Jelly Belly Factory   Fairfield California April 2009

Wow Jelly Belly’s are my favorite candies in the WHOLE world. So this was a must for us to see in California! Of course they would not let us take pictures during the factory tours, but we were able to get plenty in the gift shop. The kid’s favorite part was the sample bar. I decided my favorite are still pear, Peach, green apple, buttered popcorn, and pina colada. My least favorite was moldy cheese, Grass, vomit, and ear wax. These were not eaten by choice, but they were trick beans.  A cool thing we learned is that Jelly Beans were made after a favorite candy Turkish delight. This is one of my favorite candies. It is also the candy that the white witch used to trick Peter in the Lion the Witch and The Wardrobe by CS Lewis. Now I know why they were so tempting to me.

Here is the crew in line waiting for the tour. We loved the hats! 

 

We loved the pictures that were made out the Beans. Here are our favorite picks. The pictures are huge and look so real!  

 

 

We loved MR Jelly Belly! He is so cute I could just eat him up.

My favorite part of the tour was learning about the Goelitz Brothers. They were amazing brothers who never gave up and followed their dreams. Below I have a quick summary about the brothers and their company. I copied this information from the Jelly Belly site. Here is the link if you would like more information.   http://www.jellybelly.com/about_jelly_belly/company_history.aspx 

This is a great place to visit when you are in the California area. It is just a short drive from San Francisco. The tour was very educational and interesting for the kids. The tour is also great for all age groups of children. There is something fun for everyone to do. We were able to see all stages of the making the candy to packaging the candy. Your kids will be surprised to see how much work it takes to make a jelly belly. It can take 7 to 21 days to make a bean depending on the flavor. The beans even go through a shining process. Jelly Belly’s also make 98 different types of candy beside Jelly Beans. We also thought it was cool that they are shaped like eggs to symbolize spring.

Below there are also some cool facts about Jelly Belly’s. I enjoyed learning about how Ronald Reagan made the Jelly Belly the candy of choice in the Whitehouse. These were his favorite candy, and he had them everywhere in the White House. Still to this day they are an important part of Air Force One. Now President Obama and his family get to choose what flavors they would like on the plane. 

A Family Making Candy Since 1869

Our beginnings are traced back to a family named Goelitz. When two young brothers emigrated from Germany to make their mark in America, they set the family on its candymaking course. In 1869, just two years after arriving in America, Gustav Goelitz bought an ice cream and candy store in Belleville, Ill., and his brother, Albert was sent out in a horse drawn wagon to sell their sweets to nearby communities. 
 
Then the second generation of the family jumped on the band wagon of candy innovations by making a new type of candy, then called "buttercream" candies, including Candy Corn, a sweet we've made since about 1900 (and still use the same recipe). These candies carried the family through the Great Depression and two world wars. Today, the great-grandsons of Gustav Goelitz, the fourth generation, are still carrying on the tradition of making candy. 

http://www.jellybelly.com/about_jelly_belly/company_history.aspx 

Jelly Beans, an American original

The great-great jelly bean ancestor first appeared in the 1800s, but jelly candies of one kind or another have been around for thousands of years. "Turkish delight," a citrus, honey and rose water jell, has been putting smiles on kids' faces since biblical times.  
 
When the penny candy craze came along in America during the late 1800's, candy makers began experimenting with tricky sugar candies. The jelly candy inspired by Turkish delight was shaped into a bean and given a soft shell using a French process called "panning". The first jelly bean was created by an American candymaker whose name has since been lost in time. 
Although the penny candy boom waned a bit when America fell in love with chocolate in the early 1900's, there was a real chocolate shortage when most chocolate went to overseas troops during World War II. So, patriotic Americans once again discovered their urge for non-chocolate sweet treats like the common candy store jelly beans.

The birth of the world's most famous jelly beans

The idea was born in Los Angeles, just next door to Hollywood. Yes, the home of countless famous movie stars is also the birthplace of "the original gourmet jelly bean."  
 
