For many people, the flavour of bubble gum is the flavour of childhood. After all, it’s the style of bubbles: tried, profitable, and snapped over noses. However it’s additionally the flavour of jelly beans, ice cream, slushies, and in addition medication (which a few of us used to sneak out of the fridge even after we weren’t sick). However whereas Skittles, Starburst, and Laffy Taffy all imitate the flavour of actual fruits, there’s no bubble gum berry rising in our gardens. So what is bubble gum taste?
In a current listener-inspired episode of Gastropod, hosts Cynthia Graber and Nicola Twilley got down to reply this query, together with some others submitted by their followers, together with whether or not meal kits dwell as much as their environmental claims and if all rooibos tea actually comes from one mountain vary in South Africa. Take heed to the total episode for the solutions to all of those fascinating questions — and skim on for an edited excerpt from the episode through which Cynthia and Nicky chat with bubble gum scientist Gwendolyn Graff to unravel bubble gum’s many mysteries.
GASTROPOD LISTENER VALARIE: What the heck is bubble gum taste? When did this change into the flavour of bubble gum? Are there commonplace bubble gum flavors in every single place and are they the identical? Has it all the time been like this? It’s change into a bizarre fixation.
CYNTHIA GRABER: Let’s begin with the primary query: What the heck is it? Why can I think about what it tastes like after I chew down, however I can’t precisely describe it?
GWENDOLYN GRAFF: I’d say that’s as a result of bubble gum is what we’d name a fantasy taste. You’re not going to have the ability to decide a bubble gum off of a tree. It’s positively made up.
NICOLA TWILLEY: That is Gwendolyn Graff, and he or she is a real-life bubble gum scientist who works in bubble gum R&D. Sure, children, that could be a job you possibly can have if you develop up.
GRABER: Fantasy taste can also be an actual factor. As an illustration, you possibly can’t discover blue raspberries on the earth, however blue raspberry taste is in Jolly Rancher candies, and popsicles…
TWILLEY: However although bubble gum is a fantasy taste, it’s primarily based on actual flavors.
GRAFF: I’d almost definitely describe it as orange plus cherry. For those who acquired two Jelly Bellies and you set an orange and a cherry collectively, you’d combine them collectively and you’d say it”s bubble gum taste.
GRABER: Thriller solved! It’s like math: cherry plus orange plus a whole lot of sweetener equals — bubble gum! However, given it’s a fantasy taste, as soon as upon a time it didn’t exist. So who’s the Einstein who got here up with this new common equation?
TWILLEY: To reply that, we have to return to the invention of bubble gum itself, which is a narrative we instructed in our chewing gum episode a few years in the past. Bubble gum was invented in 1928 by a man referred to as Walter Deemer who, imagine it or not, was an accountant. He labored at this chewing gum firm, and developing with a gum that was extra elastic and fewer sticky, so you may blow a bubble — that was his aspect hustle.
GRAFF: However truly the primary time he made bubble gum, he truly made it a mint taste. He put in some mint oils, as a result of on the time that’s what they did with gum.
GRABER: It caught on, and blowing bubbles shortly turned widespread with children, however the mint taste wasn’t an enormous hit. Gwendolyn instructed us no person is aware of precisely when somebody on the firm blended some fruit flavors collectively for his or her new bubble-y gum.
GRAFF: I’m assuming simply because it turned related to a child’s product, they began going in the direction of the fruit flavors. As a result of if you have a look at gum as an entire, mints are typically within the grownup flavors and child flavors are typically within the fruits. You possibly can see exceptions to these, however that’s principally the way it goes.
TWILLEY: Nonetheless they landed on this candy orange and cherry combine, it turned the usual bubble gum taste.
GRABER: And, as time went on, folks began utilizing bubble gum flavoring for issues that aren’t bubble gum.
TWILLEY: I actually noticed bubble gum taste soda on the shelf at a grocery store final week. And I didn’t really feel even remotely tempted to strive it. However I’m clearly not the goal market.
