Project 7 Rainbow Ice Gourmet Gum

First things first: this isn’t technically a bubble gum, it’s a chewing gum. But with a flavor like “rainbow ice,” we figured, what the heck, we’ll review some non-bubble gums too. (It also happens to be sugar-free and “natural.” 👍)

Background

Project 7 was a specialty candy brand based in San Clemente, California, started by a guy named Tyler Merrick. The company had been around since 2008 and made some genuinely unique and enjoyable gum flavors, including this rainbow ice one. Tyler’s story is a fun one; if you want to hear how he went from inventing unusual dog foods to gum, check out the Forbes interview with him.

Yes, that’s all past tense, Project 7 is no more. The company was rebranded to Joyride Sweets in 2022 and relaunched as a partner of YouTuber Ryan Trahan. As far as we can tell, gum is no longer part of the Joyride lineup, but you can still track down Project 7 gum in a few places, like Amazon.

Why “Project 7”?

Before we go further, we should explain the name. Seven flavors? Seven founders? Nope, it’s a do-good company built around providing basic humanitarian aid for 7 causes. Project 7 donated a portion of its profits to support them; historically that’s been somewhere between 30, 50% of profits, with a minimum of 10% a year. Pretty cool. Here are the seven:

1. Deforestation, combating deforestation and promoting reforestation.
2. Hunger, addressing food insecurity and providing meals.
3. Education, improving access to education and resources.
4. Emergency Shelter, shelter and housing for those hit by disaster or homelessness.
5. Clean Drinking Water, ensuring access to safe, clean water.
6. Anti-Bullying, preventing bullying and supporting victims.
7. Malaria Treatment, prevention and treatment programs.

Over its history, the company made a real impact. Check it out 👇

Award-Winning Gum

Project 7 was known for a “Willy Wonka” approach to flavor, Birthday Cake, Cherry Lime Slush, Cotton Candy, Fairytale Fruit, and more, alongside an organic gummy bear line and organic chewies. Their Coconut Lime gum even won the Most Innovative Gum Award in 2014 from the Sweets & Snacks Expo. Congrats, Project 7! Now let’s see what the Bubble Bunch thought.

Our Take

The serving size is 2 pieces (2.8g), so that’s what we tested.

Wow, those first few bites are an explosion of nostalgia, tasting exactly like a summer snow cone doused with just about every syrup on the truck. We really enjoyed it, and you won’t find anything quite like it from another gum.

On flavor duration, opinions varied a lot. Because that opening punch is so strong, the drop-off feels especially pronounced, after a few minutes you’ll definitely notice the flavor has faded, even though some of it lingers.

Texture-wise, it’s a little on the hard side, which can be the case with natural gums, but nothing too rough. And since this is a chewing gum, we didn’t judge it on bubble-blowing, that wouldn’t make much sense here.