There are plenty of things we encounter in life that leave us scratching our heads and wondering how such a thing came to be. Usually it’s something really fascinating, connected to our personal preferences. Today, we’re going to be talking about something that uh, probably is not in that list. We’re going to look into the more obscure side of things for an invention that I don’t think anyone has ever wondered about.
For example, what’s your favorite snow cone flavor? Red? Blue? Can you name the fruit that the color is based on? When it comes to red, it’s probably cherry right? Strawberry flavor, maybe. With blue, it’s natural to assume that it’s blueberry. However, usually the blue flavor is known as Blue Raspberry. The very concept of a blue raspberry is strange enough, and the fact that it’s the most popular snow cone flavor is even stranger. Let’s look into the origins of Blue Raspberry, and see if we can’t build a little timeline to help as a guide!
Who invented Blue Raspberry?
According to the lore of sugary snacks and drinks, Blue Raspberry was invented by the good outfit from Cincinnati, Gold Medal. They figured blue was a pretty interesting color to use for raspberries, especially since most of the popular fruit flavors already use the red coloring.
Blue Raspberry’s key contributors (and evolution)
- The White Bark RaspberryThe real plant that did not serve as the inspiration for Blue Raspberry, but is coincidentally a blue raspberry
Funny enough, there is such a thing as a blue raspberry, even if it seems so far-fetched. The white bark raspberries are sometimes purple, and sometimes blue!
- Gold MedalThe food outfit responsible for the creation of Blue Raspberry
The story behind Gold Medal creating the flavor stems from the fact that the blue food coloring was pretty underrated at the time. Blue Raspberry was meant to capture the imagination, as to most people, it’s a fruit that doesn’t exist.
- William Henry PerkinInvented the first form of food coloring
To talk about Blue Raspberry flavoring is to talk about the invention of food coloring as a whole, which was started by William Henry Perkin. He invented the first synthetic dye he called “mauvine.”
- Omar KendrikCreated the company that introduced the Blue Raspberry flavor in the 70s
Omar Kendrik started the ICEE Company, which was responsible for various vividly colored frozen drinks, including the blue ICEE, which was the first time most people got to experience the Blue Raspberry flavor.
- Various sweets and snack companies of the present dayUsed various products to promote Blue Raspberry flavor
It’s a little strange, but people are now entirely used to Blue Raspberry as a flavoring for various snacks. It’s no longer just frozen drinks and popsicles, but many other sweets and snacks use the Blue Raspberry flavor. These days, people tend to associate blue sweets with raspberry!
When was Blue Raspberry invented?
The Blue Raspberry flavor was invented in 1958 by Gold Medal.
A brief history of Blue Raspberry
It seems a little odd to dive so deep into what’s essentially a single flavor, but it’s crucial to note the impact Blue Raspberry has had in the world of sweets and frozen treats. It’s essentially a flavor that doesn’t exist, yet it’s a significant part of today’s snack society. To talk about Blue Raspberry flavoring is to talk about the invention of food coloring as a whole, which was started by Henry Perkin. He invented the first synthetic dye he called “mauvine.”
Fast-forward to the 50s, and the Cincinnati food outfit, Gold Medal, creates the Blue Raspberry flavor in an attempt to make it stand out. You see, the raspberry itself is red in color usually, but red is a color used by many different flavors. From cherry to strawberry, it won’t be easy for raspberries to make a difference if they don’t stand out somehow. Such is the reason why Gold Medal decided to make it blue.
During the 70s, the flavor was introduced to the masses through the ICEE company, headed by Omar Kendrik. He introduced the blue ICEE drink, which was essentially Blue Raspberry. The flavor was an absolute hit, especially among the kids, and the Blue Raspberry flavor took off from there. Suddenly, you had many other companies clamoring to use the Blue Raspberry flavor, to the point that modern society sees blue sweets as a potential raspberry flavor — despite raspberries usually being red!
The Blue Raspberry timeline
- 1856William Henry Perkins’ creation of food coloring
To talk about Blue Raspberry flavoring is to talk about the invention of food coloring as a whole, which was started by William Henry Perkin. He invented the first synthetic dye he called “mauvine.”
- 1958The invention of the Blue Raspberry flavor
The story behind Gold Medal creating the flavor stems from the fact that the blue food coloring was pretty underrated at the time. Blue Raspberry was meant to capture the imagination, as to most people, it’s a fruit that doesn’t exist.
