York Peppermint Pattie
 | |
| Product type | Confectionery |
|---|---|
| Owner | The Hershey Company |
| Country | United States |
| Introduced | 1940 |
York Peppermint Pattie is a dark chocolate enrobed peppermint confection produced by The Hershey Company.
It was first produced in York, Pennsylvania, by Henry C. Kessler at his York Cone Company in 1940, for sale in the Northeastern United States, Ohio, Indiana, and Florida. In 1972, the York Cone Company was acquired by Peter Paul, which launched the York Peppermint Pattie nationally in 1975.
In 1978, Peter Paul merged with Cadbury. York passed to the Hershey Foods Corporation when it acquired the US operations of Cadbury Schweppes in 1988. Recently production of the York Peppermint Pattie has shifted to Mexico.
During the 1970s and continuing in the present, Peter Paul launched a memorable advertising campaign for the candy with the tagline "Get the Sensation".
The confectionery features strongly contrasting flavors, with a particularly bitter chocolate coating around a sugar center. A sugar-free version of the candy is also available.[1]
Many chocolate-covered peppermints had been made before the York Peppermint Pattie came on the market, but Kessler's version was firm and crisp, while the competition was soft and gooey. A former employee and York resident Phil Kollin remembered the final (sample) test the pattie went through before it left the factory. "It was a snap test. If the candy didn't break clean in the middle, it was a second."
Variations
- Sugar Free Peppermint Patties - a sugar-free version of the traditional Peppermint Pattie.
- Chocolate Truffle Mint - introduced in 2004, which had a brown filling.
- Limited Edition Pink Pattie - introduced in October 2005. Peppermint Pattie with pink filling. Sale proceeds are donated to breast cancer research through the Young Survival Coalition.
- York Mints - introduced in 2007, a tin filled with bite-sized mints that have a mint shell, chocolate on the inside, and more mint on the inside.
- York Peppermint Bites - Introduced in 2003. Bite sized, round shaped candy. Introduced with other Hershey flavors.
- Peppermint Batties - Bat-shaped Peppermint Patties made each year around Halloween. Replaced with Peppermint Patties Pumpkins in 2007.
- Peppermint Patties Pumpkins - introduced in October 2007 for Halloween. Pumpkin-shaped Peppermint Patties with orange filling.
- Peppermint Patties Miniature Hearts Heart Box - introduced for Valentine's Day. Heart-shaped patties in a heart-shaped box.
- Peppermint Pattie Snowflakes - for Christmas, snowflake-shaped Peppermint Patties.
- York Pieces - introduced December 2009. An M&M's type candy consisting of a peppermint-flavored dark chocolate center surrounded by a light candy coating.
Criticism
The Peppermint Pattie is made with the controversial ingredient PGPR (Polyglycerol polyricinoleate, E476),[2] which is used as a replacement for cocoa butter.[3] The FDA has determined it to be "safe for humans as long as you restrict your intake to 7.5 milligrams per kilogram of body weight. Otherwise you’d be open to reversible liver enlargement at higher intakes".[4]
See also
References
External links
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