The choices are endless as soon as one approaches the supermarket checkout counter and peruses the variety of chewing gum for sale. A shopper can be overwhelmed when trying to decide on a choice of gum to go with for the week. I recently decided to pick up a pack of Wrigley’s 5 Rain chewing gum. My decision was based on the product being on sale for $1.09 down from a $1.39 which was the stated regular price. Wrigley 5 Rain is actually a flashy label spearmint gum. My allegiance to chewing gum brands is non-existent as I will usually go with whatever is on sale and tastes half way decent. The purpose of mint gum is twofold for me: to deter myself from chewing nails and to act as a good after-meal breath freshener.
Taste
When I popped in a stick of this green gum I noticed an intense spearmint flavor right away. The taste met my expectations and was decent enough. Like all other aspartame gums, I got that fake sugar hit right on the first bite, but that faded away quickly. The gum actually tastes better a few minutes later and seems to hold flavor for a few hours unlike Wrigley’s Doublemint gum that fades immediately.
Quantity and Packaging
The pack of gum holds fifteen sticks of green gum wrapped in a fancy green foil wrapper. The sticks are stacked in three rows of five within a fancy paper black box with a flip lid that open and closes easily with each use. Wrigley took things a step above Orbit and Stride with this fancy packaging reminiscent of a high end cigarette box with flashy packaging. This is a far stretch beyond the foil trays of tablet gums or the Dentyne or Trident foil wrapped minis. I like the concise shape of this box as it fits nicely in the small dashboard compartment of my car or even in my backpack.
Price
This purchase was a mild $1.19 per package with competition priced anywhere between $1.29 and $1.79 for a similar quantity of spearmint gum. The price was more than fair given I purchased this gum on sale, but I think the regular price of $1.39 is also well within market of competition.
Overall Opinion
While I enjoy the packaging, look and price of Wrigley’s 5 rain spearmint gum, I will consider this average at best. I would definitely buy it again, but probably spend a tad more for the miniature sized gum pieces sold by Trident and Dentyne. I have a bias to the smaller pieces of gum as opposed to the long flat Wrigley gum that packs an aspartame wallop upon first chew.
