Hawick Balls

My dear old Aunt Rita was a huge fan of a mint-flavoured sweet. I only ever met her a few times but my mum always said that when she was enjoying a Scottish, minty sweet she would exclaim, “Now that is a clean sweetie!” in her Dumbarton brogue. After doing a bit of research it turns out that the Scottish borders have a proud history of making boiled sweets and as a result I had to go and find the very best.

Hawick balls are a buttery, minty sweet that seem to look a bit like an overcooked silverskin onion, but don’t let that fool you, these beauties have fast become my perfect in-car sweet. They aren’t like a wild gobstopper size or anything, but they are a perfect treat for when you are concentrating on practically anything that requires concentration and minty inspiration.

If you are into your rugby, you will know that legendary commentator Bill McLaren used to mention these quite regularly and even used them as a way to disarm players after a match when interviewing them. Sadly no longer made in Hawick, these treats are now made in Fort Matilda using the exact same recipe as the originals. They come in a tartan presentation tub, along with the story about the people of Hawick standing up to the English army in 1513… if you like that sort of stuff.

So go on and treat yourself to a ‘clean sweetie.’

Made in Scotland

250g

Ingredients: Sugar, glucose syrup, butter, oil of peppermint flavouring.