A giant statue of an L&P bottle outside a New Zealand town has caused quite a stir. Originating in Paeroa, L&P is a lemon-based drink from New Zealand. The drink has been around since 1907 and is made using a recipe that uses lemon juice and carbonated mineral water. The name L&P refers to both the taste and the town – lemon and Paeroa – and while the flavours aren’t particularly unique, it can be difficult to find this soft drink if you’re not in New Zealand. Hence the drink’s slogan: “World Famous in New Zealand.”

Paeroa’s mineral water gave the drink its famous flavor. Unlike other lemon drinks Americans may be familiar with, L&P tends toward the lemon bitters category. The dry lemonade can leave a mineral taste in the mouth, with a hint of tart sweetness. Some white chocolate bars are flavored with L&P, but like the drink, they can be hard to find if you’re not in New Zealand. This may be one reason the giant statue is such a draw for visitors to the area.

The installation was a deliberate attempt to draw attention to Paeroa. “I’m the last person alive and there’s no one to tell the real story,” Cliff Pett, who helped create the bottle, told the New Zealand Herald. Pett admits they didn’t expect the bottle to become a permanent attraction in the town, let alone still be standing decades later.

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Committed to an idea

Cliff Pett claims a group of businessmen collectively decided that a bottle of L&P was a brilliant idea to promote the town. The group were having a drink on a hot day and an empty lemonade bottle inspired their creative campaign to attract visitors to the community. The men took their idea to the mayor, councillors and the then owners of Paeroa’s mineral water spring, who all agreed it was a worthwhile concept.

In 1969, a concrete slab was placed and construction of the bottle began. Vertical steel rods were erected on 3-foot-high concrete rings and wrapped in chicken netting before a local craftsman applied the plaster. A door was added to the bottom of the bottle’s neck to allow access to the inside of the bottle for repair work. While the statue still stands, the soda has undergone some changes, including a change in ownership, and Coca-Cola now runs the company.

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