December 2023

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wacky Wafers

Leaf Brand

I always have a hard time with the definition of “wafer”. My first instinct is that a wafer is a thin cookie that often has a square like pattern on it. You might recognize a wafer as the thing found in a Kit Kat bar, Maner Bar, or used often in Vortman’s cookies. The thing is, you can also use it to simply describe a candy or treat that is really flat. I feel like it’s not that common anymore to use the word wafer as a description of the thickness of a treat, but I also feel like Wacky Wafers have been around for a very long time.

The other thing that makes me think that Wacky Wafers have been around for a very long time is the kind of candy it is. They’re basically round disks of compressed powder candy. While this kind of candy is still beloved today, it feel like an old fashioned candy. I rarely see new candies made from this compressed powder technique. When I eat a candy made from compressed powder the first word in my mind is retro. Again, not saying it’s not good, it’s just old fashioned.

The flavour of these also screams retro. They’re kind of sour, but not extremely sour. I feel like 20 or 30 years ago these would have been considered very sour, but by today’s standards they’re just a little sour. The fruit flavours are fine, but they’re very fake. They’re also not that flavourful. I feel like the sour is much stronger than the fruit flavour, and I was left wanting a little more fruit flavour, even if it was fake.

I didn’t mind eating these, and I’m sure they’re someone’s favourite candy, just not mine. Considering I don’t like most apple, banana, and watermelon candies, I wasn’t totally disappointed that the flavour wasn’t that strong. If I just tasted the orange and strawberry I would have been much more disappointed. These really are a powder explosion when you eat them, so much so that I even let out a few coughs after eating one.