I had always called these "flavored Tootsie Rolls," but it turns out that their real name is the somewhat more cumbersome "Tootsie Brand Flavor Roll Twisties."  If that doesn't scream "this product name was designed by committee," I don't know what does.

As a general rule, I am opposed to individually wrapped candies on ethical, ecological grounds.  How much waste do we need in our lives?  Those little wrappers were once a natural resource which had to be cut down, and transported, and milled up, and waxed, and printed, and shipped, and now you're just going to un-twist it and throw it away.  We waste too much in this country, and wrappers like this are an excellent example.

However, I'll give these wrappers a pass for three reasons.  First, they aren't cellophane wrappers.  Cellophane wrappers are a petroleum product, and we want to save our petroleum and not waste it on stupid stuff like wrapping candy.  Second, the waxed paper wrappers are at least theoretically biodegradable.  Personally I wadded them all up into a ball and burned them in my wood stove, but I think you could probably compost them without too much trouble.  

(Some chemistry wonk is going to come barging in here talking about how you don't want the wax residue in your compost heap.  Trust me; the wax residue left behind from a handful of Tootsie Roll [excuse me, "Tootsie Brand Flavor Roll Twisties"] is the least of your worries in life.

Third, this is a candy which is aimed at the "office reception desk" market.  And I get completely skeeved out by office reception desk candy that isn't individually wrapped to protect it from the disgusting germs that are on the unwashed hands of your office mates.

I didn't think to buy some regular Tootsie Rolls when I bought these, which is too bad.  I think the regular chocolate Tootsie Rolls have a slightly chewier texture, but I can't verify that.  On the texture front, Flavor Roll Twisties perform admirably.  They give up a lot of resistance to that first bite, which is tremendously satisfying.   After a few chews they soften up, finally melting away at the finish.  I approve.

Unfortunately the flavors are uneven at best.  Flavored Tootsie Rolls come in five flavors: orange, vanilla, lemon, cherry, and lime.  From best to worst:

Lemon: I liked the lemon flavor the best, which is not what I would have guessed.  It has a mild lemon cream flavor, and is quite pleasant without being the least bit tangy.

Lime: This flavor is slightly more aggressive than lemon, with a much more overtly citrus flavor and aftertaste.

Vanilla: Wholly unremarkable.  If I hadn't read the wrapper, I probably would have guessed it was "marshmallow" or maybe "cotton candy" flavor.  It's that flavor which can best be described as "white."

Orange: I'm not a fan of artificial orange flavor.  Even so, this was a pretty decent artificial orange.  It tasted like Creamsicles.  There are worse tastes in the world.

Cherry: This is like cough syrup, but chewier.  And the volume on this flavor is turned up several notches compared to the others.  Avoid.