We ’ve all chewed Juicy Fruit gumwood at some point , enjoy the sweet for about 20 seconds before it completely dissipate and turn into a rubbery wad devoid of all flavor .
But what on the nose is that distinctively delicious flavor that in brief tickles our taste buds ? Wrigley has kept the secret fixings under wrap for decades ; a wrapper from 1946 describe the alone discernment as “ a fascinating artificial flavor . ”
One sports fan allegedly email the company in 2002 and gotthis reception :

Despite the company ’s response , some people cerebrate the gum try less like common citrus tree and banana tree , and more like an exotic fruit ring jackfruit ; it even has asimilar aroma . However , this probably is n’t the casing because , as Today I Found Outpoints out , there do n’t seem to be any records of Wrigley ever importing the fruit or its succus .
Instead of actual fruit or even yield infusion , some chemistsbelievethat the gum smell like jackfruit because they both contain a chemical substance called isoamyl acetate . Isoamyl acetate , sometimes mention to as banana rock oil or essence of pear , is a common ingredient in house of cards gumwood , and some fruit produce it by nature as they ripen .
When Juicy Fruit first appeared on store shelves back in 1893 , isoamyl ethanoate was most commonly produced by whiskey distillery as a by-product — and at the time , Illinois , also home to Wrigley , bring out more than 18 million gallons of the hard stuff every yr . Smells Like skill speculates that Wrigley buy isoamyl acetate from local distillery until a synthetical process became useable some years later .
Much like the Colonel ’s 11 mysterious herbs and spices , or Coke ’s " 7x " flavoring , we may never know what , precisely , is in Juicy Fruit gingiva . But there is one matter wedoknow : it ’s delicious — for 20 seconds .
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