fassionola (green)

Also known as “Passionola (green)”. Passionola (green) was a proprietary lime-forward syrup spinoff of the passion fruit syrup Passionola, which, in turn, became Passionola (gold)—see separate entry. (A red variation was also created at the same time—see separate entry.) This green-colored syrup was marketed to the wholesale soda fountain industry as a flavor alternative, and eventually to the bar market, as well. As of this writing, it’s not clear that anyone knows exactly what the original green Passionola tasted like. Passionfruit likely remained part of its composition, as the product was advertised as a “passion fruit product” in the 1940s “with the tasty tartness of lime”. In the 1950s, the Passionola brand was renamed or replaced by Fassionola, likely with further manufacturing and quality changes, but the gold/red/green pattern continued. Like many processed food products, Passionola/Fassionola and its competitors went through changes over time, bending to market forces, manufacturing efficiencies and the profitability expectations of new owners. Fassionola-branded products have remained wholesale-oriented, with sporadic appearances in the retail market. Today, the word fassionola is in generic use and the word Passionola is under (novel) trademark. Products today using these names should be evaluated on their own terms, and any claims of historical accuracy should probably be taken with the proverbial grain of salt. There is limited evidence of Passionola (green) or fassionola (green) having significantly penetrated the world of mixed drinks. Passionola brochures offered example drink recipes, but the green version was not really featured in them. Period references to “green syrup” and “green passionfruit syrup” may or may not be relevant. Regardless, either Passionola (green) or fassionola (green) may well have been employed from time-to-time, somewhere, somehow. Fruit-flavored syrup is an abstract category for sugar syrup infused with the fruit, fruit juices and/or skins of fresh or dried fruit.