How is the lettering put into a stick of rock

A. A stick of rock with, normally red, lettering, usually spelling the seaside town where its bought, is synonymous with the Great British holiday. Each letter is made separately, starting with a flattened piece of coloured candy that is shaped around a piece of white candy to form the desired letter. So, to make the letter C' the coloured piece is rolled around a tube of white.

When all the letters have been shaped, they're lined up around a white centre roll to spell the desired name and rolled together to produce the stick of rock.

Q. How is a stick of rock made

A. By using lots and lots of sugar. The sugar is heated up to around 150C, which makes a very thick syrup. The syrup is poured on to a cold tempering table where the required colours are added.

It is then tempered to a thick consistency getting thicker as it gets cooler. The mixture is then transferred to a machine where air is added to turn it opaque.

Q. Why doesn't the lettering candy melt

A. Because it isn't added until the last minute when the main mixture is quite cool. Once the lettering has been laid out along the main mixture the whole thing is moved for the last time to a very cold table, where it sets solid, as solid as rock.

Q. When was rock invented

A. In the nineteenth century when it was known as rock candy. The basic recipe is still the same but things have come a long way in terms of novelty shapes: the humble stick of rock is now available as a variety of objects, such as kippers, fried eggs and, rather prophetically, as false teeth.

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by Lisa Cardy