While first-generation Pop-Tarts were simply marked by flakey flour-based crust and flavored filling, by the late 60s, Kellogg’s added an icing layer both to infuse them with extra flavor and keep the toaster pastries cool to the touch. Not long after, they added a dusting of sprinkles (because who doesn’t love sprinkles?!). Now, they’re known for so many different flavor options! Unlike the flavor magicians over at Kellogg’s, who put loads of consumer research into developing new products, we casually recruited a small and non-representative sample of taste testers to embark on a wild sugar high. The ask: To blind taste-test every Pop-Tarts flavor we could get our hands on,* describe the taste, and guess the actual flavor. Little did these testers know they’d be left with an everlasting aftertaste and some very strong opinions regarding which flavors should and should not be on shelves. Because it’s not every day you get to sample 26 kinds of toaster pastry, here’s a peek at how the tasting adventure—which, in the name of transparency, included prosecco palette cleaners—played out.
Pop-Tart Flavors, Ranked
Frosted Cinnamon Roll
One taster described this flavor as “very Snackwell,” which speaks to its consistency (when you’re talking to children of the 90s). Another likened it to a Fig Newton while one swore she tasted apple.
Tropical Mango
Taste testers were all over the place in their attempts to guess this flavor, with hypotheses that ranged from citrus to lemon to sherbert. Something about this flavor felt classier than alternatives, one taster noted.
Frosted Hot Fudge Sundae
While it can be difficult to describe what’s going on inside any given Pop-Tarts flavor, tasters agreed the filling in this flavor tasted a lot like frosting—even chocolate birthday cake or brownie. The crew’s biggest complaint was a distinct and lingering aftertaste, which follows almost any Pop-Tarts flavor you choose.
Frosted Red Velvet Cupcake
Because this Pop-Tarts flavor has a distinct, red velvet-y color, tasters’ flavor guesses were largely on the mark. However, the pastry’s appearance set expectations a bit too high: “It tastes like it’s trying too hard, and I’m disappointed,” one taster remarked as she started a “spit cup” for samples that didn’t deserve to be swallowed.
Frosted Boston Creme Donut
“It tastes like cake—no, chocolate cupcake!” one taster decided, and the others agreed. When the real flavor was revealed, everyone was surprised. “I definitely wasn’t going to guess that,” one said.
Unfrosted Blueberry
Tasters got all the feels when trying this unfrosted number, which no one mistook for anything besides blueberry. “It makes me feel nostalgic,” one said. “This one would be one of my go-tos.”
Frosted Chocolate Chip
“I know!” one taster proclaimed: “It’s Keebler Fudge Cookie!” While her guess didn’t align with the actual flavor, according to Kellogg’s, the description was right on, the panel agreed.
Frosted Brown Sugar Cinnamon
Testers immediately identified this flavor as a classic and noted tasting both cinnamon and sugar.
Peach Cobbler
“Is this another mango thing?” one taster wondered aloud before likening it to a candied orange peel. “It’s…kinda weird?” Another described it as an “[explicative] peach gummy,” while another straight-up passed up her sample, turned off by the chunky appearance of the frosting, which she described as creamsicle in color.
Frosted S’mores
“Ok, I don’t have to try the rest,” one taster declared upon first taste. “This is the best one!” While this toaster pastry’s filling lacks the burnt marshmallow and pure milk chocolate notes you’d expect to enjoy fireside, the flavor still hit the spot for most tasters, who appreciated the chocolatey filling as much as they did when they were kids.
Frosted Raspberry
While testers thought the flavor could be strawberry, sour gummy, Swedish fish, or candy fruit slice, few could nail down the actual berry at play, here. The closest guess was Linzer cookie, which one taster arrived at after identifying notes of vanilla in the pastry dough.
Frosted Cookies and Creme
Tasters were quick to identify the Oreo-like cookie notes in this flavor and promptly landed on cookies and cream. This flavor, they said, toed a fine line between sweet enough and too sweet, but given the choice, they’d choose seconds on S’mores over this semi-similar flavor.
Frosted Chocolate Fudge
This chocolatey flavor definitely delivered on fudge with just a little hint of saltiness. Taste testers agreed they’d appreciate it more heated and hoped a toaster would melt the filling.**
Frosted Blueberry
This flavor was on the nose—there was no mistaking the blueberry filling. Tasters especially appreciated the subtly sweet frosting.
