Sour candy is something that many of us grew up with and still love as adults. The satisfying and tasty combination of both tart and sweet is something that never gets old. Some of us might stick to one or two popular brands of sour candy, while others will have various sour candy brands they enjoy. Personally, we love to know what the tastiest and highest quality sour candy is, then we go with that because it’s always continuously the best.
We’ve done our research so that you can enjoy the results without having to spend time doing it yourself. This comprehensive guide will outline the best sour candy on the market, with details about each one. This will answer any issues or questions you would face while on the search for the best sour candy. Let’s get started!
Buyer’s Guide
In this buyer’s guide, we’ll go through all the possible questions and concerns that you could have about sour candy. This includes packaging, texture, size, and more. We’ll provide helpful tips and recommendations throughout this section.
Packaging
An important aspect you want to look at when purchasing sour candy is the packaging. Are the candies in bulk, all loose in one large bag, or are they individually wrapped? If you’re serving bowls of candy at a party or at work, chances are you will find the bag of loose candies more useful. If you are using the candy for Halloween or goody bags, you will benefit more from the individually packaged candies.
Texture
The texture of the sour candy is another important aspect to consider. Is the candy chewy, or is it a hard candy? Is it maybe a mixture of both? Some people prefer to suck on hard candies, whereas others enjoy chewing. Maybe the chewy candies aren’t the best for those with sensitive teeth or who have braces that the gummy-like candy can get stuck in.
Purpose of the Sour Candy
A good question to ask yourself is “what is this candy for?” The answer can determine what brand of sour candy you buy. Is it for your children? For a party? For your work desk? For a challenge? Each of these different situations could call for different sour candies. Another thing to keep in mind is that if the sour candy is for young children, search for shapes and sizes that aren’t easy for children to choke on.
Ingredients
Not everyone takes the ingredients of something into consideration when shopping for food, but it’s important to do. Anyone who has allergies or kids with allergies is likely already used to reading the ingredient labels of everything, so sour candy will be no different.
Vegans and vegetarians who don’t eat gelatin will also need to read the sour candy ingredients to make sure that it doesn’t contain any. If you are someone who tries to avoid GMO ingredients, you will likely want to be aware of what brands have used genetically engineered ingredients in their recipes.
SOURNESS level
Just because many candies fall into the sour candy category, doesn’t mean they’ll all have the same sourness level. All of them will be different. Some just have an outer exterior with sweet inside, meanwhile, others will have a sweet exterior and a sour intention. Some are sour throughout the entire candy, whereas others are only sour for a few moments, then the sourness is gone. Just one more thing to consider!
List of the 14 Best Sour Candies
Warheads Extreme Sour Hard Candy
As a child, you might remember having warhead challenges with your friends. They’re one of the sourest candies out there, and they’re only for those who truly love sour.
Warheads come individually wrapped for extended freshness, and this specific listing comes in a tub with 240 individual candies. The tub features five different flavors, which are apple, blue raspberry, lemon, black cherry, and watermelon. Delicious fruity flavors that everyone is familiar with!
The ingredients of the sour candies are: Corn Syrup, Sugar, Microencapsulated Malic Acid (Malic Acid, Hydrogenated Palm Oil), Citric Acid, Gum Acacia, Soybean Oil (Processing Aid), Ascorbic Acid, Artificial Flavors, Carnauba Wax, Corn Starch, Blue 1, Red 40, and Yellow 5. It’s important to mention that some of the ingredients were produced with genetic engineering, for those who try and avoid those foods.
These warheads are great for children’s birthday parties, Halloween, or just for a good sour challenge with your friends and/or family.
Get the look: Warheads Extreme Sour Hard Candy
Sour Patch Kids Sweet and Sour Gummy Candy
The motto of Sour Patch Kids is “Sour, Sweet, Gone.” These candies start with a nice sour kick, then after that, they become sweet. These chewy treats are enjoyable for both adults and children alike. They make a great snack, great Halloween candy, great party candy, and also great movie-watching candy.
