The Convenient Reason Bubble Gum Is Historically Pink

If you've ever pondered the finer points of chewing gum and wondered where it came from and why, you're not the only one. The topic fascinated Jennifer Mathews so much that she wrote an entire book on the topic with Gillian P. Schultz. It's called "Chicle: Chewing Gum of the Americas, From the Ancient Maya to William Wrigley." Chicle is a resin that comes from the sapodilla tree in southern Mexico and Central America. The viscous off-white substance was cooked and dried to create something that could be chewed indefinitely.

But that was roughly 2,000 years ago  (give or take a few centuries), long before the invention of bubble gum. Walter Diemer is credited with inventing bubble gum by accident in 1928 when he was working for the Frank H. Fleer Gum Company. His creation was rugged enough to chew, pliable enough to blow bubbles, and smooth enough to not stick to your teeth. It was called Double Bubble, and it was pink, reportedly because that was the only color the food company had on hand at the time. Since Double Bubble is still pink, it is correct to assume the color ... stuck.

While the iconic color of bubble gum is easy to describe, the unique flavor is a little more difficult to define. That's because, historically, bubble gum tastes slightly different from manufacturer to manufacturer, so no two flavor profiles are identical. Theoretically, there is no definitive "bubble gum" flavor. If anything, it's more of a fruity vibe.

To get that yummy essence of mixed fruits, manufacturers use artificial flavoring and esters (organic chemical compounds). More specifically, bubble gum is a blend of flavors that may include banana, pineapple, vanilla, cherry, lemon, orange, and more.

While many people just call bubble gum "gum," there is a crucial difference between chewing gum and bubble gum. Bubble gum is made with a higher gum base than chewing gum. This gives it a thicker consistency that allows you to blow bubbles. Additionally, chewing gum is traditionally flavored with breath-freshening ingredients, such as spearmint and peppermint, while bubble gum has a much more fruit-based flavor profile.