Triple Sec is used in more than 250 mixed drinks.
History
Rose's Lime Juice is a remarkable brand with an
adventurous heritage and a robust history; sailing
ships, warm West Indies isles, trenches of World War
I, Africa's Gold Coast and the London Blitz are all part
of the colorful legend of this unique product.
Lauchlin Rose (1829-1885) a descendent of a
prominent family of Scottish ship builders, founded L.
Rose & Company in Leith, Edinburgh in 1865.
Describing himself as a "lime and lemon juice
merchant," he combined a keen business sense with
his knowledge of the sea. Scurvy, caused by a
deficiency of vitamin C, had been the scourge of
sailors since the early days of sailing ships. To
prevent "this most terrible of the diseases of maritime
life," a supply of lime or lemon juice preserved with
15% of rum, generally was boarded for long voyages.
In 1867, Lauchlin developed and patented a process
that effectively prevented fermentation and
preserved fruit juice without alcohol. The same year,
the Merchant Shipping Act was passed, whereby all
vessels, Royal Navy and Merchant, were required to
carry lime juice for a daily ration to ships' company. It
was this enactment that resulted in British sailors
being called "limeys" and brought about a sales
volume boost for this new L. Rose & Company
business. From Cape Town in Singapore, from Bombay
to Belize, Rose's literally sailed the seven seas.
In 1875, the company's head office was moved from
Scotland to England. From the first days of the
brand, the classic Rose's bottle, with the
embossed "lime leaves & fruit" design, has been part
of the packaging. Many of the earlier versions are
today considered collector items. In 1895, the
company bought an abundant lime crop and
considerable coca acreage at the Bath Estate on
Dominica in the Caribbean. Some fresh limes from the
island were annually shipped to North America, while
bottled Rose's Lime Juice arrived in the United States
from the United Kingdom.
The early years of the new century were successful
for the growing Rose's enterprise, and in 1919
Lauchlin Rose, grandson of the founder, entered the
business. By 1924, he was General Manager and that
year established a lime industry in the Gold Coast,
now Ghana - a new venture that really had its start
in the summer of 1916. Just prior to the Battle of the
Somme, Lauchlin Rose was assigned to the Royal
Engineers, serving under the Engineers' Commander,
Sir Gordon Gugisberg. After the war, Sir Gordon
became Governor of the Gold Coast. On a chance
meeting with Lauchlin, their discussion led to the
proposal of developing Ghana as an alternate supply
source of limes.
The Depression years of the early '30s were tough for
the company as they were for all the world trade, but
from 1935 until the outbreak of WWII, the business
enjoyed steady expansion. As war threatened, there
was growing concern that the company's facilities
were in a probable target area. An alternate site was
located and the move was completed to St. Albans,
northwest of London. On September 7, 1940, three
days after the onset of the Blitz, the company's
London premises were bombed.
Rose's joined Schweppes in 1957 and has since
expanded its product line. Rose's Lime Juice remains
the premier choice with over 99% of U.S. retail lime
juice sales. Its distinctive bottle is recognized and
appreciated as a symbol of quality around the globe.
