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sugar bloom

The white haze that forms on the outside of hard candy over time is called "sugar bloom." It's caused by humidity over time essentially dissolving the surface of the candy and then the sugar recrystallizing, making it white.

This isn't to be confused with the white haze that you sometimes find on the outside of candy that is actually powdered sugar that the maker has sprinkled it with to keep the candy from sticking to each other.

graining

"Graining" is another term for it. I've heard some of my friends say that "graining" is for hard candy and "sugar bloom" is for chocolate, but I don't know that's true because I hear "sugar bloom" used more often and for both, but I do know "graining" is another thing people call that white haze that forms specifically on hard candy that's gotten old or has been exposed to a lot of humidity.

I know this from making hard candy every Christmas since I was a kid. These are just what people call it.

sugar bloom

The white haze that forms on the outside of hard candy over time is called "sugar bloom." It's caused by humidity over time essentially dissolving the surface of the candy and then the sugar recrystallizing, making it white.

This isn't to be confused with the white haze that you sometimes find on the outside of candy that is actually powdered sugar that the maker has sprinkled it with to keep the candy from sticking to each other.

graining

"Graining" is another term for it. I've heard some of my friends say that "graining" is for hard candy and "sugar bloom" is for chocolate, but I don't know that's true because I hear "sugar bloom" used more often and for both, but I do know "graining" is another thing people call that white haze that forms specifically on hard candy that's gotten old or has been exposed to a lot of humidity.

I know this from making hard candy every Christmas since I was a kid -- just from hearing my mom and family and friends talk about it over the years.

Sugar Bloom

The white haze that forms on the outside of hard candy over time is called "sugar bloom." It's caused by humidity over time essentially dissolving the surface of the candy and then the sugar recrystallizing, making it white.

This isn't to be confused with the white haze that you sometimes find on the outside of candy that is actually powdered sugar that the maker has sprinkled it with to keep the candy from sticking to each other.

I know this from making hard candy every Christmas since I was a kid. That's just what people call it.

sugar bloom

The white haze that forms on the outside of hard candy over time is called "sugar bloom." It's caused by humidity over time essentially dissolving the surface of the candy and then the sugar recrystallizing, making it white.

This isn't to be confused with the white haze that you sometimes find on the outside of candy that is actually powdered sugar that the maker has sprinkled it with to keep the candy from sticking to each other.

graining

"Graining" is another term for it. I've heard some of my friends say that "graining" is for hard candy and "sugar bloom" is for chocolate, but I don't know that's true because I hear "sugar bloom" used more often and for both, but I do know "graining" is another thing people call that white haze that forms specifically on hard candy that's gotten old or has been exposed to a lot of humidity.

I know this from making hard candy every Christmas since I was a kid. These are just what people call it.

Powdered Sugar

Hard candy is often sprinkled with powdered sugar (or artificial powdered sugar) so that it doesn't stick together. This is true of even individually wrapped ones because the maker doesn't want them sticking together before they get wrapped, whether in a kitchen or in a factory.

I know this because I make hard candy every Christmas.

Anyway, that's what you're seeing on the outside of a cough drop, either powdered sugar or a powdered sugar substitute.

Sugar Bloom

The white haze that forms on the outside of hard candy over time is called "sugar bloom." It's caused by humidity over time essentially dissolving the surface of the candy and then the sugar recrystallizing, making it white.

This isn't to be confused with the white haze that you sometimes find on the outside of candy that is actually powdered sugar that the maker has sprinkled it with to keep the candy from sticking to each other.

I know this from making hard candy every Christmas since I was a kid. That's just what people call it.