There is an old Barbadian legend telling us that the "Grapefruit" was first developed in Barbados, in the beautiful Welchman Hall Gully and was first recorded in the eighteenth century. Its parents were Shaddock and Sweet Orange, immigrants from across the Asian Sea. A natural cross-pollination was produced between Shaddock and Sweet Orange. As a result, the "Forbidden Fruit" (as it was named many moons ago) was born for the first time! The name was changed to "Grapefruit" because it grows in large "grape-like clusters". This original Barbadian fruit has now become a worldwide favorite.

Grapefruit (Citrus Paradisi) were first reported growing in Barbados about 1750, where they were known as "forbidden fruit." Only a few years later they were observed growing in Jamaica, but the term grapefruit was not used until 1814. It seems likely that the grapefruit originated in the West Indies since it was unknown in Europe or the Orient prior to its discovery in the New World. However, whether it arose as a mutation or by natural hybridization is uncertain. It is likely that Europeans still referred to the fruit as "forbidden fruit", not grapefruit during the Bustanoby brothers' informative years and therefore, it is what the brothers would have known this fruit to be called, making it an obvious choice for the name of their liqueur.

Grapefruit is believed to have been introduced in Florida in 1823 by Count Odette Phillipe who settled near Safety Harbor on Tampa Bay. The first shipments of Florida grapefruit to New York and Philadelphia in 1885 signaled the beginning of the commercial grapefruit industry. The date of this first shipment of grapefruit to New York is significant because research shows that Forbidden Fruit was first introduced in the in the 1890's by the Bustanobys. These shipments would have given the family a source for the fruit that did not appear to be available in America prior to 1885.

The bottle for Forbidden Fruit was patented in February 2,1904 by André JB Bustanoby. View bottle design and patent.

Recipes with Forbidden Fruit