Hershey's Kisses

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Original milk-chocolate Hershey's Kisses with Cherry Cordial Creme Filled Kisses

Hershey's Kisses is a brand of chocolate manufactured by The Hershey Company. The bite-sized pieces of chocolate have a distinctive shape, commonly described as flat-bottomed teardrops. Hershey's Kisses chocolates are wrapped in squares of lightweight aluminum foil with a narrow strip of paper protruding from the top.

Kisses is one of the most popular brands of candies in the US. In 1989, the chocolate drops were the 5th most popular chocolate brand in the United States, spawning sales that topped $400 million. More than 60 million Hershey's Kisses chocolates are produced each day at the company's two factories. Today's Kisses brand chocolates use Hershey's original milk chocolate formula.

In 2006 Hershey's Kissables were introduced as a smaller sized, candy coated version of Kisses chocolates. They have been discontinued.

Contents

History [edit]

Hershey's Kisses milk chocolates were introduced in 1907. The candy got its name from the machine that makes them, which makes kissing sounds and appears to "kiss" the conveyor belt onto which the chocolate is dispensed.

Another Pennsylvania chocolatier, H.O. Wilbur & Sons Chocolate Company, had been making a similar product known as Wilbur Buds since 1894. The shape and size of those candies likely served as an inspiration for Hershey's Kisses chocolates.

Hershey's Kisses chocolates were originally wrapped by hand. Automated wrapping began in 1956. The same automatic wrapping process allowed for the insertion of the distinctive paper "plume" that the company used to guarantee that consumers were getting the genuine Hershey product, rather than an imitation. This thin paper strip was registered as a company trademark in 1924. Italian confectioner Perugina manufactures a small chocolate and hazelnut candy called Baci (Italian for "kisses"). Baci are reputed to have been used as a clandestine method for delivering love notes between two confectioners, Giovanni Buitoni and Luisa Spagnoli. This may have served as the inspiration for the paper strip.

The intersection of Chocolate Avenue and Cocoa Avenue, showing alternately "wrapped" and "unwrapped" Kiss street lamps. The original Hershey Chocolate Factory is in the background.

Hershey's Kisses chocolates have been produced continuously since 1907, except for the period of time between 1942 and 1949. Rationing of raw materials during World War II made the aluminum foil for the wrappers a scarce commodity.[1]

The word KISSES became a registered trademark by the U. S. Patent and Trademark Office on January 2, 2001. (Reg. No. 2,416,701). The plume device is also a federally registered trademark (Reg. No. 186,828). The conical configuration of the product is also a federally registered trademark.

2007 Hershey's Kiss stamp

Some streetlights in the town of Hershey are shaped like Kisses. These can be found on Chocolate Avenue (Hershey's main street and the site of the original chocolate factory), as well as a downtown portion of Park Avenue, and at several Hershey Company facilities. These were first installed in 1963 and generally alternate between wrapped and unwrapped Kisses.

In 2007, The United States Postal Service issued a postage stamp commemorating the Hershey's Kiss. This 39-cent stamp was part of the USPS's "Love" series.

Kisses Brand varieties [edit]

Hershey's Kisses Milk Chocolates filled with caramel.

Though originally made of solely milk chocolate, many variations of the Kisses brand of chocolates and candies have since been introduced. Hershey introduces and discontinues new flavors constantly. As of January 2013, some of the flavors available throughout the year include:[2]

United States & Canada [edit]

  • Milk Chocolate
  • Milk Chocolate with almond
  • Filled with Caramel
  • Special Dark mildly sweet chocolates (Dark Chocolate)
  • Milk Chocolate with pink wrappers in support of breast cancer awareness
  • Cherry Cordial (Limited Edition)
  • Filled with Peanut Butter
  • Truffle
  • Milk Chocolate with macadamia nuts (only in Hawaii)
  • Crunchy Cookie (milk chocolate with oreo-like cookie bits)
  • Candy Cane (peppermint flavored white chocolate with red nonpareils)
  • Coconut Creme
  • Hugs (white chocolate with strips of milk chocolate)
  • Milk Chocolate Air Delight (aerated)

International [edit]

  • Hazelnut (May only be found in Asian markets)
  • Green Tea (May only be found in Asian markets)
  • Creamy Milk Chocolate (found in Europe)
  • Creamy Milk Chocolate with Almonds (found in Europe)

Limited Time Only [edit]

