I have a slight obsession with the happy world of Haribo.
If you don’t know Haribo, they’re the makers of some of the world’s best gummy candy.
I know I’ve written about another favorite gummy-maker, Vidal, but my love for Haribo goes back decades and still burns strong.
I am particularly partial to international Haribo varieties. I love the exotic flavors, unique themes and the fun of trying something unusual and different.
My favorite way to try international Haribo varieties is to buy them myself while traveling. Thankfully, I’m also fortunate to have friends and family in other countries who have hooked me up with Haribo gummies from around the world.
Ready to hear about some of my all-time favorite Haribo varieties?
- Tropifrutti typ Joghurt from Germany are flavorful, colorful and come in fun, paradise-inspired shapes like palm trees, exotic parrots and island fruits. This was a limited-edition summer rollout with incredible flavors including passion fruit, mango-tangerine, pineapple, pomegranate, banana and melon. They have a unique waxy/firm feel in the mouth, and I am crazy about them!
- Happy Life from France had me with the rainbow packaging. This is an assortment mix made up of other Haribo varieties, including several marshmallow-backed gummies and I always like those. You can get Haribo Starmix and Funtastic Mix bags in the US, which offer a similar mixed assortment.
- Happy Lemonade from Germany are in the shape of familiar gummy cola bottles, but come in lemonade-inspired flavors including Lemon Mint, Raspberry Elderberry, and Cucumber Lime. I love that these don’t seem as sweet as American gummies and the flavors are outstanding. A very refreshing gummy choice!
- Sunset Drive from Germany wins for best overall theming. It starts with a gorgeous, Hollywood-themed package and gummies shaped like convertibles, rollerskates, Hollywood stars and palm trees. The fruit flavors are good here, too, and some are marshmallow-backed which are always my favorite gummies.
- Oeufs au Plat from France have long been a favorite of mine. I remember buying gummy fried eggs at candy shops in England way back when I was a kid! These have a great flavor, fun shape and terrific mouthfeel thanks to the firm marshmallow of the “egg white.”
- Mhmmaracuja from Germany is impossible to pronounce but such a fun variety. They are round, sugar-sanded fruit gums with marshmallow-backing on one side. This gummy is where I learned that the maracujá fruit is also known as passion fruit and can be found in two varieties: one purple and the other one yellow, which are also the colors of these gummies. Great passion fruit flavor!
We’ve tried the most Haribo varieties from Germany, because our former German exchange student hooks us up every time she visits (as you can see from the photo up top).
It’s also fairly easy to get international Haribo gummies on Amazon – you can find some from France, Germany and other places. I’m partial to this Haribo World mix, which is from France but also features Haribo gummies from all over the globe.
I can’t write a post about Haribo gummies without giving a shout-out to my top favorite of all time, good old American Gummy Frogs.
Interestingly, I tried the German equivalent known as Quaxi last summer and I did not like them as much. That is literally the only time I’ve ever preferred the American version of a candy to the European version. Way to go, Gummy Frogs!
Remember, if you don’t want to buy from Amazon or order from an international sweet shop online and pay for shipping, there’s always my favorite local plug, Jay at Buckeye Candy Company in Gahanna. He has a great selection of international sweets and the shop is adorable and well worth a visit. Costplus World Market also has a decent international sweets selection.
Happy Haribo-ing!
