Pucker Up

Maria Sharapova is a tennis sensation. She’s a strong woman ranked number three in the world of tennis with four Grand Slam titles. What else could she possibly have? A sweet heart and a healthy addiction to gummy candies which has led to her interest in creating her own gummy-candy line: Sugarpova.

While a few of the treats might seem represented as nostalgic candies like gummy worms or sour straws, some of them are designed to appear a bit different than your average Swedish Fish. Bright and colorful with intentions to bring out the fun and flirty side of Sharapova’s candies, each one has a cute theme to match a sweet or sour flavor (all but one of the gummies I tried that were labeled “sour” lack the expected kick of actual sourness). I excitedly dove into the Smitten: Sour candies which are tiny, rainbow colored strips with a decent but not overwhelming sour tang—perfect!

 These candies offer tastes of familiarity (the nostalgia of fruit snacks we ate when we were kids comes to mind). That is, except the sweet chewables called Quirky. I can’t really put my finger on the familiar taste but “addicting” is something I can pin down, for sure. These cylindrical soft chews are smooth in texture with pleasant strawberry-vanilla flavor (with more sweet cream in the middle).

Sharapova is Russian, so there’s no Inland Empire tie-in there. However she is making a stop at the La Quinta Resort & Club to show off her tasty candies, sign autographs and meet fans. You know, since she’s going to be competing in the area, making this the perfect opportunity to give these cute treats a try. Plus, raffles will be abound and you might win tickets to her first 2013 match as well as a signed racquet that’s up for grabs.

Wed, March 6. 5:20pm. La Quinta Resort & Club, 49-499 Eisenhower Dr., La Quinta, (800) 598-3828; www.laquintaresort.com; www.sugarpova.com.