  • Chocolate Mint
  • Double Fudge (fudge flavored chocolate, called "ice cream" flavored kisses - not same as double chocolate fudge)
  • Double Chocolate Fudge (dark on bottom, milk chocolate on top - may be the same as "double chocolate")
  • Double Chocolate (dark and milk chocolate - called kisses "layers" - may be the same as "double chocolate fudge")
  • Milk Chocolate and vanilla (white on top, milk on bottom -called kisses "layers")
  • Dulce de Leche (white chocolate caramel filled)
  • Dark Chocolate Cherry Cordial Crème Filled
  • Strawberry Crème (white chocolate strawberry flavored-no filling. Originally called "ice cream" flavored kisses)
  • Orange Crème (white chocolate orange flavored-no filling)
  • Coconut Crème (milk chocolate with coconut crème filling)
  • Dark Chocolate with Almonds
  • Extra Creamy with Toffee & Almond
  • Chocolate Truffle (chocolate "truffle" filling wrapped in dark chocolate)
  • Candy Cane (peppermint flavored white chocolate with crunchy nonpareils)
  • Special Dark Macadamia Nut [Mauna Loa]
  • Milk Chocolate Macadamia Nut
  • Special Dark Espresso -flavored
  • Special Dark Coffee -flavored
  • Caramel Crème (white chocolate caramel flavored)
  • Crunchy Caramel Crème (white chocolate caramel flavored with crunchy candy bits)
  • Dark Chocolate Raspberry -flavored
  • Dark Chocolate Strawberry -flavored
  • Dark Chocolate Orange -flavored
  • Extra Creamy
  • Neapolitan (white, pink, chocolate)
  • Confetti (white chocolate with small candy sprinkles)
  • Chocolate Malt Crunch (malt flavored milk chocolate with crunchy candy bits)
  • Vanilla Crème (milk chocolate with a white vanilla flavored crème filling)
  • Candy Corn (white chocolate)
  • New York Cheesecake (extra creamy milk chocolate with cheesecake flavored crème filling)
  • Toffee flavored Crunch (extra creamy toffee flavored milk chocolate with crunchy nonpareils)
  • Hot Cocoa Crème (milk chocolate with hot cocoa crème filling)
  • Mint Truffle (dark chocolate filled with a green "peppermint pattie" flavored mint crème)
  • Chocolate Marshmallow (milk chocolate made to taste like marshmallow)
  • Trio (milk and dark chocolates drizzled with white crème)
  • Champagne Truffle (champagne flavored chocolate "truffle" filling wrapped in dark chocolate- sold in plastic champagne bottle)
  • Crème de Menthe (filled and wrapped in dark chocolate –may be same as Mint Truffle)
  • Lemon Crème (white chocolate lemon flavored – no filling)
  • Vanilla Yogurt Crème (milk chocolate vanilla yogurt crème filling)
  • Cookies n' Crème (white chocolate with crunchy nonpareils) –not same bits as in Europe
  • Milk Chocolate filled with Marshmallow Crème
  • Pumpkin Spice (chocolate-like candy filled will pumpkin pie flavored filling).
  • Caramel Apple (milk chocolate filled with apple flavored caramel).
  • Milk Chocolate filled with Strawberry Crème
  • Chocolate Meltaway (Milk Chocolate with velvety smooth chocolate center)
  • Irish Crème (Milk Chocolate filled with Irish crème)
  • Milk Chocolate filled with Buttercrème

Wrapper varieties [edit]

Hershey's Kisses chocolates were originally wrapped in silver-colored foil, and were only available in this color for decades. 1962 marked the first year that Kisses chocolates were available in different colored foil wrappers: red, green, and silver-wrapped candies were manufactured to coincide with the Christmas season. In 1968, pastel blue, pink, and green wrappers were introduced for Easter, and in 1986, Valentine's Day-themed wrappers of red and silver were introduced. Xs and Os have also appeared on pink and red wrappers as well as little red hearts on silver wrappers for Valentine’s Day. "Fall Harvest" colors were introduced in 1991. Independence Day has silver with red stripes and blue-starred wrappers. Pink wrappers with "ribbons" on them to support breast cancer research have also appeared. Camouflage wrappers are also available, primarily on military bases. Kisses Dark Chocolates come in a deep purple wrapper. The Halloween themed Kisses Candy Corn candies come in a wrapper whose colors imitate the color of a candy corn with yellow, white and orange stripes swirling around the candy. The Christmas themed Kisses Candy Cane candies also come in a wrapper whose colors imitate the color pattern (red stripes and white chocolate). The original silver (for regular) and gold (for Almonds) wrappers are available year-round.

Hershey is introducing new pastel-colored wrappers with white polka dots for the upcoming Easter season. This created controversy within the organization because many workers and environmentalists have requested a more environmentally-friendly packaging, which would have eliminated the aluminum wrapping and replaced it with biodegradable materials. This was supposed to be rolled out on April 1, 2009.[citation needed]

Paper Plume [edit]

In addition to the standard "Kisses®" paper plume and the special variety plumes (such as "cheesecake") special messages have been available for various occasions, including:

Seasonal [edit]

  • A Kiss for You
  • Happy Valentine
  • Happy Holidays

Special Occasions [edit]

  • Just Married
  • It's a Boy
  • It's a Girl

Packaging Varities [edit]

  • Chinese New Year Gift Box - contains gold and red wrapped kisses

References [edit]

  1. ^ Brenner, Joël Glenn (2000). The Emperors of Chocolate: Inside the Secret World of Hershey & Mars. Broadway Books. ISBN 0-7679-0457-5.
  2. ^ Hershey's Kisses Brand Chocolates - Products - Everyday Favorites

External links [edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Hershey's Kisses
Italics indicates discontinued products.
Chocolate-based
Others
Hershey's also manufactures military chocolate for the U.S. armed forces.
1 Marketed in both the United States and Canada, but sold as a Hershey’s product only within Canada. U.S. rights owned by Nestlé.
2 Marketed in a number of countries, but sold as a Hershey’s product only within the United States. Brand owned by Nestlé.
3 Marketed in a number of countries, but sold as a Hershey’s product only within the United States. Brand owned by Mondelez International.
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