This bag of Sour Patch Kids Candy is 3.5 pounds, so it should last you for a good amount of time! The ingredients are Sugar, Invert Sugar, Corn Syrup, Modified Corn Starch, Tartaric Acid, Citric Acid, Natural and Artificial Flavoring, Yellow 6, Red 40, Yellow 5 and Blue 1. These sour candies are made in Canada.
Get the look: Sour Patch Kids Sweet and Sour Gummy Candy
Sour Power Quattro
Although you may find sour candies a bit masochistic, they are very delicious. In fact, you love the feeling of sour treats, or you have cravings for it, then you should get Sour Power Quattro. With this, you cannot stop trying and tasting every spectrum of sour.
With this sour assortment, you do not have to pick as you have all of them together. The Quattro package comes in four flavors and four colors.
If you need to try something new, then try these sour candies. Ideally, they have some sweetness to them that helps balance their sour nature, but the sweetness does not overpower their purpose. From the first strip to the last, they taste great and are yet to be tried if you want something sweet and sour.
You will also like the fact that these candies come in a resealable plastic container. Thus, you can reseal it after you eat. In addition, the package comes with tongs you can use to pick the pieces one by one.
Get the look: Sour Power Quattro
Hi-Chew Sensationally Chewy Japanese Fruit Candy, Sweet & Sour Mix
This is the first Japanese sour candy that we’ve introduced in this list. These fruit chews come in individual packets, there are 6 packets in one larger bag. The packages are the perfect size for snacking, whether you’re at home, school, or on the go.
These sour chew candies contain real fruit flavors, coming from fruit juices and purees. This sour candy is a healthier alternative to others because it doesn’t contain any artificial colors. It’s also completely cholesterol-free, which is great for those who are trying to lower their levels. There’s also 0 grams of trans fat in these chews.
The fruity flavors include lemon, watermelon, and grapefruit. HI-CHEW is the most popular soft candy brand in all of Japan. It was developed in 1975, so you could say that the company is professional when it comes to making high-quality candies!
The ingredients of this tangy candy are: Glucose Syrup, Sugar, Vegetable Oil (Palm Oil, Hydrogenated Palm Oil), Less Than 2% Of Gelatin, Malic Acid, Citric Acid, Natural and Artificial Flavors, Sucrose Esters of Fatty Acids, Watermelon Juice Concentrate, Grapefruit Juice Concentrate, Lemon Juice Concentrate Carrot Juice Concentrate (Color), Black Currant Juice Concentrate (Color), Beta-Carotene (Color), and Soy Lecithin.
Due to the gelatin used in these sour candies, they aren’t suitable for vegans or vegetarians who don’t consume this ingredient. Those who avoid artificial colors can enjoy this sour candy knowing that all of the colorings are natural from fruit juices such as carrot and black currant.
Get the look: Hi-Chew Sensationally Chewy Japanese Fruit Candy
AirHeads Xtremes Sweetly Sour Candy Belts
Airheads are belts of candy that have been around for decades. In addition to all their original flavors, they have a sour belt option as well. Many other companies have tried to make sour belts, but none can compare to Airhead’s Extremes Sweetly Sour Candy Belts.
These don’t have the highest sourness level, but the tart taste is still there. They’re very fruity and have the perfect amount of sweetness as well. These airheads come in a box, and they are all individually wrapped. These sour candies are great for holidays, parties, office treats, snacking and more.
Airhead prides themselves in being very allergen friendly. These candy belts don’t contain any milk or eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, fish, shellfish, or soy. They also don’t have gelatin, so vegans and vegetarians can enjoy them too. The only common allergen that this candy does come into contact with is wheat flour, but there is a warning about that on the packaging.
