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LIST OF DISCONTINUED JOLLY RANCHER FLAVORS
- Fire Stix/Cinnamon (1949-1970s*)
- Orange Tangerine (Early 1960s-Unknown)
- Pineapple (Early 1960s-Unknown)
- Peach (Early 1960s-Unknown)
- Sour Apple (Early 1960s-Unknown)
- Lemon (Early 1960s-Late 1990s)
- Passion Mix (Unknown-2012)
- Wild Berry Mix (Unknown-2012)
- Mountain Berry (2015-2020)
- Hotties Mix (2017-2019)
*Asterisk indicates estimated dates. Many early discontinuation dates are unverified due to gradual phase-outs during ownership changes between 1966 and 1996.
Note: Some flavors returned in specialty bags (lemon in 2013, peach in 2020).
FIRE STIX/CINNAMON
Discontinued: 1970s*
Fire Stix was the original hot cinnamon taffy stick that built Jolly Rancher’s reputation. It was sold for five cents at franchise stores across Colorado, Wyoming, and Nebraska. This spicy candy’s popularity convinced Bill Harmsen to expand into hard candy production. The original Fire Stix formula was reportedly much milder than today’s cinnamon varieties.
ORANGE TANGERINE
Discontinued: Unknown
Orange Tangerine was part of Jolly Rancher’s first major flavor expansion beyond its original three flavors. This citrus flavor featured an orangey/tangerine twist. The flavor was quietly phased out during ownership transitions, though orange returned in specialty variety bags decades later, but with a slightly different flavor profile.
PINEAPPLE
Discontinued: Unknown
Jolly Ranch Pineapple was an early tropical addition that tested American palates’ appetite for exotic fruit flavors. It also disappeared during the brand’s streamlining years but proved resilient—pineapple returned in the 2015 Fruity Bash mix and 2020 Tropical variety.
PEACH
Discontinued: Unknown
Peach was a delicate fruit flavor that struggled against bolder tastes like cherry and grape. Although the candy was initially discontinued, the flavor was later revived in the Passion Mix and then disappeared again in 2012. Jolly Rancher Peach made a triumphant comeback in 2020 with its all-peach bag when it replaced Mountain Berry in the Fruity Bash lineup.
SOUR APPLE
Discontinued: Unknown
Sour Apple was the predecessor to today’s green apple flavor, with a sharper, more acidic profile. The sour flavor was phased out as Jolly Rancher refined its apple offering toward the sweeter green apple that became a core flavor. It was part of Jolly Rancher’s early experimentations with sour flavors before dedicated sour varieties emerged. Rival fruit brands made the same kind of swap—Starburst dropped lime for cherry once American shoppers rejected the tartness.
LEMON
Discontinued: Late 1990s
Lemon is the most mourned discontinuation in Jolly Rancher history. Lemon held steady for over three decades before blue raspberry displaced it in the original five-flavor mix. Consumer backlash was immediate and sustained—forum posts from 2009 to 2010 show genuine grief over the loss. The company acknowledged demand by bringing lemon back in specialty all-lemon bags in 2013.
PASSION MIX
Discontinued: 2012
Jolly Rancher Passion Mix was a specialty line featuring peach, raspberry, and fruit punch flavors. This mix was Hershey’s attempt to expand beyond the core five-flavor model with crazy new flavors. Its corporate parent has a long record of pulling the plug on experiments, from Bar None to the Olympic-branded Hershey’s Gold. It was discontinued as part of a portfolio streamlining effort, with only Peach surviving to fight another day.
WILD BERRY MIX
Discontinued: 2012
Details remain scarce about Wild Berry Mix. But we do know it offered a mix of wild berry flavors similar to Skittles Wild Berry. Mars was chasing berry flavors in the same years and retired dark chocolate raspberry M&M’s in 2014. The mix was discontinued alongside Passion Mix as Hershey simplified its product offerings.
MOUNTAIN BERRY
Discontinued: 2020
Mountain Berry was a brief-lived flavor introduced in the Fruity Bash variety bag. It lasted only five years before Peach reclaimed its spot in 2020. Its short tenure failed to capture consumer interest.
HOTTIES MIX
Discontinued: 2019
Jolly Rancher’s boldest experiment: candy meets hot sauce. Hotties Mix featured flavors like watermelon & cayenne pepper, blue raspberry & sriracha, cherry & habanero, and green apple & ginger. The spicy hard candy concept proved too niche for mainstream success, lasting just two years. Jolly Rancher hunkered back to safer flavors after its retirement.
