Main Taste Test: Gum

It used to be that drugstores stocked four or five kinds of gum because there were only four or five to stock. Chiclets, Wrigley’s, Trident, Juicy Fruit, and the odd pack of Teaberry: That about summed it up. These days, though, you can’t shake a stick in a deli without hitting about 500 different things to chew, in every possible combination of flavor, texture, and packaging gimmick. We assembled a panel of tasters—including chef Wylie Dufresne and his pastry chef, Alex Stupak—to chew until we found the most satisfying stick out there.

Pictured:
Fruit Strip Bubble Gum: Mixed Fruit, Cherry, Cotton Candy, Lemon. Fruit Stripe 5 Juicy Flavors: Peach Smash, Lemon, Wet n Wild Melon, Orange. Adams: Sour Cherry Gum, Sour Apple. Clark's: Cinnamon, Teaberry.

Photographs by Levi Brown

Hubba Bubba Bubble Tape: Gushing Grape, Strawberry, Green Apple, Blue Raspberry.

Big League Chew Bubble Gum: Ground Ball Grape, Outta' Here Original, Sour Apple, Watermelon. Espeez Gold Mine Nugget Bubble Gum.

Rainblo: Assorted flavors. Hubba Bubba Max: Cherry-Lemonade, Outrageous Original, Strawberry-Watermelon, Island Punch, Sour Double Berry, Grape-Berry. Razzles: Grape, Orange, Raspberry, Blueberry.

Pictured:
Extra Sugar Free: Peppermint, Polar Ice, Winterfresh, Cool Green Apple, Supermint, Classic Bubblegum, Cherry Pearadise, Spearmint, Cool Watermelon. Target Bubblegum Cigarettes: Grape, Original.

5 Gum: Rain, Flare. Black Jack Chewing Gum. Wrigley's: Big Red, Juicy Fruit, Winterfresh, Spearmint, Doublemint. Trident: Minty Sweet Twist, Original Flavor, Watermelon Twist, Tropical Twist, Cinnamon.

Orbit: Bubblemint, Cinnamint, Raspberry Mint, Citrusming, Lemon-Lime, Sweetmint, Mint Mojito, Wintermint, Spearmint, Peppermint. Stride: Sweet Peppermint, Winterblue, Forever Fruit, Spearmint.

Ice Breakers Fruit Sours: Watermelon, Apple, Pink Lemonade. Ice Breakers Berry Sours: Strawberry, Berry Splash, Raspberry Lemonade. Japanese Bubble Gum: Peach, Cider, Apple, Coke. Bazooka Bubble Gum: Original. Ice Breakers Centers: Spearmint. Ice Breakers Lift: Strawberry. Super Bubble: Original, Grape. Ice Breakers Cubes: Dragonfruit Freeze, Raspberry Sorbet, Peppermint, Spearmint, Bubble Breeze.

Eclipse White: Spearmint, Polar Ice, Midnight Cool, Peppermint, Cinnamon Inferno, Winterfrost. Trident White: Cool Colada. Trident Splash: Strawberry with Lime, Apple with Raspberry, Summer Spearmint. Nutra-Trim Gum: Berry.Jolt Caffeine Energy Gum: Spearmint, Icymint. Glee Gum: Cinnamon, Peppermint. Orbit White: Melon Breeze, Spearmint, Peppermint, Peppermint, Bubblemint, Wintermint. Eclipse Fusion: Peppermint Berry, Freshmint Tropical, Spearmint Melon. Eclipse Fusion: Winterfrost, Cinnamon Inferno, Spearmint Melon. Boss Lady Cinnamon Gum. Choward’s Scented Gum.