Readers of a certain vintage may recall the Bon Accord trucks which used to trundle around Scotland delivering bottles of what we called ‘fizzy pop’.
Intensely sweet and manufactured in a range of colours best viewed using sun glasses, the Bon Accord soft drinks included Cola, Lemonade, American Cream Soda and Tropical which – if memory serves – was Scotland’s answer to Lilt.
Bon Accord soft drinks was founded in 1909 by the Robb family and was based in Arbroath. The original family business was one of three major soft drink manufactures in Scotland, along with AG Barr and James Dunbar. Bon Accord was known for their iconic trucks and home delivery across Scotland but was slowly wound down and stopped manufacturing soft drinks in 2000.
Four generations after the company was launched, the brand has been revived by the founder’s great-great granddaughter, Karen Knowles, and business partner Nathan Burrough.
Natural sweeteners
Gone are the neon colours and sugar in favour of natural sweeteners and real fruit juices aimed at the more health-conscious consumer. The soft drinks company hopes to be among a new wave of Scottish soft drinks, designed to chime with contemporary food and drink trends.
Realising consumer habits have changed in recent years, Karen Knowles was determined to create new Bon Accord recipes which were a clear departure from the Bon Accord of yesteryear.
Bon Accord has launched a new range of soft drinks; a cloudy lemonade and rhubarb, both sweetened with natural ingredients, containing no refined sugar or artificial sweeteners. Notably, Bon Accord Rhubarb is the first sparkling rhubarb drink to be produced in Scotland.
Partners well with gin
Their new Scottish tonic water is made with Scottish water and has a clean, crisp flavour which has been designed to complement Scotland’s new wave of gins.
The recipes were developed and tested with the help of the University of Abertay’s Food Innovation department.
Bon Accord Director, Karen Knowles said:
‘When I was pregnant and out with family and friends, I was struck by how uninspiring soft drinks were and how much sugar was in them. It felt like there was a real lack of choice for adults. Noticing this gap in the market was the inspiration behind bringing back Bon Accord.
Having worked in the food industry for the last ten years, I began to realise that I had the skills to revive the brand with new high quality recipes aimed at adults. We have produced a range of drinks which can be enjoyed on their own or as mixers to your favourite tipple.’
Lower in sugar
Taking into consideration the upcoming Sugar Tax legislation, it was important for Bon Accord to create a range of soft drinks which were more in-tune with consumer habits and trends.
Bon Accord Director, Nathan Burrough said:
‘People are more clued-up on what they drink and it was our priority to make soft drinks to savour, drinks which are made with natural ingredients and are lower in sugar. The new tax pushes producers to think about the ingredients they use and we are already ahead of the game. This is a really exciting time to be a part of the food and drink industry in Scotland. Bon Accord is back and better than ever.’
The 5pm Dining blog wishes the new Bon Accord every luck.