This is the first review in a one-off bonus series covering the items in a Snack Crate subscription box, which found its way to my parent’s mailbox. For more details on this, check out the introductory post.

Just taking a quick glance at this package, I thought I had this one all figured out. I mean, how could it be that substantially different than “peach rings”, that American candy that you see all the time in bulk wholesale candy vats, but never actually see anyone ever eat or hear anyone talk about. It shouldn’t come as a shock that I like the intensely fake peach flavor of those, and, despite the different appearance of these, buckled myself in for a similar experience.

The main difference comes at you right off the bat: these certainly ain’t rings. Instead, they look like malformed peaches…actually, the more I look at them, they look like lemons. A peach candy that looks like a lemon. Even the peaches on the front packaging look terribly disfigured…I don’t understand why they couldn’t just make it look more peachlike. Even the candy itself looks lemony, with a kind of yellow-orange exterior, and a pretty neat reddish-orange interior. The pieces appear soft, and it’s all covered in sugar, one of the major similarities it does share with its American cousin. Would the tastes be similar?

Whoa, not quite! This is a pleasant surprise. It still packs in an intensely artificial peach flavor that’s somewhat similar to the ringed version, but there’s also an almost…delayed release of peach that comes out all at once. It’s almost like the juicy bursts…and now the coloring is making more sense: that reddish-orange interior that I liked is the liquid center, which carries most of the flavoring. Maynard’s seems to like utilizing the liquid center flavor delivery system because both candies I’ve tried from them have done this.

I wasn’t sure how I felt at first, but the more I eat these the more I think I prefer them to the “American” peach rings. The flavor here is just a tad bit more believable, and also comes rushing into your mouth all at once, thanks to a burst of flavor located in the center. The texture is also a little bit softer, making them a more pleasurable experience than peach rings, which can be a little hard and overly aggressive (especially when they’re a little old, but not quite stale). I’d compare them to gummy worms, in terms of consistency, with a nice soft initial bite leading to a relatively pleasant chewing experience.

They’re nothing mind-blowing, or all that different, but these are a tasty alternative to peach rings that I would definitely try again.

Overall: 7/10. I like the “American” peach rings, and expected Maynard’s to deliver something similar, but I’ll be damned if those Canadians didn’t have a few tricks up their sleeves! This one utilizes a liquid center to deliver a nice rush of (artificial) peach flavor that hits your tastebuds all at once, delivering a tasty burst of flavor. They also have a softer texture than the rings, and are smaller, making them much easier to chew and swallow, which makes them more “enjoyable” overall.