Since these sour belt candies were labeled to USA standards, they can have different ingredients and labeling in other countries. The ingredients that these belts contain are: Sugar, Corn Syrup, Wheat Flour, High Fructose Corn Syrup, Corn Starch, Modified Potato Starch, Water, Malic Acid, Citric Acid, Contains less than 2% of: Glycerine, Artificial Flavors, Potassium Citrate, Salt, Hydrogenated Soybean Oil, Artificial Color, Blue 1, Red 40, Yellow 5, and Yellow 6.
Get the look: AirHeads Xtremes Sweetly Sour Candy Belts
SweeTARTS Extreme Chewy Sours Peg Bag
Sweetarts are chewy sour candies. The strong sour flavor is finished off with a hint of sweetness. The candies are coated, which helps give them the extreme sour punch that they have. A great quality of this candy is that it doesn’t contain any artificial flavors, which is rare to find in candy, especially sour candy!
Sweetarts are the perfect candy to share with your family and friends.
The ingredients of this sour candy are: Dextrose, Corn Syrup, Malic Acid, Hydrogenated Coconut Oil, And Less Than 2% Of: Maltodextrin, Calcium Stearate, Egg Albumen, Natural Flavors, Mono – and Diglycerides, Carnauba Wax, Blue 1 Lake, Blue 2 Lake, Red 40 Lake, Yellow 5 Lake, and Yellow 6 Lake. The manufacturer states that some of these ingredients are produced with genetic engineering.
Due to the egg albumen in these candies, they’re not suitable for those with egg allergies or for vegans. These candies are only for children aged 4 and up, otherwise, they are too much of a choking hazard.
Get the look: SweeTARTS Extreme Chewy Sours Peg Bag
Toxic Waste Hazardously Sour Candy Drum
Toxic waste is an interesting choice of a name for sour candy, but it works perfectly for this company. They go with the theme throughout their entire brand, and you can see it clearly in the packaging of this candy. It has the most unique packaging we’ve seen, coming decked out in a drum/barrel bright yellow in color. The container definitely has a toxic look to it, and the individually packaged sour candies inside are just as unique with the colors and their packages.
Despite the toxic vibe from the name and the look of these candies, their taste is delicious. The candies in the drum come in these five flavors: apple, black cherry, lemon, watermelon, and blue raspberry. Since the drums are quite small, each one contains five pieces of candy. Even though it’s not a huge amount, the candies will keep your tastebuds tingling for quite a while!
The ingredients of this sour candy are Sugar, Corn Syrup, Citric Acid, Malic Acid, Dextrose, Artificial Flavors, Maltodextrin, Beeswax, and Artificial Colors (Yellow 5, Red 40, Blue 1, Blue 2).
Due to the beeswax in the toxic waste candies, they aren’t suitable for vegans or those who are allergic to bee products. These candies are quite low in calories, containing only 50 calories for all 5 pieces of candy. They contain zero grams of fat, and also zero grams of sodium.
Trolli Sour Gummy Candy
If you are fascinated with candies that come in psychedelic colors and weird shapes, look no further. These gummy candies will wiggle their way to your mouth with a punch of sour. As you know, in the world of sour candies, weird and toxic are compliments. That is because they are opposite of dully, boring, and completely normal. Therefore, you should embrace what makes your candies unique.
Whether you want to be smitten with sour or you crave for classic shapes with the familiar gummy twists, bears, peach rings, weird beards, or evil twins, these gummies will deliver that sweet and sour combo you have been craving for.
Another thing you will like about these candies is their mind-blowing flavors. If you love the lip-smacking, tangy flavor, extreme enjoyment with each bite, then try these weirdly invented sour candies. These candies have been around since 1986 and they will wow your taste buds.
Get the look: Trolli Sour Gummy Candy
Nerds Big Chewy Sour Candy
Nerds Big Chewy Sour Candy is a dream come true for people who are fans of both nerds and sour candy in general. Nerds candy was always great on its own, but it’s great to have a unique and different option as well.
These candies have a crunchy shell that resembles original nerds, and a chewy, sour center. The centers are all fruit-flavored, but each of them tastes different depending on what color they are. That means that every bite is new and exciting! Each bite will also have different shapes because each candy truly is different.
