Parma Violets Explained

Parma Violets are a British violet-flavoured tablet confectionery manufactured by the Derbyshire company Swizzels Matlow,^[1] named after the Parma violet variety of the flower. The sweets are hard, biconcave disc-shaped sweets, similar to the Fizzers product from the same company but without their fizziness. Swizzels Matlow have also released a line of Giant Parma Violets.

Ingredients include sugar, stearic acid, modified starch, glucose syrup, and anthocyanin.^[2]

Precursors

The petals of violets have long been used in herbalism for their medicinal properties, even mentioned by Dioscorides.^[3] "Violet tables", sugary lozenges flavoured with violets, were made before 1620.^[4] During the 18th century, crushed violet petals, rosewater, and sugar were combined to make an early type of confectionery known as flower pastry.^[5] These could be used for flavouring a cake, or moulded into pastils and eaten as sweets.^[6] In the Edwardian era, violet-flavoured chocolate and liquor were used to relieve sickness.^[7]

Description

Parma Violets were created in 1946^[8] by the Derbyshire company Swizzels Matlow.^[9] They are sweets that are hard, biconcave discs, based on similar aniseed confectionery traditionally consumed in India after a spicy meal.^[10] Their flavour has been described as sweet with a soapy or floral taste.^[11] The current recipe includes sugar, stearic acid, modified starch, glucose syrup, and anthocyanin.

In 2016, Swizzels Matlow released a special Parma Violets flavoured cheese, produced by the Cheshire Cheese Company to celebrate their 70th birthday. Cocktails that replicate the flavour of the confectionery are also available in some UK bars.^[12] In 2019, Somerset cider company Brothers Cider launched a Parma Violet-flavoured cider.^[13] Also, large bags of Parma Violets can be purchased from the official website in sizes up to 3kg^[14] along with other online retailers.

In popular culture

• In Ian Fleming's James Bond series, hard candies very similar in description to Parma Violets are the favourite sweet of the supervillain Ernst Stavro Blofeld due to their breath freshening properties.^[15]
• The name of the British Indie pop band Palma Violets is derived from the Matlows confectionery. Irish singer Naomi Hamilton also released an album in 2016 named after the sweet.^{[16] [17]}
• A 2005 survey reported by The Guardian revealed Parma Violets to be the least popular sweet among the Millennial generation.^[18]
• In British Pop Artist Stuart Semple's 'potion' paint line, Purple Haze is claimed to be Parma Violet Candy Scented.^[19]

See also

• List of confectionery brands

External links

• Swizzels Matlow Website

Notes and References

1. News: Love Hearts maker Swizzels Matlow keeps clients sweet. Lyons . Teena . 2008-05-25 . 2021-07-09. The Times. London . subscription.
2. Swizzels Matlow: Parma Violets Ingredients
3. Book: Font Quer. Pio. Plantas Medicinales; el Dioscórides Renovado. 1995. Editorial Labor S.A.. Barcelona. 84-335-6151-0. 288–289. 15th. es.
4. Web site: Oxford English Dictionary. OED. Oxford University Press. 30 June 2017.
5. Web site: Using flowers in the French cooking from the 18th century | organic-e-publishing-international.
6. Web site: The Professed Cook: The Modern Art of Cookery, Pastry, and Confectionary, Made Plain and Easy . Clermont . B [Translated by Him from - Menon's "Les Soupers de la Cour"] . 10th . 1812 . T. Simpson . London.
7. Book: Ostrom, Lizzie . Perfume: A Century of Scents . 2015 . . London . 9781473506084 . 35.
8. News: Someone's made a Parma Violet flavoured cheese and it's confusing AF . Larbi . Miranda . 2016-07-15 . . 2021-07-09.
9. News: Dream factory: the story of a sweet company . Jessica . Salter . . London . 2011-11-19 . subscription.
10. Book: Nozedar, Adele. Great British Sweets: And How To Make Them at Home. 2014-09-04. Random House. London. 9781448161218.
11. News: Love it or hate it? Retro sweets Parma Violets inspire new cheese. Britton. Karen. 2016-08-01. Macclesfield Express. 2016-10-12.
12. Web site: Love gin? Then you'll want to go to this gin festival in Levenshulme. Lucy. Lovell. 2017-02-11. Manchester Evening News.
13. Web site: Brothers launch Parma Violet cider and social media is going mad for it. Simon. Duke. 2019-03-26. ChronicleLive.
14. Web site: Parma Violets - 3kg- Swizzels. www.swizzels.com.
15. Book: Fleming, Ian . . Ian Fleming . . 1961 . London . 9780224602068.
16. Web site: Album | Jealous of the Birds – Parma Violets.
17. News: Campbell . Brian . Jealous of the Birds singer-songwriter Naomi Hamilton takes flight with debut album . 2016-05-06 . . Belfast . The album Parma Violets is released today..
18. News: Sweets we loathe. Martin. Wainwright. 2005-03-05 . . London.
19. Web site: HAZE - MEDIUM VIOLET, HIGH GRADE PROFESSIONAL ACRYLIC PAINT, BY STUART SEMPLE 100ML.