We Sampled and Ranked 7 Fruit Riot! Flavors from Worst to Best

I love watermelon-flavored everything, so when Fruit Riot watermelon caught my eye in a grocery freezer endcap, I became very curious as to what it was. Little did I know I had just stumbled upon a viral sensation that I’ve been missing for over a year!

Fruit Riot is frozen fruit, generally splashed with lemon juice as part of its sour candy coating. If you’ve never heard of the brand, it could be because these viral products have been flying off the shelves since they were first introduced. With just a quick Google search, you will find fans across Canada and the U.S. clambering for these frozen treats, touting their praises, and even creating copycat recipes for those who just can’t find them.

But are the fruits worth all the hype or just for sheer shock value? That’s what I put my sights on solving. I knew I would be ranking these frozen fruits based on what I both did and didn’t want. Something painfully puckering with no flavor value would immediately be ranked lower. Frozen fruit that was multi-dimensional — playful, juicy, flavorful, and sour without locking my jaws — would rank higher. With this in mind, I went looking for every Fruit Riot flavor I could get my hands on. And keeping these categories in mind, I’ve put them in their respective places of satisfaction.

Some recommendations are based on firsthand impressions of promotional materials and products provided by the manufacturer.

I remember when Warheads hit the U.S. scene back in the ’90s. And I will admit it was fun watching friends cough and contort while trying not to spit out the little sour candies. But it was pure novelty and not something we purchased for flavor’s sake, unlike the Trolli Sour Brite Crawlers, which are ranked as the best sour candy on the shelves. So, when I saw that the Fruit Riot Extreme Sour Grapes Watermelon Blast was flavored with this shockingly sour brand, I felt my first instincts about Fruit Riot were correct. These candied fruits would be no more than something simply to taunt the tongue. And as far as this flavor goes, I wasn’t entirely wrong.

These brightly colored hot pink and green candy-coated confections screamed “watermelon” as a sugary scent quickly escaped the bag upon opening. And the look and smell weren’t the only aspects that went full tilt. As I popped one in my mouth, a truly sour taste began to take over my palate. It quickly leaned into an almost bitter and salty level that burned the back of my throat. While the watermelon flavor did make a consolation appearance, it was extremely slight and was quickly surpassed by the burning sourness that stayed well past its welcome. No taste of grape was ever noticeable. And while there was a fun, crunchy aspect of candy, these are best left to those who enjoy a challenge when they eat. I am just not one of those people.

This Fruit Riot Sour Mango Mix features pieces of fresh mango that have been splashed with lemon juice and coated with strawberry and peach flavored candy. A lovely peach smell erupted from the bag as soon as I opened it, presenting large pieces of pink and peachy colored mango chunks. Going with the scent, I chose to try a peach first and immediately experienced a tongue-tightening tartness that I didn’t like. The peach flavor was abundant, but it left very little room for the mango to come through.

Wondering if I was going to get the same seemingly artificial tartness from the strawberry flavor, I warily popped one in my mouth. The candied strawberry flavor didn’t come across as bold as the peach. But with this piece, I could enjoy the candy coating, which was a fun crunch to bite into. The strawberry was a welcome reprieve because it didn’t deliver the completely over-the-top tartness I found in the peach.

While I enjoyed the strawberry flavor in this mix, the peach was a little too much for me. This one is much more tame than the Extreme Sour Warheads version, but still not for the faint of tart.

Mixed berry, lemon lime, and green apple are the flavor profiles in this mixed bag. Extremely colorful in shades depicting their namesakes, I went in first for the yellow-colored lemon lime. It took me a couple of tries to really get flavor over the sourness, but when I did it was comparable to sucking on a lemon. While there may have been sweetness there, it was hard to catch between the bitter beginning and sour ending.

The mixed berry was next and hit hard with the sweet and sour, but this time in a way I thoroughly enjoyed. This one had me nodding my head in understanding of how these little treats had become so popular so quickly. Unlike anything I’ve ever tried, both taste and texture hit all at once in the best way possible. Berries, candy crunch, cold, juicy, sour, sweet — it sent my mind whirling in a way I’ve never experienced before, but want to over and over again.

The brightly colored green apple matched its bold appearance with a true-to-life green apple tartness that quickly climbed to much higher levels. The sweetness nicely matched the tartness, but they both were a bit excessive. While I appreciated that the taste and texture did call to mind a Granny Smith apple, it was still overdone for my tastes. While I’d happily share a bag just to get the mixed berry, I’d pass on the other flavors in the Fruit Riot Sour Grape Mix.  

