Bitter Lemon
A carbonated soft drink with a tart, slightly bitter lemon flavor, similar to tonic but lemon-forward.
Origin
The United Kingdom, developed by Schweppes and launched commercially in 1957 as a lemon-flavored answer to tonic water.
History
Schweppes had been developing a bitter citrus soda through the 1950s, and after a rival firm released a tonic-and-lemon-juice drink, Schweppes launched its own Bitter Lemon (alongside a Bitter Orange) on May 1, 1957. It sold enormously well out of the gate, for a time even outselling Schweppes' own tonic water, before newer competitors and shifting tastes caused sales to decline by the end of the decade; it never gained lasting traction in the American market and was eventually withdrawn from U.S. shelves, though it remains available in the UK and elsewhere.
Flavor profile
Tart and citrusy with tonic water's quinine bitterness underneath, sweeter and more lemon-forward than plain tonic.
Tasting notes
Bright lemon peel and juice up front, with tonic's characteristic bitter, quinine backbone showing through on the finish - a useful middle ground between plain lemon soda and straight tonic water in a mixed drink.
Substitutes
- Tonic water with a squeeze of fresh lemon, as a close and widely available substitute.
- Lemon-lime soda cut with a small amount of tonic water, to approximate the sweetness-to-bitterness ratio.
- San Pellegrino Limonata, for a similarly citrus-forward carbonated mixer, though without tonic's bitterness.
Common cocktails