Kellogg’s Eggo Frosted Maple Flavor
The tasting panel unanimously agreed that this flavor should a) never have happened and b) be discontinued immediately. The bias began at first sight after one taster likened the frosting’s appearance to scrambled eggs. The first scent didn’t help much either: “It smells like…curry?” one taster guessed; thereafter, no one could argue. Another suggested this flavor could be used to turn kids off from Pop-Tarts, while another complained just one bite left such a persistent aftertaste that she felt like she was breathing “maple curry fire.” There was one fan who liked the taste better than the smell, but no one came close to crowning it a favorite.
Frosted Wild Berry
Taste-testers couldn’t quite nail down the precise berry flavor in this toaster pastry, which was affectionately described as raspberry, blueberry pie, and Bonne Maman jam by different tasers. “This,” one proclaimed, “tastes like my childhood. I love it.”
Unfrosted Strawberry
Among those who’d genuinely like to think of Pop-Tarts as perfectly a reasonable breakfast food, this unfrosted flavor had legitimate appeal: One remarked that they’d (almost) feel comfortable serving this flavor to their toddler, while another described it as a Whole Food’s brand knock-off fit for a tea party. While the flavor offended no one, tasters agreed that it was difficult to discern the precise fruit featured in the filling: “All of the berry flavors sort of meld,” one said. (Editor’s note: They were 17 flavors in.)
Frosted Cherry
While some thought they recognized this flavor as one of the originals (it’s not!), others compared it to cough syrup and complained that it tasted highly processed.
Frosted Strawberry
No one needed to see the box to identify this flavor: It tasted distinctly like sweetened strawberry. “A good go-to staple,” one taster declared.
Frosted Confetti Cupcake
This flavor delighted our testers, who’d mostly given up on the prospect of these toaster pastries being appropriate for breakfast. They described it enthusiastically as birthday cake, funfetti, vanilla cupcake, and frosting—nothing they’d send back to the chef, that’s for sure.
Froot Loops Flavor
This flavor flummoxed our blind tasters, who apparently found a Pop-Tarts/cereal collaboration to be quite unexpected. At first guess based on scent alone, one thought she picked up notes of Hawaiian sunscreen while another sensed lemon air freshener and another compared the smell to hairspray. One taster even suggested the flavor could come in handy if you lost your sense of smell during COVID: “This will help you get it back.” Eventually, they all agreed: The pastries taste remarkably like Trix cereal! (N-O-P-E.) At least they were close.
Unfrosted Brown Sugar Cinnamon
At first, tasters mistook brown sugar for maple syrup, but definitely picked up on notes of cinnamon. One deemed it too sweet, while another missed the frosting, which is crazy considering they’d sampled 22 Pop-Tarts at this point! “I think I’ve reached my max sugar saturation,” one taster declared. “I’m getting nauseous, but also feel like this would be better with milk?”
Frosted Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
Unlike other Pop-Tarts flavors that are filled with what’s best described as a “weird gelatinous texture,”** our tasters agreed, this variety’s filling is “very sweet and cookie-like.” At first, the flavor was tough to nail down—but after several very welcome second tastes, the panel unanimously agreed that it fell somewhere between Golden Grahams and Dunkaroos. “Easily the best one, yet,” one taster proclaimed. “It’s better than S’mores!”
Frosted Chocolatey Churro
While the scent resembles other Pop-Tarts flavors save notes of cinnamon and sugar, tasters liked the chunky sugar coating, which contributes a unique crunch.
Salted Caramel Pretzel
For a particular pretzel lover, this flavor fell short on the salty notes: “They should have just named this flavor ‘Pancake.’” The caramel came off as maple, which some read as an unconvincing attempt to position these Pop-Tarts as breakfast food.
Banana Creme Pie
From some, the flavor was unmistakable: “One-hundred percent circus peanut!” one taster proclaimed. “I don’t know how they did it, but it’s horribly nostalgic and I’m terrified the aftertaste will never go away.” BONUS: Entirely Unsolicited Feedback Because the panel was full of opinions, they took it upon themselves to suggest some untapped flavors and/or partnerships that would surely shine in Pop-Tarts-form: Spanakopita, Hot Pocket, Combos, M&M or Peanut M&M, PJ&J, Uncrustables, and Nutella. Kelloggs: Do with this what you wish, and don’t forget to send royalties to the writer! *All Pop-Tarts were provided by Kellogg’s. Thank you Kellogg’s! **All Pop-Tarts were tasted at room temperature, or rather, below room temperature as the tasting was conducted outdoors. Toasting may affect the flavor, foreseeably in a good way. An extra special thanks to tasters Kristen Joyce, Xun Foo, Kerry White, Liz Wilson, Michelle Clemmens, Wendy Lew, and Alyson Ryan for their unrelenting commitment, good humor, and expert commentary. May their blood sugar soon return to normal.
