Maynards Sherbet Lemons - 192g

In British sweet terms, the sherbet lemon sits up in the big glass jars with the pear drops and the humbugs, weighed out by the quarter and tipped into a paper bag. It is also a sweet people have firm opinions about: suckers against crunchers, and no truce has ever been signed.

People in Canada go looking for them because one fizz does a lot of work. You are eight again, outside the newsagent, counting coppers and deciding the whole lot goes on sherbet lemons.

The 192g bag keeps well in the cupboard, the glove box or the desk drawer, as long as it is sealed up and kept away from heat and damp, which have a habit of turning boiled sweets into one solid yellow brick. They are made for long drives, long films and long afternoons.

Maynards is the name behind Wine Gums, so a bag of those tends to land in the basket alongside. Plenty of people add a few more British sweets and build themselves a proper pick and mix at home.