I have been buying Brach’s Lemon Drops for years and loved them, however, the last bag was horrible. I looked on their website to see that Brach’s has been bought by another company.  I guess they have changed the recipe, so now I am in search of a new lemon drop.  I like them tangy and tart, but not really sour.  I don’t like Lemon Heads because they taste too artificial.  Any ideas?

Not quite lemon drops, but Yummy Earth makes lemon hard candies that are naturally flavored. I don’t know if they’d be too sour for your liking, but I think they’re a good product.

Thanks so much for the info….I will check them out!

Brach’s went downhill before Farley’s & Sathers bought them, as far as I was concerned. They moved a lot of their production out of the country. Many of their products are made in Mexico, Argentina and Brazil. While I don’t think that always means that something is worse, I think that many times the company that originates the recipe loses sight of what made that candy so popular by subcontracting the production.

Anyway, I’ve had the Yummy Earth, but I think the lemon is far too strong (though very authentic). Too much lemon oil makes it downright caustic if you eat more than one.

Hammonds, in Colorado, makes some wonderful candies in a line called Pantry Favorites. They come in a tin and are the time honored sanded hard candies.

The lemon is quite good and probably better than I remember the old Brach’s.

Unfortunately they’re not that easy to find and stupid expensive.

http://www.hammondscandies.com/fashioned-pantry-candies-p-31.html

Pure Fun in Canada makes really nice candies too, though their citrus ones are a rock type and usually come in a citrus mix. They don’t fit in the mouth quite as nicely as the Hammond’s.

http://purefun.ca/products_CITRUSslices.html

Last is Claey’s, they made old fashioned sanded hard candy drops. They’re probably the easiest to find and the best price:

http://www.oldtimecandy.com/candy-drops.htm

I can’t vouch for their lemon drop though, but their root beer is very good.

Thanks…I am impressed with all the candy knowledge….I really appreciate the suggestions and will check into them!!

I remember liking the LaVie lemon drops, though it’s been a while since I’ve purchased. I found them on Amazon so you can see what the tins look like, but they do pop up in stores, usually at the checkout. 

http://www.amazon.com/La-Vie-Lemon-Drops/dp/B0006PKFUO