- 1970sThe introduction of the Blue Raspberry flavor to the masses
During the 70s, the flavor was introduced to the masses through the ICEE company, headed by Omar Kendrik. He introduced the blue ICEE drink, which was essentially Blue Raspberry.
Where was Blue Raspberry invented?
The Blue Raspberry flavor was invented in Cincinnati by Gold Medal.
Why everyone loves Blue Raspberry
- A fruit that supposedly doesn’t exist
The point of the creation of Blue Raspberry was to capture the attention of the masses with raspberry. While raspberry is usually seen as red, Gold Medal thought that having the flavor in blue would help it stand out. They were absolutely right, as the flavor took off right away.
- A flavor that just about everyone is familiar with
Anyone who’s had the pleasure of enjoying frozen drinks and various sweets has probably already tried Blue Raspberry without even knowing. Essentially, any type of sweets or drinks that are blue in flavor, such as snow cones with the blue syrup, is almost always Blue Raspberry.
- Opening the floodgates for other potential combinations
In a lot of ways, Blue Raspberry was considered lightning in a bottle for most people. While it opens the floodgates from many other potential flavor and color combinations, not many have enjoyed the same kind of popularity as Blue Raspberry. That said, it still opens up the possibility for new trends.
- A testbed for experimentation
Who knew that the introduction of raspberry flavor with a different color would have such an effect on the way people view and enjoy snacks and sugary drinks? There are plenty of interesting psychological effects, making the color and flavor combinations a great testbed for general experimentation.
Blue Raspberry by the numbers
- 1965When the ICEE company created various machines that can make ICEE products, 7-Eleven bought those machines in 1965 and helped introduce the Blue Raspberry flavored ICEE to the masses.
- 1The ingredient responsible for the blue coloring is called FD&C Blue No. 1 — the red color is known as No. 2, and it has its fair share of controversy.
- 2There are two products that are considered the most popular when paired with the Blue Raspberry flavor. The first is the blue ICEE, and the second is any type of snow cone that uses the Blue Raspberry syrup. These two frozen treats are often considered the best way to experience Blue Raspberry flavor.
- 1969There was quite a lot of controversy around food dyes as potentially harmful substances. Fortunately, around 1969 it was deemed that the Blue Raspberry coloring was considered safe to consume.
Five facts about Blue Raspberry
- The odd fruit behind the flavoring
First and foremost, no, they didn’t consider the blue raspberry fruit as the inspiration for the flavoring. It’s likely Gold Medal didn’t even know a blue type of raspberry existed! That said, it certainly did, and it was known as the white bark raspberry.
- The fixation on electric blue
For some reason, in the 70s Blue Raspberry was considered one of the most popular flavors, if not the most popular one around. There’s just something about the vivid blue color that attracts kids and adults alike.
- The first introduction of the flavor
While the Blue Raspberry flavor became extremely popular with the introduction of the blue ICEE, it was around 1958 that the Blue Raspberry flavoring was experimented on with snow cones. It was still during its experimental phase, so it’s understandable that it didn’t quite catch on at the time.
- Reasoning for the blue color
The simple reason why Blue Raspberry has such a vivid color is to keep it interesting. As far as the flavor goes, it’s still a simple raspberry flavor. The fact that it’s a blue color gives it that extra oomph.
- A popular flavor even today
Considering that the flavor blew up during the 70s, it’s amazing that Blue Raspberry kept its popularity intact and still continues to be popular today.
FAQs about Blue Raspberry
- Wait, Blue Raspberry wasn’t based on any fruit?
I know, right? It’s so weird that not only did they build the Blue Raspberry without basis on a fruit, but a fruit actually existed matching Blue Raspberry (the white bark raspberry). It’s a strange coincidence, but that’s what makes these stories so entertaining.
- I haven’t tried the Blue Raspberry flavor! What’s it like?
If you know what the raspberry candies and flavoring tastes like, that’s pretty much the same thing. The only difference is that the color is blue.
- Does the Blue Raspberry flavoring taste like raspberries?
It’s understandable why you might ask such a question, considering strawberry flavor doesn’t taste anything like real strawberries. In this case, it tastes closer to raspberries than the strawberry flavor, but it’s still not particularly close.
- What makes Blue Raspberry so popular?
It’s likely due to the vivid blue color. It’s a very bright blue — some might even describe it as electric blue. It’s an unusual color for the flavor, and it was just the right combination of weird to catch the attention of the masses.