Franklin & Sons Natural Rose Lemonade
Franklin & Sons’ rose lemonade, made with English rose petals and lemon and sweetened with fructose. It is the pink bottle people recognise, and it is a genuine mixer rather than a soft drink that happens to go with gin.
Quick Facts
Flavour Profile
Primary Flavours
Tasting Notes
Proper lemonade acidity with rose floating above it: floral enough to charm, sharp enough to stay a drink.
Storage & Handling
Cool, sealed, cold for service.
Usage
Poured long over gin, where the rose meets the botanicals rather than fighting them. It comes in 200ml and 275ml, and at 7.75 grams of sugar per 100ml it sweetens a drink, so nothing else sweet is needed in the glass.
Rose as a Flavour, Not a Perfume
Rose is difficult in a drink because the line between floral and soapy is a narrow one, and a great many rose products land on the wrong side of it. What keeps this on the right side is the lemon, which supplies the acidity a floral note needs to sit against. Franklin & Sons name English rose petals and lemon in their description of it. The result reads as a lemonade with a rose lift rather than as rose water with sugar in it, and the order of those two things matters a great deal.
Sweetened with Fructose
The sweetener is fructose rather than sugar, which is unusual within their range, and it runs at 33 kcal and 7.75 grams of sugar per 100ml. That is conventional lemonade territory rather than light, so it is not a low-sugar option and should not be treated as one. Franklin & Sons state there are no artificial colours, flavours or sweeteners and no preservatives in the bottle, and that it is vegan and vegetarian. What it adds up to is a straightforward, well-made mixer.
The Gin Question
Gin is the natural partner and the reason most bottles are bought, but which gin matters more here than usual. A plain London Dry gains a floral top note it did not have. A gin already carrying rose, elderflower or other florals gets doubled and loses its definition, which is the same trap the flavoured tonics set. Vodka works and produces something closer to a soft drink with alcohol in it. It is wrong with an aged spirit, where the rose sits oddly against oak.
As a Soft Drink
It holds up over ice on its own, which is why it is a common no-alcohol option, and the recognisable pink is part of why it gets offered: a soft drink that looks like a drink rather than an apology for one. Serve it cold in a wine glass or a highball with a strip of lemon. There is no large format, so a 200ml or 275ml bottle is one glass, which is the right way to buy anything carbonated.
Pro Tip
Treat it as a pre-mixed floral serve: the rose is already dosed, so resist adding more flowers anywhere in the drink.
Top Tips
- Use a plain gin. Rose on top of a floral gin cancels out rather than compounds.
- Add nothing sweet. At 7.75 grams per 100ml the bottle has already made that decision for you.
- Serve it with lemon rather than with a rose petal. The drink wants the acid, not more flowers.
Possible Substitutions
- Sicilian lemonade plus two drops of rose water approximates it, which is also the recipe
History & Context
Rose lemonade is the modern signature of the old house: the Victorian soda tradition's lemonade with the aromatics shelf's rose lesson applied at bottling. It became the range's famous pink flag for the simple reason that it works.
Common Questions
What does rose lemonade mix with?
Gin first, and a plain London Dry rather than a floral one, since rose on top of rose cancels out. Vodka works for something closer to a soft drink. It is wrong with an aged spirit, where the floral note sits awkwardly against the oak.
Is it very floral?
Present rather than overwhelming, and the lemon is what holds it there. Rose without acidity turns soapy quickly, so the lemonade underneath is doing structural work rather than merely carrying the flavour. It reads as lemonade with a rose lift rather than the other way round.
Does it work alone?
Yes, and it is a common no-alcohol option for that reason. The recognisable pink is part of the appeal, since a soft drink that looks like a drink is worth something. Serve it cold with a strip of lemon rather than anything floral on top.
Is it sweet?
Conventionally so, at 33 kcal and 7.75 grams of sugar per 100ml, which is lemonade territory rather than light. It is sweetened with fructose, and Franklin & Sons state there are no artificial sweeteners, colours, flavours or preservatives in it.
Often Used With
Guide by Jerry Can Spirits