Monday, February 25, 2008

Red Raspberry


Go to any gas station and buy a slushy and you will likely see the flavor "Blue Raspberry" and "Red Raspberry". This makes sense. Of course, there is no such thing as blue raspberry, yet somehow we all think that the name makes it a good flavor, so we buy into it.


Look at fruit-based candy around your grocer's aisle. You will also likely see a flavor known as "Red Raspberry". Even "Jelly Belly" jelly beans have a "Red Raspberry."


But here is what gets me... Go down the jam and jelly aisle. You will rarely find a "Raspberry" flavored jam, it will most certainly be "RED raspberry"!


Did I miss something here? Did yellow raspberries enter the agricultural scene without me knowing? Is there REALLY such a fruit as "Blue raspberry"? Do raspberries come in purple? Why do we suddenly have to preface the word "raspberry" with red now? It makes no sense! There are no other colors of raspberries!


It makes sense in the apple kingdom. There are so many different kinds of apples, but even in that community they at least get CREATIVE with the colors; "Red Delicious" and "Golden Delicious". Heck, most have abandoned the colors altogether, have you see the "Jazz" apple, and of course the Granny Smith apple.


Why not start labeling all strawberry flavored foods as "Red Strawberry"? Or what's wrong with "Yellow Banana?". Would you care for an Orange Orange?


If it is all about marketing, then fine. Maybe some studies showed that the public does not like the word "Raspberry" and somehow, but prefacing it with the adjective "Red" we all start drooling.

6 comments:

kermitgrn said...

Actually there is a black rasberry. that might explain the distinction at least on the jam isle.

Ryan F. said...

Charles McCown, Ladies and Gentlemen. He is in fact still alive. Good to hear from you on here.

Anonymous said...

There are also golden raspberries in addition to the reds and blacks. But blues? Nope.

Anonymous said...

There are actually Whitebark / Blue Raspberrys. They are related to the Black Raspberrys, but they make the flaver artifically so theres no big demand for them anymore

Anonymous said...

There are red, purple, green, yellow, and brown banans.
So you can say a yellow banana.

Anonymous said...

I think that one can look at the colour of the jam to find out the colour of the raspberries,and incidentally ,black raspberries could easily be called blackberries.
Maybe red raspberries make it sound artificial ,"as artificial" attracts so many shoppers.