These mango pieces were curiously smaller than the other variety, but I enjoyed having a slighter sample for my mouth to experience. On first bite, I immediately found the sourness, but this time it was at a level that I welcomed and didn’t mind when it hung around. There was also something very familiar in the tartness that I couldn’t immediately put my finger on. Thankfully, the size of the bites allowed me to easily pop several to investigate. And what I found was a fresh-from-the-tree, possibly picked a few days too soon, fruit flavor.

I appreciated the fresh authenticity the Fruit Riot Sour Mango delivered, even if it did take a bit to get there. The texture was soft and easy to chew. The sour had power but was nicely balanced by the sweet. While I first assumed these would be hard and daringly tart, I’m happy to say that wasn’t the case at all. These sour mango bites are well-balanced, refreshing, and pleasant to pop. It’s a warm weather treat most would enjoy, but not necessarily worth a riot.

There are many ways to make candied grapes, and this iteration is one of Fruit Riot’s original line-up. And with just one taste, it’s easy to understand their popularity. The first thing I noticed about these grapes was how large and plump they were. The candy coating made them appear as if they were covered in ice crystals, which made them exceedingly enticing. I was happy to pop one in my mouth and find that the grape flavor was immediately evident, juicy, and delightful.

The texture was lush and burst in my mouth. The sourness, while a bit bold, was still tamer to the palate than those ranked lower and didn’t linger quite as long. The candy sweetness seemed slight as the sweetness of the grapes took center stage — pleasantly fresh and fruity.

While these did leave my mouth smacking from the tartness, I couldn’t help but want more. It made me wonder why the brand had thought it wise to stray so far from the original recipe, as these were quite lovely bites. However, those thoughts were quickly dashed as my palate was pleased upon venturing into the newest flavor options.

The recent collab between Fruit Riot and Olipop resulted in this Candy Crunch Cherries Vintage Cola flavored fruit. After tasting just one, I immediately understood why my local stores cannot keep them in stock. While I appreciated that these are the first “not so sour” flavor Fruit Riot I tried, I’m usually not a fan of Olipop soda. And for that reason, I didn’t expect much from this option. I was so wrong!

There was still a decent bit of tanginess that hit my tongue as soon as I popped one of these in my mouth. The cola flavor soon made an appearance and sent me spiraling into a fresh cherry cola candy foray of flavor. Sweet, cherry, crunchy, chilly, soft, juicy, cola, cherry, cola — my mouth could not keep up with all of the taste and texture sensations that filled my cheeks and danced across my tongue.

I was so surprised at both the taste and the experience that just one of these little treats brought to my tongue. I could easily eat a whole bag. And I promise you I won’t be sharing the one I do have. Let the riot commence, these cherry ones are worth stalking the shelves for, but there’s another option that’s just a little bit more glorious.

Appearance-wise, the Fruit Riot Spicy Mango Chili Lime bites do not look altogether appetizing. Of all of the flavors, this is the one I least wanted to try. But I’m so glad I did. Splashed with lime juice, these freshly frozen bites of mango are coated in a candy crunch of sugar, salt, and crushed, dried chili peppers. These are wonderfully executed in all the right ways. The lime brings an immediate brightness to the taste profile, followed quickly by a juicy mango flavor. And while I expected the heat to come in with a punch, I was delighted to taste it creeping in slowly with a warmth to the frozen juiciness of the fruit.

Fans of Tajín will spice up a variety of fruit, including mango, but I always imagined it as a cultural dish that one loves because they grew up with it. If you try to give it to someone unfamiliar with the taste, it’s doubtful they will want to try it, let alone love it, but that’s incorrect. Fruit Riot’s newest flavor is the perfect example of why you should keep an open mind. And when it comes to these spicy mango bites, an open mouth. This is a true treat not to be missed. 

When I went in for this tasting, I started with the originals and moved my way through to the newest flavors. I tasted each one carefully. Before beginning, I thought I was just going to be enduring outlandish, popularly puckering flavors. And for the ones at the bottom of the list, that is close to the experience I had. But as I tasted my way closer to the top spot, my wants came to fruition, allowing me to experience sweet, sour, refreshingly juicy, beyond-satisfying flavors that became more robust and more pleasing to the palate.

Being someone who tasted each of these flavors at least three times, I can say without a doubt, you have to be a real fan of sour to endure the ones ranked lowest. For first timers, I would highly suggest starting with the original sour grapes and mango in the middle. These options give a good baseline of well-balanced, sweet and sour frozen fruit. But once you know what to expect, go for the gusto of the top two, if you’re lucky enough to find them. The top Fruit Riot flavors have unique profiles that are both delectable and transportive — an adventure for all the senses and an adventure I highly suggest you embark on.