My gumdrops were for my own tea. I never played practical jokes on others as a child because I hated them myself. Even as an adult I prefer those pectin based candies over gelatin mostly because they're dense and don't have that bounciness gelatin offers. Though the latter doesn't stick to your teeth like the former does.
Though I remember eating sour-butter lemon flavored licorice as a very, very young boy. I've never seen fruit based licorice in the states or in Europe. Really liked Jelly Babies back then... can't stand them now. European wine gums (gum drops) are much better than whatever you can get here outside of an artisan company if one even exists.
Which is why I stick to chocolate or old fashioned candy. Never changes. Usually the same around the world.
Edit: Was there not some food thread we could discuss these things in?
Ah, okay: I misunderstood - mea culpa. The gumdrops for your own tea is perfectly understandable; I've always preferred brown sugar to white in coffee, or apple pies, or whenever a recipe calls for sugar.
Sour butter lemon candies - or liquorice? Sounds intriguing, and the kind of thing I would have fancied.
Random fact: Even as a child, I disliked sweet things, and disliked sweets (candies) in general; the only exception was that 'sweet spot' where salt and sweet met; thus, I love butterscotch, Parma ham, shortbread, and salted caramel.
For chocolate, even as a child, it had to be dark, the darker the better.
And I loved (and still do) sour or tart fruit - grapefruit, raspberries, the entire citrus family, berries, gooseberries and so on, though I will happily tuck into apricots and peaches, as well.
