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Licorice has been used in the medicinal sense for thousands of years. In fact, it was such a huge part of ancient Egyptian culture that licorice root was found in King Tut’s tomb! But the candy as we know it didn’t exist until 1760, when English pharmacist George Dunhill had the genius idea to add sugar to the mix. Since then, it’s shown up in everything from penny candy to cough drops to liqueurs.
And just in time for National Licorice Day on April 12, 5-hour ENERGY® is dropping a Red Licorice flavor. But instead of a sugar crash, you’ll get an energy punch! That’s because the new Red Licorice 5-hour ENERGY shot packs 230mg of caffeine (equivalent to a 12-ounce cup of premium coffee) and no sugar.
Here’s the only catch: It’s a limited release, available through the 5HE website and Amazon.
I tried it—and I’m completely obsessed. The nostalgia factor hits hard—it tastes just like the soft, chewy, addictive candies I grew up with and knocks out my sugar cravings.
But as a longtime licorice lover, it also got me thinking about the candies that quietly disappeared from shelves, or may still be around, but are really hard to find. From the licorice launches that never seemed to take off, to the ones you’d find at your grandma’s house, here are 12 licorice candies you forgot existed!
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12 Licorice Treats You Totally Forgot Existed
1. Good & Plenty
Photo by The Washington Post on Getty Images
First produced in 1893, Good & Plenty is one of the oldest branded candies in America. These pink and white, candy-coated black licorice bites were a movie theater staple for decades. (If you were a weird kid like me, you might have pretended they were medicine, too.) They’re technically still around, but let’s be honest—when’s the last time you actually bought a box?
2. Good & Fruity
Hersey Company
Good & Fruity was my personal favorite. The little sister to Good & Plenty, it had red licorice instead of black, and the shells were multi-colored instead of pink and white. In 1992, a major change happened where the licorice centers became multi-flavored to match the colors on the shell, and that’s where things started going downhill for me.
Parent company Hershey pulled the plug entirely. They brought them back in 2008, but with a brand new formula—the licorice was gone, replaced with something closer to a jelly bean (think Mike & Ike). It was a bummer for Good & Fruity fanatics and by 2018, they were off shelves again for good. RIP to a legend, but there’s always hope for another comeback!
Related: Blue Bell Quietly Brings Back Classic 1980s Flavor for a Limited Time
3. Chocolate Twizzlers
I completely forgot these existed, but you can still find chocolate Twizzlers on shelves at stores like Walmart and Kroger. Hershey first introduced them back in the mid-1970s as part of a big flavor expansion beyond the original black licorice—along with strawberry, grape, cherry and watermelon. We all know who the real winner was—strawberry! The flavor now makes up 70% of their total production.
4. Licorice Wheels
Also known as licorice laces or licorice Catherine wheels, these tightly coiled spirals of licorice were as much a toy as a candy. Half the fun was unrolling them and eating the lace one bite at a time. I distinctively remember kids getting in trouble for hitting each other with them, too! (They hurt more than you’d think!)
Related: How to Make the Confetti Cake Mocktail Using 5-hour ENERGY’s New Flavor
5. Licorice Snaps
American Licorice Company
The American Licorice Company first launched Snaps in the 1930s as an affordable treat during the Great Depression. The candy officially went on hiatus in 2009, but The American Licorice Company has done limited production runs over the years. Sadly, it looks like that won’t happen again any time soon. “American Licorice Company’s marketing and innovation teams have made the decision to halt production of Snaps® for the foreseeable future,” reads the brand’s official website.
6. Red Vines Mixed Bites
At some point, Red Vines had the genius idea to take their two most iconic flavors—Original Red and Black Licorice—and combine them in one bag of bite-sized, honeycomb-shaped twists. Then, just as quietly, they discontinued them. The good news? Red Vines recently launched Classic Mix Minis—same red-and-black combo, new shape. So if you missed the originals, consider this your second chance:
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7. Black Taffy by Primrose Candy Co.
Before there were fancy artisan candies, there was Primrose Candy Co.’s individually wrapped pieces of jet-black licorice taffy. Sold for a penny apiece and a fixture of corner store candy displays for generations, this old-school treat has quietly faded from shelves, but can still be found at online retailers like Amazon.
Related: Hershey’s Announces Major Shift After ‘Real Chocolate’ Backlash: ‘You Got Caught’
8. Grape Red Vines
Everyone knows about the classic red flavor, but did you know Red Vines also makes a grape version? Believe it or not, these have been around since the 1970s, and they’re still available if you know where to look. They’re soft, chewy, and genuinely delicious—but somehow, most people have no idea they exist. My top tip: If you want to try them, don’t purchase them on Amazon as they’re not available in an official capacity and have poor reviews. Instead, shop on American Licorice Company’s official website.
9. Crows
Amazon
No shade to longtime fans of this candy, but I was shocked to see that Crows are still in production and available for purchase! The official description on Tootsie’s website reads: “These popular black gummies offer a perfectly balanced anise flavor, delivering a comforting, mature taste with every bite. With a rich history and a strong, cult-like following, Crows stand out from their fruit-flavored siblings, offering a timeless, nostalgic treat that continues to delight licorice lovers.”
10. Licorice Allsorts
David Edgar, CC BY-SA 4.0
If you ever raided a grandparent’s candy dish and found colorful layered candies with black licorice sandwiched between pastel fondant, you’ve met Licorice Allsorts. Originally a British creation by Bassett’s, they made their way into American homes and then slowly disappeared from most store shelves—though they remain wildly popular in the U.K.
11. Twizzlers Twerpz
Twerpz were bite-sized Twizzlers filled with a tangy foam candy center that made them weirdly addictive. They first launched in 2004 and came in strawberry and orange, but only lasted around five years on shelves before being discontinued in 2009. They definitely had a cult following and to this day, people mourn the loss of Twerpz. “God I miss them so bad,” writes one Reddit user. “I miss them more than anything. I wonder if I was a billionaire if they would sell me some lol.”
@ad.centrl twizzlers twerpz | 2005
♬ original sound – ad | centrl
12. Licorice Pipes
Shaped like old-fashioned smoking pipes, these novelty licorice candies were a fixture of penny candy counters for decades. They came in both black and red licorice varieties and felt impossibly cool to a kid in the 1970s or ’80s. You can imagine why they’ve largely vanished from mainstream stores—a similar fate as candy cigarettes—though specialty candy shops still carry them and you can buy in bulk via Amazon.
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