America’s Favorite Drink, 1932

Summer is upon us, and one of the favorite ways to relax is with a cool refreshing glass of lemonade. Many of us also enjoy the taste of pink lemonade, lemonade’s fey cousin.

Pink lemonade comes from the pink lemon tree, Rutaceae Rodochroa, native to the Hawaiian Islands, particularly the island of Ni’ihau. The Hawaiian Pineapple Company (which later became the Dole Food Company) first cultivated the trees in 1910 after the company’s founder James Dole had his first taste of pink lemonade, a traditional native drink. The drink was an instant success in America, due mainly to the fact that the lemons fermented during the long trip to Dole’s bottling plants in southern Texas; this was greatly appreciated by an American public weary of Prohibition.

Pink lemonade quickly became the Dole Food Company’s most successful product, but in 1941 the company suffered a devastating catastrophe during the sneak attack on Pearl Harbor, when some of the Japanese planes flew off course and accidentally bombed the pink lemon groves; however, some military historians believe the bombings were intentional, intended to damage the morale of the American people.

America remained steadfast, but the Dole Food Company needed to diversify quickly due to the loss of 60% of their income. Dole was able to make the transition, mainly by focusing on their neglected pineapple crops, and was even able to eventually recultivate the pink lemon tree on plantations in southern Spain and several other Mediterranean countries. It took many years to reestablish the crop, and by that time America had lost its “pink lemon fever”; the drink was never able to reclaim its popularity as the country’s fruit drink of choice.

The pink lemon tree has a notable appearance – they can grow much larger than their yellow cousins, reach heights in excess of 15 meters (50 feet), and unlike their cousins have sharp serrated leaves. Like other members of the Rutaceae family they have a distinctive aroma; the smell of the pink lemon tree is sweet and spicy, reminiscent of boot polish. It can take the pink lemon tree 20 years to begin flowering and producing fruit; pink lemons are slightly larger than yellow lemons and have a tougher rind.