This is probably the most un-candy, candy in the candy world. If someone approached me and said that they thought Pixy Stix were not candy, I’d be very interested in hearing their argument. Pixy Stix feel more like an ingredient than a candy. In some cases like Lik-M-Aid, sweet flavoured powder is only a portion of a candy whole. I once heard someone say that Pixy Stix were originally intended to be a powder to flavour beverage, and I could totally believe that. Even if it’s not true, it seems logical.

For those unfamiliar with this classic candy, what you get is a small straw filled with flavoured sugar. You’d think that it would just be super sweet, but the folks who make these have added some sour to the mix as well. It’s actually a pretty good balance that keeps these from being sickly sweet and also compliments the fruit flavour. I use the word “fruit” lightly, as I really don’t think these taste like any kind of real fruit. I don’t mind that because I feel like there are certain fake fruit flavours that taste great too.

These do play it safe that way. They use only fake fruit flavours that are pretty common and recognizable. This is particularly true about the orange, cherry and grape Pixy Stix. There’s nothing adventurous about any of the flavours, but that’s not a bad thing I guess. The one flavour I do find a little odd is the blue Maui Punch. I think it’s odd that it’s blue, and I have a bit of a hard time figuring out what fruit flavours are supposed to be combined to make Maui Punch.

Objectively these are strange candies. They’re the butt of many jokes about eating candy as well. People look at them as being blatantly unhealthy because they’re just “sugar in a straw”. While that’s not completely untrue, I feel like you’re missing something if that’s all you think. They are sugar in a straw, but they’re also a little tart using some classic candy flavours. They also melt in your mouth in such a way that it feels like you’ve just drank a glass of some fun powdered drink mix.