Humbugs are a traditional hard boiled sweet available in the United Kingdom and Australia. They are usually flavored with peppermint and striped in two different colors (often black and white). Humbugs are typically cylinders with rounded ends wrapped in a twist of cellophane, or else pinched cylinders with a 90-degree turn between one end and the other (shaped like a pyramid with rounded edges), loose in a bag. They are more often eaten in winter than summer, as they are considered 'warming.' The name of the candy is not related to the phrase "Bah, humbug", quoted in popular culture from Dickens' A Christmas Carol. That expression implies a general dissatisfaction with the Christmas season. However, offering humbugs around Christmas time is now seen by some as humorous or ironic, and was featured in a Blackadder sketch in this manner.
