Among the world’s premier soda brands, 7 Up stands tall, even if it doesn’t always hog the spotlight. This vibrant lemon-lime flavored soda is a total lifesaver, especially when summer’s heat has you melting. Since 1929, 7 Up has had loads of time to carve out its niche, and boy, did it ever! But being around for so long means there’s a whole treasure trove of fascinating history to uncover and juicy facts to devour!
From Orange Dreams to Lemon-Lime Schemes
Charles Leiper Grigg, the mastermind behind 7Up, wasn’t always top dog. He kicked things off as an advertising and marketing whiz for an orange soda company, but let’s just say he wasn’t exactly thrilled with his gig. Eventually, he ditched that scene to whip up his very own orange soda, dubbed “Howdy.”
Talk about a tough break, though! With Orange Crush dominating the market, Howdy just couldn’t cut it. Why? Turns out it was missing that key ingredient: actual orange juice. Instead, it relied on essential oils from orange rinds, but that just wasn’t enough to compete, especially with doctors shouting from the rooftops about the wonders of Vitamin C. So, Grigg pivoted, pouring his energy into testing a gazillion different formulas for two years straight. And then, bam! He concocted a new drink, originally christened “Bib-Label Lithiated Lemon-Lime Soda”—now there’s a mouthful for ya! Luckily, that tongue-twister got a much-needed trim to “7Up Lithiated Lemon Soda,” before finally landing on the snappy “7Up.”
The Secret Ingredient: A Mood-Boosting Sip
Long before the FDA put the kibosh on lithium in beer and soft drinks back in ’48, folks were chugging it down as an antidepressant and a mood lifter. And that, my friends, is likely where Grigg’s lightbulb moment happened. He figured, “Hey, packing my new drink with lithium? Genius marketing strategy!”
And he was totally on the money! Sipping on lithium in the form of a tasty, refreshing soft drink? 7Up was a total hit, even rolling out just as The Great Depression was giving everyone the blues. With his advertising and marketing chops from his previous gig, it’s no shocker that he cooked up such a brilliant idea. Of course, once lithium got the boot from beverages, 7Up’s formula got a makeover two years later, just like a bunch of other famous soft drinks that dabbled in mind-altering stuff. But hey, we can still enjoy it for what it is today: a super delicious and bubbly treat!
The Million-Dollar Question: What’s in a Name?
Even though we’ve traced the journey of how the name got whittled down to 7Up, no one really knows its origin or what the heck it truly means! But don’t fret, there are some pretty wild theories floating around.
Hypothesis 1: The Ingredient Count
The OG 7Up recipe apparently only had seven ingredients: lemon and lime oils, citric acid, sodium citrate, and lithium citrate. Back then, lithium was seen as a mood enhancer, which totally explains the “Up” part of the name. Pretty neat, huh?
Hypothesis 2: Size Matters
When 7Up first hit the shelves, it came in 7-ounce bottles. Meanwhile, most of its soda rivals were stuck in dinky 6-ounce bottles. Maybe it was a subtle flex, showing off that extra ounce of bubbly goodness!
Hypothesis 3: Cattle Branding Inspiration
Another theory suggests that Charles Grigg stumbled upon cattle branded with a similar mark. He figured if a brand could clearly distinguish cows, then a distinct brand for his new drink would totally help consumers spot his beverage in a crowd!
Hypothesis 4: A Coded Message
Some whispers say that 7Up is a sly nod to the lithium that used to be in this famous soft drink, simply because lithium has an atomic mass of, you guessed it, “about 7.” Sneaky, right?
Hypothesis 5: Lady Luck at the Table
One more juicy speculation is that Grigg dreamed up the name on the fly, while cheering for sevens during a game of craps – a game he apparently crushed, all thanks to those lucky “sevens!” Similarly, the rumor mill suggests he hit the jackpot at some casino, all thanks to the seventh “up” card he was dealt. With two card game theories floating around, could one of them actually be legit?
But here’s the kicker: even with all these cool theories, nobody knows for sure which one, if any, is the real deal! Which one do you think sounds the most believable? No matter the case, Grigg took that secret straight to his grave.
Either way, now that you’re armed with all the coolest, most fascinating facts about 7Up’s backstory, go forth and drop this knowledge bomb on everyone around you the next time you pop open a can of this bubbly delight!
