its mid-market, no-nonsense approach is emphasized by the packaging: 12 rectangular pieces of coated gum in a foil and plastic blister pack, wrapped in a tabbed cardboard sleeve. It's an "adult" gum, meaning its over a buck for 12 small pieces.

The white coating has a nice mouth feel that quickly dissolves after the first few chews. The flavor is serviceable. It does have a tiny sugary tingle. The cinnamon has more of a cold sting than a hot one, which makes it more similar to old-school cinnamon gums like Big Red and Cinnaburst. The most unfortunate problem with Trident White is the size--you really need two pieces to feel like you're actually chewing anything substantial.

review: 2.5 chomps, price: $$

5 Flare Gum

5 Gum is a designer gum produced by Wrigley's, named after its alleged appeal to the five senses. They went all out with the packaging--the box is a sturdy but thin card stock with a matte finish and spot gloss, mostly black with a few accents of color. It has an emboss over the large "5" that adorns the front. There is a swanky little tab to keep the box closed. The package is a squat rectangle, almost square, and opens from the short end, even though the "cover" is designed in landscape format. It's a pretty sophisticated package for gum.

As soon as I opened the tabbed cellowrap of the stylish Flare package, the air became redolent with the spicy smell of sugary hot cinnamon. The gum is a full sized stick, wrapped in red foil embossed with the 5 logo. The stick bent easily without breaking. The first few chews are a little tough, and not too flavorful, but as the gum softens it released a nice sweet heat.

The package contains 15 pieces of full sized gum, making it a bargain in the adult chewing gum market.

3.5 chomps, $, other: sugar free