Taste Test: McDonald's Mighty Wings

McDonald's officially unveiled their newest creation, Mighty Wings, to selected media on Tuesday afternoon at the New York City flagship in Times Square. The wings, which are coated in a crunchy crust and deep-fried, have been under development and testing for years, and they're now available nationwide in a limited-time offer, which will last from now through October, or while supplies last, according to a spokesman.

New York Giants wide receiver Victor Cruz, who will appear in a commercial for the wings, was on hand for the event. "I grew up as a fan of McDonald's, and I've been going all my life," he told the crush of reporters. "McDonald's is dear to my heart, and when they asked me to do this it was a no-brainer. I was excited to do the commercial, and it came out great."

The wings themselves are nice-sized and supremely crunchy, and don't get soggy even after traveling inside the specially designed clamshell box, which has some extra ventilation built-in. The coating is probably too thick for conventional fried chicken, but it works in this smaller format. Because the wings are breaded, the chicken inside doesn't have an opportunity to get crispy, so be prepared to eat a lot of fat and flabby skin, but the chicken itself stayed juicy. They're also quite greasy, so make sure you have plenty of napkins on hand.

As for flavor, the wings are bursting with it. The coating is salty and spicy, with quite a kick from cayenne pepper. They could have taken a milder route, but these wings are in-your-face spicy, although not face-meltingly so. The Buffalo-style sauce that they're served with is a very close approximation of the form, and serves as a nice complement (as do the ranch and two styles of barbecue sauce you can get them with).

If these are a hit they'll be sticking around for a while, and they certainly deserve a spot alongside the Big Mac and McNuggets. They're bold and flavorful, if a little flabby, and are a fast-food no-brainer.