Red Vines memories...
During WW2 my father was in Europe. My grandmother used to go all over town looking for Stale Red Vines to send him. She would usually have to resort to buying a box and letting them sit before sending them to him. As such my sisters and I were raised with Red Vines being best eaten when stale. Now I will by a tub and leave them open to the air for a few weeks before enjoying them. We now have three generations that think that Red Vines are best when eaten after they have sat for awhile. Anticipation and waiting for them to get to the right point is part of the fun. Red Vines have been a tradition in my family for over 60 years. ~ Mark from Kansas There were five kids in our family, all girls. My father would come home from work with Red Vines black licorice twists. If we ate all our food at dinnertime, we would get a certain amount of licorice in a plastic bag as a treat. We would always beg for more when we finished what was in the bag, but my father would not allow us to gorge on it the way we wanted. My father would hide the stockpile of licorice in the basement. When my father was gone, my sisters and I would often search the basement looking for the stockpile of licorice. We rarely found it. Once in awhile, we would find it and eat as much as we felt we could without our father realizing it. But he always figured it out and would move the hiding place. Our father is dead now but Red Vines licorice continues to be an important part of our family's life. Whenever our family gets together, for example, at weddings or other reunions, we always appoint someone to bring the Red Vines licorice. We tease each other about bringing enough for all and making sure to not eat it up on the way home from the store. I often get a huge box of Red Vines licorice as a birthday present. I'm sure that Red Vines licorice will always be an important part of our family. ~ Shelly from California I am the oldest of three children. My two younger brothers would always tag team to steal whatever candy was brought into the house before I could get any. One thing I will remember is my grandmother. Grandma would tell how she loved Red Vine and ate it as a child. My grandmother and I were always very close and so of course I wanted to be like my grandma and eat Red Vine as well. I remember Grandma bringing over a huge tub of Red Vine for the first time, but we couldn't have any till after supper. I went to school and then band practice, and ran straight home. I remember crying my heart out when I arrived home from practice and the tub was empty. I'll never forget the look on my brothers faces when Grandma came from the living room holding another tub. This one is for us, she said. It became our special treat from then on. Now I am 26 with three children of my own and my Grandmother is still alive. We hadn't thought of Red Vine for years since you just don't see it anymore, till last night I saw a Law and Order and there on the desk was a tub of Red Vine Licorice!! So I got online and saw I can order Red Vine. I can't wait for my first shipment to arrive so I can bring my children to my grandmother and we can all continue the tradition of enjoying a great American product. Thanks for all the great memories and for all those yet to come. ~ Patricia from Iowa |
