"Voss candy" turns up in searches mostly from people who've tried it abroad, or seen it mentioned online as one of those love-it-or-hate-it sweets, and want to know what it actually is before ordering. It's a fair question, because it isn't a British brand and it doesn't taste like most things sold as "sweets" in the UK.
What Voss actually is
Voss is a long-standing Norwegian confectionery brand best known for its pastilles — small, firm sweets built around a strong herbal, salty-liquorice or menthol flavour profile rather than straightforward sugar and fruit. It sits in the same broad family as other Scandinavian "salmiakki"-style liquorice sweets: intense, slightly medicinal, and generally an acquired taste for anyone who didn't grow up with it.
Why it's polarising outside Scandinavia
Most UK and US confectionery leans sweet and fruity. Scandinavian pastilles like Voss lean savoury-bitter, often with a genuine kick of salt or ammonium chloride in the liquorice varieties. That contrast is exactly why it gets talked about online as a "try this and see if you can handle it" novelty as much as an everyday sweet, and why people who've had it while travelling go looking for it once they're home.
What we actually stock right now
We don't currently stock Voss directly — we don't import Scandinavian pastille brands. What we do carry that's closer to the same "classic jarred boiled sweet" tradition is Bonds Sherbet Lemons Jar 1.7kg and Stockley's Sherbet Lemons 3kg, both in stock. The flavour is very different — sharp and sherbety rather than herbal — but the format (old-fashioned boiled sweet, sold loose or by the jar) is the same idea.
FAQ
Is Voss a British sweet brand?
No, Voss is Norwegian. It's not something typically stocked by UK sweet shops, including us.
What does Voss candy taste like?
It's generally described as herbal and slightly medicinal, and the liquorice varieties can carry a distinct salty kick common to Scandinavian "salmiakki" sweets — quite different from typical British boiled sweets.
Do you stock Voss candy at Supreme Sweets?
No, we don't currently stock it. We carry Bonds Sherbet Lemons Jar 1.7kg and Stockley's Sherbet Lemons 3kg as classic jarred boiled sweets, both in stock, though the flavour profile is quite different.
Is Voss the same as British sherbet lemons?
No. They're both old-fashioned boiled sweets sold in jars, but the flavour is entirely different — sherbet lemons are sharp and fruity, Voss pastilles are herbal and liquorice-forward.