How did peppermint and Christmas become best friends?

It seems that almost everything that’s edible and Christmas related, tastes like peppermint. Sure there are some exceptions, like the occasional chocolate orange, but the majority of things are peppermint flavoured. Why is that? The Unbalanced Breakfast investigates!

The first things we’ll have to look at are candy canes. They’re synonymous with Christmas with their red and white colour scheme, and of course, peppermint flavouring. But candy cane’s weren’t always peppermint flavoured, or even curved! A few centuries ago, before the pacifiers were invented, people used white, unflavoured sugar sticks to stop their children from crying. CAN YOU IMAGINE THAT?!?

It wasn’t until the 1670s, when a German choirmaster bent the canes into the shape of a shepherds staff and handed them out at Christmas, which was HUGELY popular. The tradition spread through Europe like wildfire, but it wasn’t until the early 1900s that they got that iconic red stripe and peppermint flavouring. And as far as our Google-fu can tell, nobody knows why.

And now, because of what could’ve been the actions of one confectioner tweaking an old tradition of subduing children with sugar, peppermint is now associated with Christmas. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go subdue myself with a peppermint flavoured hot chocolate.

By the way, if you’ve ever wondered how candy canes are made, watch this video!

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