The packaging that these jumbo nerd candies come in is completely resealable. This means less work for you because you just close the bag whenever you’re done snacking. If you have a candy dish in your home or at work, these are a great option to put inside. They will likely be too good to keep to yourself, so sharing the sour experience is always a fun thing to do!
Some words to get your mouth watering to describe this candy would be crunchy, chewy, tangy, and large. It can be similar to a jelly bean, but it’s much chewier and also has a coating of powder to make the candies sour. However, the sourest part of the candy is between the hard coating and the soft interior. The entire bag is 10 ounces (283 grams).
Get the look: Nerds Big Chewy Sour Candy
Mike and Ike Zours Candy
In the candy world, Zours isn’t brought up too often when talking about sour candies. Maybe they aren’t widespread enough, but too many people are missing out on the delicious Zours flavors.
It’s very tart, and many say it tastes even better than the original Mike and Ikes. If you like intense sour flavors, this is definitely for you. The candies are a chewy type and they’re sure to leave your sweet tooth satisfied too.
The packaging of Zours can be a bit deceiving. The original Mike and Ikes are just loose and fill the box, whereas these Zours are inside a bag, then a box. This is likely done to keep the sour coating on the candies fresh.
The assortment of flavors that come in a bag of Zours are:
- Sour Lemon
- Sour Green Apple
- Sour Watermelon
- Sour Blue Raspberry
- Sour Cherry
As the years pass by, this unique box of sour candy is getting harder and harder to come across.
The ingredients of the sour candy are: Sugar, Corn Syrup, Modified Food Starch, Fruit Juice From Concentrate (Pear, Orange, Strawberry, Cherry, Lime, Lemon), Fumaric Acid, Contains Less Than 2% Of The Following: Gum Arabic, Sodium Citrate, Natural and Artificial Flavors, Dextrin, Artificial Color, Yellow #5 (Tartrazine), Blue #1, Blue #1 Lake, Red #40, and Yellow #6. All of the ingredients are gluten-free.
HANGRY KIT Super Sour Candy Kit
If you are a lover of sour candy, then you know it is not easier to satisfy your cravings. That explains why this Hangry sour candy kit is the cure to your cravings. Moreover, it is an ideal gift for your friends and family members who love sour candy.
With this kit, you get 17 handpicked packs of the finest sour candies you will come across. Thus, if you are in need of a flavor combo of sweet and sour, you can try 9 or 13 types of sours. Unlike most brands, with the Hangry kits, you get what you see. You do not want to be disappointed when you find out that the supplier made a substitution of the candies.
The full kit includes:
- 1 Sour Skittle
- 1 Sour Punch Blue Raspberry
- 1 Sour Punch Rainbow
- 1 Sour Punch Strawberry
- 10 Sour Punch Twists (randomly selected flavors)
- 1 Airheads Xtremes
- 1 Sour Patch Kid (Tropical, Watermelon, or Regular)
- 1 Trolli Sour Gummy Worms
Get the look: HANGRY KIT Super Sour Candy Kit
Cry Baby Extra Sour Bubble Gum
Tootsie Roll is one of the very first and completely original bumble gum brands. This company really knows what they’re doing when it comes to making high-quality candy and gum. All their traditional gum is known for being great at blowing bubbles, and this sour candy Cry Baby gum is no exception.
This specific listing comes with 12 packages of sour bubblegum. It has been referred to as the sourest gum available on the market. All of the gumballs are quite large in size, coming in at 3/4 inches each. There are five different flavors of this Cry Baby sour gum. They include cherry, apple, blue raspberry, orange, and lemon. They’re great to eat with your family, friends, and good for parties and movies.
The sour gumballs are all gluten-free, nut-free, peanut-free and kosher. If you are allergic to soy, these have a warning that they might have come into contact with soy. The gumballs are 20 calories each.
