About Barr Red Kola
About Barr Red Kola
Frequently asked questions about Barr Red Kola
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Packaging Accuracy. We keep product information as accurate and up to date as possible. Manufacturers sometimes change packaging, ingredients, nutritional information, allergen advice, pack sizes or branding without notice, so the product you receive may look slightly different from the images shown. If you have a question about ingredients or allergens before ordering, please get in touch and we will gladly check for you.
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The story of Barr Red Kola
The red one in the fridge
Every Scottish corner shop had a fridge, and somewhere in it, just past the Irn-Bru, was the red one. You know the one. Barr Red Kola was what you reached for when you fancied a change but had no intention of leaving the family. Currie's makes its own take on the style, and people have opinions about that, but this is the Barr bottle, from A.G. Barr. That is the same Scottish firm that gave the country its other national drink, so it comes from people who do not take fizzy juice lightly.
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One family, two cities
It started in Falkirk in 1875, when Robert Barr set up the business. In 1887 his son Robert Fulton Barr opened a second division in Glasgow, because one town was clearly not enough. In 1892 the Glasgow branch passed to Andrew Greig Barr, and his initials became the name on every bottle since: A.G. Barr. The two halves of the family business carried on side by side until 1959, when Falkirk and Glasgow finally merged. Plenty of families have argued over less.
Spelt the way you say it
Irn-Bru was soft-launched in 1899 and officially launched in 1901, when it was still called Iron Brew. New truth-in-labelling rules changed that, and the trademark application for the phonetic spelling dates from July 1946. It has outsold Coca-Cola in Scotland for over a century. It is often called Scotland's other national drink, after Scotch whisky. It even has its own tartan. You do not get a tartan by accident.
Still very much in business
A.G. Barr is headquartered in Cumbernauld these days. It is a public company listed on the London Stock Exchange, part of the FTSE 250, which is a long way from one man in Falkirk. Alongside Irn-Bru the range takes in Tizer, Rubicon and Boost, and drinks in the same family as Red Kola are made at its factories in Forfar, Milton Keynes and Cumbernauld. So the next time someone asks what is in the red bottle, you can tell them the whole story. They did ask.