Happy Valentine’s Day.
I remember that my school disallowed us bringing in Valentine’s Day cards for our classmates. No, it wasn’t an economic issue- it was the purported connection of the holiday with Saint Valentine.
Except there were several St. Valentines. Even more curious is that the specific Saint in question was performing illegal weddings! (Rome had outlawed all weddings at the time.) But, it turns out that it was centuries after this policy was in place before Valentine’s was associated with love or lovers.
But, traditions (even those with errant beginnings) live on.
I remember getting chocolate candy (and when I was older) a bottle of wine for my girlfriend/wife/significant other. (That was, indeed, the progression.) And, it couldn’t just be any chocolate candy. It had to be from one of two companies. Oh, wait, just one. Oh, wait, that one wouldn’t work anymore.
Back then, there were only two chocolate candy companies that were kosher. (Or, almost.) Barton’s was the clear choice when I was born- but, then, they decided that keeping kosher was a pain in their buttinsky and rejected the approval of the (then) primary kosher authority, the OU (Union of Orthodox Rabbis). Which made Barricini salivate over the possibility of cornering the market. Until folks found out that they didn’t observe the Sabbath. Along came Cadbury- a NON-Jewish company, who could satisfy the market- but only for some of its candies. (Others eventually joined the fray- not just for Valentine’s , either.)
But, the one candy I never considered for Valentine’s day was Sweethearts. (Spoiler alert- these contained gelatin and could never be kosher.)
Like all NECCO products, these tasted like chalk. OK, flavored chalk. (Come on- almost every little kid ate chalk at lease once it his/her life. An experience that would remain indelibly in our memories.)
But, the Sweetheart candies also had tattoos. BE MINE. LOVE U. MARRY ME. KISS ME. And, other such nonsense. Which made them different from those NECCO wafers.
Except NECCO (the New England Confectionery Candy Company) no longer exists. Have survived some 160 years (it had been the oldest candy company operating in the USA), the company that bought them folded the operations and then sold them at auction to Spangler (an Ohio firm)- permanent closing their production facility within a few months of that decision.
NECCO actually started manufacturing these ‘treats’ (as in Blech!) 153 years ago- as special orders for wedding feasts! They didn’t offer these to the public until 1902, some 36 years later.
And, NECCO didn’t just produce those confectioneries in February. Nope. Since their introduction, NECCO generally started manufacturing the hearts in March, producing 100K pounds a day (13 million pounds a year) of the stuff, so that they could sell 8 billion teeny hearts every year. Of course, being comprised of gelatin, sugar, corn syrup, and flavoring, they were kind of like the cockroaches of candy. They could outlive anything.
Even when they reformulated the Sweethearts in 2010, going to natural ingredients (which meant they could actually be kosher)- but folks complained that they wanted the old, ratty versions. And, complained bitterly. So, NECCO retreated- and by 2017, they were the most favorite Valentine’s Day candy. And, then, lost their lease on life.
That’s given firms like Brach’s a chance to sell their versions. (Even with their own messages like “LYMY’- love you, miss you.) But, aficionados claim this kosher version is way too pasty.
On the other hand, there are rumors that Spangler may be willing to resuscitate Sweethearts, For next Valentine’s Day.
And, on a really sour note…
Today marks the 1 year anniversary of the massacre at Parkland, Florida. For all the politician’s talk, nothing really has changed.
Let’s make it a truly happy day- and stop these massacres- by AMERICAN terrorists, not foreigners or immigrants- NOW!
Yes. Blecch. Them. And Peeps. I find both disgusting, but, hey, tradition is tradition. (I hadn’t thought about Barton candies in about 60 years, to slightly change the subject). Actually, my one regret is, the one time I ever visited MIT, it was after NECCO had left the building (and the area). That would have been a sweet thing to see and smell.
Peeps is something about which I never heard until about a decade ago, when the Washington Post began promoting those vile candies around Easter (Passover?) time.
And, don’t despair- that NECCO smell was overpowering. My first visit to the campus (when the area around MIT was truly seedy (Sorry, Click and Clack) almost made me wretch from the stench.