GRAFF: I’ve seen a number of issues. I imply, a number of candies and lollipops and stuff that’s within the confectionary market. However even, I bear in mind one yr, I believe 7-11 did a bubble gum flavored slushie. You get drinks, and clearly ice cream.
TWILLEY: And, for grownups who nonetheless love child flavors, you may get bubble gum vitality drinks and bubble gum vodka.
GRABER: I’m additionally not the target market for this, I believe it sounds fairly gross. And one other factor that at the least our listener Valarie’s son thinks is disgusting is bubble gum-flavored medication.
VALARIE: They’ll add it as a taste to assist it go down extra simply. However it’s horrible. It makes it even worse. And so now, something bubble gum taste is disgusting to him. He thinks I’m attempting to drug him each time I give him a Jelly Stomach that’s bubble gum taste.
TWILLEY: Clearly a spoonful of bubble gum doesn’t essentially assist the drugs go down. However Valarie wished to know: Are all bubble gum flavors the identical?
GRABER: Gwendolyn instructed us even inside the world of bubble gum taste there are nuances — shades of pink, let’s say.
GRAFF: Once I was a child we had Bazooka. And that one has a slight little mint in it, like a slight little little bit of wintergreen in it. So it may well type of range.
GRABER: However even when these flavors range barely from model to model, they’re nonetheless recognizable as bubble gum, they usually’re nonetheless widespread at this time.
GRAFF: I’d say that for those who’re strictly speaking about bubble gum, bubble gum might be the largest bubble gum taste.
TWILLEY: However not all gum which you could blow bubbles with is bubble gum taste, if that is sensible. Bubble gum is available in loads of different flavors.
GRAFF: Often the primary fruit that’s the commonest is strawberry. After which it tends to type of trip between grape and watermelon because the second and third.
GRABER: Gwendolyn instructed us that different international locations have widespread flavors which might be slightly uncommon to us right here within the US.
GRAFF: I occur to be within the U.Okay. proper now, and their actually widespread taste is black currant.
TWILLEY: It’s certainly, we love black currant all the pieces. Our purple Skittles and different sweets are all black currant flavored, not grape. However Gwendolyn thinks it tastes slightly bit like soiled socks.
GRAFF: And so it’s humorous, as a result of as a developer within the States, you’re like, ugh! I’m not likely a fan of this taste. However you simply must get acquainted with what it ought to style like, after which just remember to’re replicating it.
GRABER: We have been questioning if Gwendolyn may replicate any taste in bubble gum type, and Gwendolyn mentioned truly, yeah.
TWILLEY: Her personal profession is testomony to that. She has provide you with a whole lot of new bubble gum flavors in her time.
GRAFF: If I needed to provide you with a quantity, it could be within the a whole lot. Positively.
GRABER: A few of these flavors have been seasonal ones.
GRAFF: We had summer time frenzy flavors the place we’d put new flavors out. We did like a brand new product each couple weeks as a result of children similar to to strive new issues, new issues, new issues.
TWILLEY: These have been restricted time specials like pink lemonade and “triple play” tropical. To this point, so comparatively regular. However within the security of the R&D lab, Gwendolyn and her colleagues acquired as much as some actual Willy Wonka stuff.
GRAFF: I’ve tried a number of issues. We’ve tried drink flavors, we’ve tried herb flavors, we’ve tried vegetable flavors, we’ve tried meat flavors, we’ve tried pizza flavors, we’ve tried cheese flavors. There have been some humorous ones, like — any individual was like, can we do a beef jerky? Oh my goodness. Have you learnt how bizarre a beef jerky gum is? You retain eager to swallow it. It’s so bizarre. It did style like beef jerky, but it surely type of simply messed along with your thoughts. And there are some flavors which were fairly horrible: like mayonnaise taste, liquid-filled mayonnaise taste.
GRABER: I’m going to stay with the traditional, myself.