Worst Christmas Candy: Nougat, Reindeer Corn And 'Grinch Vomit'

We’ve told you about many of the best things that we love about Christmas, but now let’s turn to some of the things people hate about the season: bad candy. Really, really bad, spit-that-out-right-now candy. That would be Christmas Tree Nougat. Yeah, we Americans apparently just hate it, even though some people buy it, giving the lowly nougat-makers a slice of what is expected to amount to $2 billion in Christmas candy sales this year.

Don’t blame us if you’ve got a mouthful of nougat right now and are reaching sugar-induced nirvana. The list of the worst Christmas candy in America was compiled by Candystore.com, which asked its customers to let ‘er rip with a couple of words explaining their choice.

“Whoa, did the floodgates open,” the company explains. “It’s like they have been waiting for an outlet for their bad candy juju to flow. Letting them get it out actually felt like a positive exercise (exorcise?).”

The online candy retailer was doing a larger survey and decided to tack on a final optional question and query customers about the worst Christmas candy they've ever had the displeasure of tasting. More than 13,000 customers responded.

Tell Us: What's your idea of bad Christmas candy? Go to the comments and sound off.

According to one response, the flavor of nougat is not only “unholy,” but nougat “gnomes come around and collect it to sell next year.”

Here are the others, in order of customers’ pure disgust:

No. 2 hated candy: Reindeer Corn
Customer comment: “Last year, my in-laws busted out Christmas candy corns. Do we have to do candy corn for every holiday now?”
Candystore.com says: “It’s tasty sugary goodness. It feels like Americana, and if you can’t get behind America on this one, I don’t know what to tell you.”

No. 3 hated candy: Peeps
Customer comment: “Peeps snowmen. Nice try Peeps, but it’s still a Peep.”
Candystore.com says: “Everyone knows Peeps = grody. The texture alone gives me the heeby geebies. Is anyone really under the delusion that these are actually marshmallows? It’s like swallowing rubbery Styrofoam.”

No. 4 hated candy: Peppermint Bark
Customer comment: “We call peppermint bark Grinch vomit. Because it looks like Christmas vomit.”
Candystore.com says: “It’s got no crunch, only a limp kind of give and then soft separation. No snap … unless it’s cold. Which is cheating and not really realistic for serving to other people.”

No. 5 hated candy: Chocolate Covered Cherry Cordials
Customer comment: “Those chocolates that are filled with liquid and a nasty cherry. Dude. Gross.”
Candystore.com says: “Chocolate is good, yes. Cherries are good, of course. Why does this chocolate cherry cordial thing fail so miserably. As with many things in life, it’s all in the execution. And what in the name of all that is holy is that nasty watery sugar liquid seeping out from the inside?”

No. 6 hated candy: Lifesavers Story Books
Customer comment: “They’re not the worst candy per se, but the LifeSavers story book boxes were always such a disappointment.”
Candystore.com says: “These are the biggest joke. It’s not even that LifeSavers are all that bad. They’re fine. It’s the packaging here. And it is an egregious violation. eGREgious.”

No. 7 hated candy: White Peppermint M&Ms
Customer comment: “There are the M&Ms that are like peppermint, or more like nastymint.”
Candystore.com says: “It’s like the Las Vegas architecture of Christmas Candy. Everything looks and sounds good and merry, but it is actually all made of the cheapest artificial material possible and completely falls apart under any serious evaluation of taste.”

No. 8 hated candy: Candy Canes — Non-Peppermint
Customer comment: “Those other candy cane flavors that are just weird. Don’t try so hard, candy canes”
Candystore.com says: “In our era of capitalism, it of course make sense that anything popular will be replicated and iterated upon to infinity. The candy cane phenomenon is no exception. The results, however, are vile.”

No. 9 hated candy: Ribbon Candy
Customer comment: “Whatever that ribbon stuff is, it ain’t candy. There should be a sign that says NOT FOOD.”
Candystore.com says: “It’s supposed to be candy but if you actually eat it, it is horrid beyond. It’s the candy equivalent of: ‘But he’s got a really great personality.’ ”

No. 10 hated candy: Old-Fashioned Hard Candy Mix
Customer comment: “I was forced to be polite and eat these when I was little. Death to the old-fashioned mixed candies.”
Candystore.com says: “It’s like a bowl of marbles that have been around since your grandmother’s parents played with them in the 1920s. They look like they used to be pretty, but are kind of faded and sad and nobody really regards them much anymore.”

Read more of the customer responses and Candystore.com reviews.

Photo: Food And Drink/Shutterstock