Why we Can’t Get Enough of the Warhead Extreme Candy Burn

Warheads, formally known as Warheads Extreme Sour Candies and formerly known as Mega Warheads, first appeared in the seventies. Invented in Taiwan, the sour-tart candy proved an instant hit. Undoubtedly destined for great things, Warheads soon took to the seas and skies, making its way to the USA in 1993 – the rest is sweet history. 

The unique candy proved so popular in the USA that the US-based confectionery company Impact Confections purchased the rights to the sweet-sour formula in 2004. Since, Warheads have been on a mission of world domination, capturing tastebuds and stirring up cravings across the globe – becoming an international best-seller.

Much-loved & Fast-selling … Why & How?

In the process, they’ve famously become known as the 40 million dollar brand. So, their widespread reach and popularity make sense – everyone wants to get a slice of the pie! Of course, everyone who’s anyone in the business of sweet selling knows that Warheads never hang around for long. You stock them, they sell out, and you restock them – rinse and repeat. 

So confident are Warheads in their product’s ability to speak for itself that they’ve kept their marketing angle relatively simple, advertising Warheads as an ‘extreme’ candy with an intensely sour flavor.” 

Why are they called Warheads?

The reason behind the candy's name is made clear on the Warheads Extreme Sour Candy packet. There, Wally Warhead (the brand's mascot), looking rather tense and shocked with puckered lips - after all - there is a mushroom head emanating from the top of his head! This hardcore-fun image depicts the notion that eating a Warhead is akin to an actual warhead going off in your mouth - gnarly! 

Why are Warheads so Popular?

Chances are you’ve already heard about Warheads Extreme Candy and their so-bad-it’s-good burn.

If you’re from the USA, that chance is even higher, partially in thanks to the many attention-grabbing ad campaigns that Warheads have run over the years. That said, anyone who’s ever walked through a candy aisle in the US is sure to have caught a glimpse of the multi-colored package. 

That’s the first key to Warhead’s popularity – fun, multi-colored, and attention-grabbing packaging. 

The next is a truth as old as time … 

Kids love them 

While scientists and researchers are still hard at work trying to identify how sour taste cells work, confectioners have already figured out that kids only love one thing more than staying up past their bedtime: a sugar-based challenge.

It’s not rare to see kids challenge each other to hold a warhead in their mouths for prolonged periods or to take on a hold handful of warheads!

And finally … they just Taste Good!

Can we really ask more of our favorite sweets than that they instantly satisfy our cravings and treat our tastebuds?

What is it like to Eat a Warhead?

Warheads are among the sourest candies you could ever dare to try. You tear open the fun packet, and inside, a range of tiny, round, hard candies that are lightly dusted in a white powder greet you. You pick one out and pop it in your mouth. As soon as the acidic dust coating hits your tongue, it’s a pure blast of sourness. 

For the next 30 seconds, you’re in the grips of sourness as your eyes bulge, your mouth puckers, and you suck relentlessly, trying to neutralize the hard-hitting sizzling sting.

Before long, after all your hard work, you’ll have laid waste to sourness and earned the mouth-watering fruity flavor hidden beneath that seems to last an eternity!

How Many flavors of Warheads are There?

Warheads Extreme Sour Hard Candies are available in five original flavors: blue raspberry, green apple, lemon, black cherry, and watermelon.

You’ll find even more in the “Smashups Extreme Sour” assortment: cherry-lime, orange-pineapple, mango-melon, lemon-berry, and strawberry-grape.

But if we’re to cover all tastes, here’s an in-depth list of Warhead flavors:

• Cherry combustion flavor
• Tangerine torcher
• Raspberry rage Warheads
• Grape
• Cherry flavored Warheads
• Watermelon flavor
• Blue Raspberry
• Black Cherry flavored Warheads
• Apple Warheads
• Lemon flavored warheads

It really is the whole spectrum of deliciousness! The strongest flavor of the batch in terms of sour is the lemon flavor, so buyer beware, it is intense!

Just How Sour are Warheads?

Upon first taste of the lip-puckeringly sour Warhead formula, you’d be excused for thinking the manufacturers had dipped each sweet in acid. But, thinking this, you wouldn’t be far from the reality of things!

Deliciously tangy fruits, such as lemon and lime, are usually brimming with citric acid - so are Warheads. It provides the initial blast of so-bad-it’s-good sour. The hard sweets are also lightly dusted with Malic acid for an extra powerful sour hit!

In other words, Warheads are not for the faint of heart.

But what else? 

In addition to crowd-favorite Warheads Extreme Sour Hard Candy, the Warheads brand produces other masterpieces, including gummy, licorice, and liquid candies that vary in sourness intensity.

Here's a quick list of Warhead Products:

• Warheads Extreme Sour Hard Candy Minis.
• Warheads Sour Jelly Beans. 
• Warheads Super Sour Spray. 
• Warheads Sour Cubes. 
• Warheads Super Sour Double Drops. 
• Warheads Junior Sour Candy.

Other less popular but still well-loved Warhead variations are Warheads Lil’ Worms, Warheads Ooze Chewz, Warheads Sour Booms, and Warheads Sour Twists.

The Appeal of Warheads 

Warheads are relatively rare in Europe. They’re not a regular sight aside from in certain US-themed candy stores. That said, some savvy candy and retail store owners have made the smart choice of 

Everyone wants to try THE American Candy. 

Everything you Need to Know About Warheads

Are Warheads vegan?

Yes, the classic Warheads are 100% vegan. In fact, they’re among the most vegan-friendly friendly fruit-flavored candies you’ll encounter. And when it comes to other Warhead varieties, most, but not all, are gelatin and lactose-free.

Do Warheads contain peanuts?

The sweets themselves are not made with any nutty substances. However, the machinery they are made with is also used to make peanut-based products. As a result, traces of nuts may be found in Warhead products, making them unsafe for those with peanut allergies. 

Do Warheads contain soy?

Yes, Warhead candy contains traces of soy.

Are Warheads Kosher? 

According to Impact Confections, their products are made from gelatin that is derived from beef.