Gourmandise: the Vichy lozenge, the success of the medicine that has become candy

Inseparable from the city where it was born in the Allier, the Vichy pastille is the celebrity of the spa town, a little candy that you can never refuse. “Grandmothers had some in the cupboards, it was to digest”says a resident. Today’s candy has nothing to do with the first lozenge. In cure in Vichy in 1824, it is a medicine against bloating invented by Joseph d’Bowa Parisian chemist. Local confectioners then seize it to make a candy, which leads to the dazzling success of the pastille.

A simple recipe

Today, about 700 tonnes per year comes out of a factory. The timeless tablet has kept the same simple recipe. “There is sugar, mineral salts, natural mint oils and water”describes Corentin Doré, an employee. In confectionery, the pastille is now available in all its forms. But the candy with miraculous virtues remains the star product of tourists. The Vichy pastille will celebrate its bicentenary next year.