Back in 1976, a Los Angeles candy distributor had an idea for a jelly bean made with natural flavorings. So he called up the candymakers at Jelly Belly (formerly known as Herman Goelitz Candy Co.) who had a reputation for making the very best candies.

Creating "true-to-life" flavors was, well, a natural evolution. The candymakers cooked up a recipe for a new kind of jelly bean -- intensely flavored throughout, with natural ingredients for flavoring whenever possible. In 1976 the first eight Jelly Belly flavors were born: Very Cherry, Lemon, Cream Soda, Tangerine, Green Apple, Root Beer, Grape and Licorice. Funny enough they are still some of the most popular flavors made.

The rise to the top, or, what a long, tasty trip it's "bean."

A furor arose when people tasted Jelly Belly beans for the first time. Wow, what flavor! Soon Jelly Belly became the favorite candy of Ronald Reagan, who eventually made the beans a staple in the Oval Office and on Air Force One after he was elected president. President Reagan's passion for jelly beans inspired Blueberry flavor, which was cooked up so he could serve red, white, and blue beans at his inaugural parties. Diplomats and world leaders clamored to have Jelly Belly beans. And guess what? Jelly Belly was also the first jelly bean in outer space. Free floating, weightless Jelly Belly beans were sent on the space shuttle Challenger in 1983 as a presidential surprise for the astronauts. Coincidentally it was the same mission that boasted another bit of history -- the first American female astronaut, Sally Ride. 
 
Today, Jelly Belly is the world's #1 gourmet jelly bean, the bean of choice for all those with the most discerning taste, and made in 50 amazing and tasty flavors. Check out the menu to see all the flavors. 

More than a hill of beans

To the surprise and delight of Jelly Belly bean fans, the descendents of Gustav Goelitz continue to cook up some of the best loved candies in the world under the brand name Confections by Jelly Belly. Today the company still makes Candy Corn and more than 100 mouthwatering candies, including such delights as chocolates, gummies, sour candies and confections for all the major seasons. Great grandpa Gustav would be proud. 
 

Here are some cool Jelly Belly Facts

Question: Where did the name “Jelly Belly” come from? 
Answer: The name Jelly Belly was inspired by the rhyme with Leadbelly, a 1920s blues singer

Question: What’s the most popular flavor? 
Answer: Very Cherry remained the most popular flavor of Jelly Belly jelly beans for two decades until 1998, when Buttered Popcorn moved into first place. In 2003 Very Cherry moved back into top position by a mere 8 million beans.

Question: Why was Blueberry flavor created? 
Answer: Blueberry flavor was created for Ronald Reagan's presidential inauguration in 1981 when over three tons of Jelly Belly jelly beans were consumed during the festivities. 
 
A portrait of President Ronald Reagan made from 10,000 Jelly Belly jelly beans hangs in the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, California. 
 
During the presidency of Ronald Reagan, Jelly Belly jelly beans were served in the Oval Office and on Air Force One. A holder was designed for the plane so the jar of Jelly Belly jelly beans would not spill during turbulence

Question: Have Jelly Belly jelly beans ever been into Space? 
Answer: Belly beans were the first jelly beans in outer space when President Reagan sent them on the 1983 flight of the space shuttle Challenger.

Question: When was the first jelly bean made? 
Answer: The first jelly bean was created by an unknown American candy maker in the 1800s. An 1861 advertisement recommended sending jelly beans to soldiers fighting in the Civil War.

Question: How many jelly belly jelly beans are eaten in a year? 
Answer: Enough Jelly Belly jelly beans were eaten in the last year to circle the earth more than five times. Now that’s a lot!!!!

Tours are available everyday of the week, but the factory is only in operation Monday Through Friday. There is no charge for the tour, but bring a lot of Money for the gift shop, you will not be able to resist.

For the California Jelly Belly tour check this link out http://www.jellybelly.com/visit_jelly_belly/california_factory_tours.aspx 

For the Wisconsin Jelly Belly Tour check this link out    The Wisconsin tour is fun because you get to ride the Jelly Belly Train through the factory

http://www.jellybelly.com/visit_jelly_belly/wisconsin_factory.aspx