6/13/2023 0 Comments Atomic fire ballIt was brought to these shores by Peter De Yager, founder of the Foreign Candy Co. The bright-yellow "Lemonhead," introduced by Ferrara Pan in 1962, is a variant on the acid drop and is flavored with same chemical compound that gives lemons their sourness: citric acid.īut the current vogue for supersour, brain-puckeringly intense candy is usually traced to 1993, the year the Mega Warhead first detonated in America. "Acid drops," sweet-tart candies flavored with acid, are also traditional. "They did this with vinegar back in the day," he says traces of the tartness would linger in the candy. Acid can be used to convert sucrose - cane sugar - into fructose and glucose, sweeter-tasting sugars that resist crystallization. Tallahassee candymaker and historian Greg Cohen, who makes Victorian-style candy on antique machinery at his store Lofty Pursuits, explains that most 19th century candies probably tasted a bit sour. It leaves your mouth tingling, numb and stained a lurid red. A flame-colored, mouth-filling jawbreaker, the Fire Ball is initially sweet, but inner layers contain cinnemaldehyde and capsaicin, the chemicals that give cinnamon and hot peppers their bite. military detonated the first hydrogen bomb and images of mushroom clouds filled the evening news. The first "extreme" candy - which promoted pain as a selling point - may be the "Atomic Fire Ball," introduced by Chicago's Ferrara Pan Candy Co. NPR's Kevin Garcia, Carolyn Rogers, Malaka Gharib and Ryan Kellman try multiple different sour treats. "This is easily the most painful challenge ever," he belches, and you almost believe him.Ĭandy is supposed to be sweet and delicious, right? So why does it seem like so many candies are trending toward the mouth-manglingly sour and the exuberantly repulsive, with names like Sour Smog Balls, gummy brains and oozing eyeballs, rotten egg or barf-flavored Jelly Belly jelly beans? In fact, extreme and novelty candy is one of the fastest-growing categories in the confectionery business, according to the National Confectionery Association. When YouTuber "Furious Pete" took the " 150 Warheads Challenge," he made sure to lean into the camera for close-ups of his livid, candy-discolored tongue and gums. Videos with titles like "Extreme Sour Candy Challenge" and "Extreme SOUR SMOOTHIE Challenge!!!! Warheads, Toxic Waste (DANGEROUS!!!)" have millions or even tens of millions of views.Ĭandy agony videos are not just for kids, but for (alleged) grown-ups too. In the vast anthropological catalog of contemporary humanity that is YouTube, there's an entire universe of videos where cute little kids bug out their eyes, gag and make hideous faces while trying not to spit out distressingly sour or disgustingly flavored candy. Why are we tempted by candy that pretends to be made of hazardous chemicals, that threatens to nuke our taste buds, or that dares us to be disgusted? NPR intern Kevin Garcia endures the sour taste of Warheads hard candy.
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