They are everywhere. You see them dangling from pine branches, taped to gift boxes, and dissolving in mugs of cocoa. Candy canes are basically the official mascot of winter. But most people just assume they’ve always been peppermint-flavored hooks used to decorate trees. Honestly? The history of these red and white treats is a lot weirder than you’d think. It involves bored choirboys, a revolution in candy-making machinery, and a massive shift in how we celebrate the holidays.
The 1670 Choirboy Legend and Why It Might Be Flawed
Go ahead and Google the origin of candy canes. You’ll probably find a story about a choirmaster at the Cologne Cathedral in Germany back in 1670. The legend says he gave white sugar sticks to the kids to keep them quiet during the long Living Nativity services. To make it "educational," he supposedly bent the sticks into the shape of a shepherd’s crook.
It sounds nice. It fits the Christmas vibe perfectly.
But here is the thing: there isn’t a single shred of contemporary evidence from the 17th century to prove it happened. No diaries. No church records. Most historians, including those at the National Confectioners Association, look at this as folklore. What we do know for sure is that "sugar sticks" were a popular treat in Europe long before they became the iconic candy canes we recognize today. They were straight, white, and purely medicinal or decorative at first. Sugar was expensive. It was a status symbol. If you had sugar, you had money.
When the Stripes Finally Showed Up
Believe it or not, for about 200 years, candy canes were just plain white. There were no red stripes. If you look at Christmas cards from the mid-1800s, you’ll see white sticks hanging on trees. The red stripes didn't actually start appearing until the very beginning of the 20th century.
Why then?
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Innovation. Making candy by hand is a nightmare. To get that perfect spiral, you have to twist the sugar while it’s still hot enough to burn your skin but cool enough to hold its shape. Around 1900, candy makers started experimenting with aesthetics. It’s a bit of a mystery who first added the red, but by the 1920s, it was the industry standard. This change happened right as the "Christmas Industry" was exploding in the United States.
The Bobs Candies Revolution
If you really want to talk about candy canes, you have to talk about Bob McCormack. In the 1920s, he started Bobs Candies in Albany, Georgia. Back then, the process was brutal. Workers had to pull the sugar, twist it, and bend it manually. The breakage rate was insane—sometimes 20% or more of the candy would just snap.
Then came Gregory Keller.
He was a Roman Catholic priest and also McCormack’s brother-in-law. Talk about a side hustle. Keller invented the "Keller Machine" in the 1950s, which automated the bending of the straight sticks into hooks. This single invention turned a niche, artisanal product into a mass-produced global phenomenon. Suddenly, candy canes weren't just for rich kids in Georgia; they were for everyone. Bobs Candies eventually became the largest producer of striped candy in the world, proving that sometimes a little engineering (and a priest) is what’s needed to save Christmas.
Peppermint is More Than Just a Flavor
Why peppermint? Why not cinnamon or cherry or lemon?
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Historically, peppermint oil was used as a digestive aid. If you were eating a massive, heavy holiday meal, a bit of peppermint at the end actually served a functional purpose. It settled the stomach. Plus, the peppermint plant was relatively easy to cultivate and extract.
But today, we’ve gone off the rails. You can find "candy canes" that taste like:
- Dill pickles (honestly, who is buying these?)
- Rotisserie chicken
- Sriracha
- Kale
Despite the weirdness, the traditional red and white peppermint version still accounts for the vast majority of sales. According to industry data, nearly 2 billion candy canes are produced annually. That is a staggering amount of sugar. If you lined them all up, they’d wrap around the earth several times over.
The Physics of the Hook
Have you ever wondered why the hook is there, besides the "shepherd" story? From a practical standpoint, the hook makes the candy self-displaying. You don't need a clip or a string. You just hang it.
But there is a science to the break. Because of the way the sugar crystals align during the "pulling" phase of production, a candy cane has specific stress points. If you drop one, it almost always breaks at the curve or exactly in the middle. This is because the cooling process creates internal tension in the bend.
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Common Misconceptions and Cultural Myths
There’s a popular chain email—the kind your aunt might send you—claiming that the "J" shape stands for Jesus and the red stripes represent blood. While many people find deep religious meaning in these symbols today, there is no historical evidence that the original creators intended this.
The red-and-white design was likely a marketing choice to make the candy stand out against the green of a Christmas tree. It’s high-contrast. It’s visually striking. It was a business move that eventually morphed into a cultural icon.
How to Actually Use Them (Beyond Eating)
If you have a box of candy canes sitting around and you're tired of just sucking on them until they turn into a sharp point that stabs the roof of your mouth, try these specific uses:
- The Cocoa Stirrer: Don’t use a spoon. Use the cane. It melts slowly and infuses the chocolate with mint.
- Infused Vodka: Drop a few broken pieces into a bottle of vodka. Wait 24 hours. You now have a peppermint spirit that’s great for martinis.
- The "Sand" Topping: Put them in a heavy-duty freezer bag and smash them with a rolling pin. Don't turn them into dust; you want "peppermint sand." Sprinkle this over vanilla ice cream or use it to rim a cocktail glass.
- Baking Stability: When you fold crushed candy canes into cookie dough, the sugar bits actually help hold the structure of the cookie as it expands in the oven, though they will get sticky.
What to Look for When Buying
Not all candy canes are created equal. If you buy the super-cheap ones at a big-box store, you’re often getting corn syrup and "artificial flavor 40."
Look for brands that use real peppermint oil. You can tell the difference immediately. The real stuff has a "cool" sensation on the tongue (thanks to the menthol) rather than just a sugary burn. Also, check the packaging for "handmade" or "hand-pulled." These will have more air bubbles trapped in the sugar, which gives them a light, crunchy texture instead of being a hard, glass-like rock.
Actionable Steps for the Holiday Season
If you’re planning on decorating or gifting this year, keep these tips in mind to get the most out of your red and white stash:
- Storage Matters: Sugar is hygroscopic. It sucks moisture out of the air. If you leave candy canes out in a humid room, they will get "sweaty" and sticky within 48 hours. Keep them in an airtight container until the moment you need them.
- Check the Date: While sugar doesn't really "spoil" in the traditional sense, the peppermint oil can oxidize over time. A three-year-old candy cane will taste like dusty cardboard. Buy fresh.
- Avoid the "Bend" Trap: If you're using them for crafts, don't try to re-bend a candy cane by heating it with a hairdryer. It almost never works and usually just results in a sticky mess and a burnt finger.
- Recycle the Scraps: Don't throw away the broken ones at the bottom of the box. Melt them down with a tiny bit of water to create a peppermint simple syrup for your morning coffee.
The red and white cane is a survivor. It outlasted the artisanal era, survived the industrial revolution, and beat back the weird flavor trends of the 2000s. It’s a masterpiece of simple engineering and flavor profile. Whether you view them as a religious symbol, a nostalgic treat, or just a convenient stirrer for your coffee, candy canes are a permanent fixture of the winter landscape.