In Saratoga Springs, New York, in the 1880's, a German candy maker was looking for a new shape to mold his peppermint. He chose the shape of a pig because pigs are a symbol of good luck in Germany. His solid Peppermint Pigs were white, and he hired schoolgirls to paint red stripes onto the pigs. The pigs became very popular, an essential part of Christmas in that community. At the end of Christmas dinner, the head of the household would place the Peppermint Pig in a small red pouch and smash it with a hammer. Everyone around the table would share a piece of the sweet, old-fashioned candy for good health, happiness, and prosperity in the coming New Year. Eventually, the candy maker retired, and the Peppermint Pigs were no longer made, but they lived on in the memories of the oldest residents of the town.

 

In the 1990's, a hundred years later, the local historical society asked Mike Fitzgerald, a modern candymaker, to revive the peppermint pig tradition. His most enthusiastic customers were elderly residents who remembered Peppermint Pigs from their childhood. On the first day Mike offered the new Peppermint Pigs to the public, they waited under umbrellas in the rain for his candy store to open and wrote letters of thanks to Mike for making the Peppermint Pigs again. 

All the current peppermint pigs are bubble gum pink, but they taste just as sweet as ever. Good health, happiness, and prosperity are always welcome. The Peppermint Pigs come with a pouch and hammer and serve sixteen. Peppermint Pigs are unknown in Germany, but they owe their origin to the German symbol of good luck. To this day, they are made only in New York. Peppermint Pigs could become a favorite annual Christmas tradition for your family.

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