The ingredients are Sugar, Dextrose, Corn Syrup, Gum Base, Citric Acid, Tapioca Dextrin, Artificial Flavors, Artificial Colors (FD&C Red 40, Blue 1, Yellow 5, Yellow 6), Corn Starch, and BHT (to maintain freshness).
The manufacturer gives a warning that if you chew more than 2 pieces in a short period of time, you might get temporary irritation to your tongue and mouth.
Get the look: Cry Baby Extra Sour Bubble Gum
Skittles Sour Candy
It’s hard to find someone who hasn’t tried skittles in their lifetime. These bite-sized candies are colorful and chewy. They feature the rainbow colors and are all fruit-flavored. The sour flavors are of course different from the original skittles. The sour flavors include:
- Sour Strawberry
- Sour Green Apple
- Sour Lemon
- Sour Orange
- Sour Grape
These sour skittles are great for birthday parties, Halloween, baking, movie snacking, and more. Some people have even put these colorful skittles into vases and glass jars as a form of decoration.
These sour skittles come individually packaged. Most boxes, such as the one we are featuring here, has 24 individual packs inside the box. Each pack of sour skittles is 1.8 ounces or 51 grams.
The ingredients of theses sour skittles are Sugar, Corn Syrup, Citric Acid, Hydrogenated Palm Kernel Oil; Less than 2% of: Tapioca Dextrin, Modified Corn Starch, Natural and Artificial Flavors, Colors (Red 40 Lake, Blue 1 Lake, Blue 2 Lake, Yellow 5 Lake, Yellow 6 Lake, Red 40, Blue 1, Yellow 5, Yellow 6, Titanium Dioxide), Sodium Citrate, and Carnauba Wax.
Keep in mind that if you live outside of the United States, your skittles can differ in the ingredients and packaging.
Get the look: Skittles Sour Candy
Super Sour Candy Assortment
This is an extremely sour candy assortment with 16 different types of candy that have been hand packed in a gift box. If you have a friend who loves candies, this can be a perfect gift for any given occasion. Ideally, it is the answer to your friend or loved one who craves sound candy. Since it comes in a sturdy gift box, you can send it to your family members, camper, college student, or treat yourself with one.
You will also like the fact that this sour candy has four different types of war heads included. These are sour cubes, pucker pack, smash-ups, and sour mega hard candy. Also, there is a wide range of brands that will get you creating funny sour faces.
If you are a lover of sour candy, you have probably heard of toxic waste candy. This is considered the sourest candy you will come across. Whether you agree with this or not, it is the taste bud experience you want to give a try.
Get the look: Super Sour Candy Assortment
How to store sour candy
If you want your candy to stay fresh for long periods of time, you will need to practice proper storage. The way you store your sour candy will depend on the packaging it came in. Are the candies individually wrapped? Do they come in packets? Or do they come all loose in a large bag?
If your candies come individually wrapped, you can place them all in a glass jar or large plastic container to keep them even fresher. Keep this jar or container away from direct sunlight and hot temperatures to prevent melting. You can store candy packets the exact same way.
For sour candies that come loose in a bag, you will want to transfer them to a glass jar. In order to prevent stickiness and melting, you can sprinkle a little bit of sugar all over the sour candies. It shouldn’t affect the overall flavor of the sour candies. Keep this jar at room temperature and away from direct sunlight, and just pour out some of the loose candies whenever needed!
You may also like: Best Hard Candies, Best Coffee Candies, Best Licorice Candies
Conclusion
We hope that our work of putting together this comprehensive sour candy guide has helped you with your search for the perfect sour candy. We know that there are more options than one can count out there, so we’ve tried our best to only feature the greatest sour candies out there.
Don’t be afraid to experiment and try a few different brands to see what you like best. You might be introduced to your new favorite candy that you didn’t even know existed. We hope the buyer’s guide at the end provided you with some useful tips on what to consider when buying sour candy.
Well, our mouth is watering by now after writing about all this sour candy so we are going to enjoy some. Hopefully, you do as well!
