The Making of RamTang’: Citrus Beginnings
From hand-crafted batches to the signature taste and refined brand that RamTang’ has become today, it has been quite the journey. For this three-part series, we spoke with co-founders Sally and Chris to uncover the behind-the-scenes stories and challenges that shaped their success.
A citrus obsession
The spark that ignited RamTang’ came in the form of a gift: a bottle of traditional Nonna’s limoncello, shared by a guest at Sally’s London B&B back in 1996. As a lover of all things citrus, Sally’s curiosity was piqued, but her first taste left her with mixed feelings.
Sally: "It was something quite different from the Sauvignon Blanc or gin and tonic I was used to drinking. I’ve always been a fan of sharp lemon flavours. I’ve always had a citrus obsession.
“As a child, I would suck lemons until I was convinced it would take the enamel off my teeth. I even chewed on orange peel for the bitter tang. When I resided in France, I practically lived on citrus pressé, and my favourite dessert has always been lemon meringue pie.
"When I tasted that limoncello, I thought, this is interesting, but it’s far too sweet for me. I tucked the idea away as something I might revisit when I had the time to refine it.”
Anyone who knows Sally knows her as a passionate foodie always experimenting with flavour and creating recipes in her kitchen. One day in 2006, during a rare moment of quiet, she reflected on that initial sip of limoncello and decided it was time to craft her own version.
Sally: “I started with Amalfi lemons, which I waited for every September like clockwork. They were huge, expensive and precious, but they were the foundation of what I wanted to create – a drink that is bold, bright and unapologetically citrusy.”
From that point forward,Sally's kitchen transformed into a citrus laboratory. Each year brought new attempts, tweaks and discoveries. Slowly but surely, her recipe began to take shape.
Initially limited to using vodka as the base spirit, everything changed when Polish shops began stocking high-proof 96.5% ABV spirit. This enabled Sally to craft a more authentic limoncello – or should we say Lemon Cello.
Sally: “I’d keep one small bottle from every batch, just to see how the flavours developed over time. Some were hits, some weren’t, but it was all part of the process and journey. I can never follow a recipe anyway – that’s one of my problems!”
This idea has legs… and the discovery of Lime
Sally’s son Chris began to notice something special in the homemade Lemon Cello. Everyone who tried it said it was one of the best things they’d ever tasted. By December 2020, the mother-son duo decided it was time to take the venture seriously.
Chris: “At first, I thought it was just another one of Mum’s kitchen projects – a new obsession. But then I tried it properly and I realised this wasn’t just good – it was different. It had character and you couldn’t stop at just one sip. That’s when I knew it had potential.”
The creation of RamTang’ Cello’s signature Lime flavour marked a turning point in the journey. After focusing on perfecting her Lemon Cello, Sally found herself hitting a wall creatively and emotionally. It was during this time that she turned her attention to another citrus fruit – lime – a bold departure that would redefine the brand’s identity.
Sally: “Lowering the ABV on the Lemon Cello was a challenge. I kept getting it wrong and I was losing my confidence. I decided to shake things up. I went out and bought limes. We were stunned by how good it turned out – it was an absolute revelation.”
Mastering the recipe
Between 2018 and 2019, Sally reached out to various experts in the drinks industry, only to face repeated dismissals and rejections. The constant setbacks were disheartening, compounded by her limited time to fully dedicate herself to the venture.
Chris: “I wanted to help Mum stop feeling so deflated and to address the inconsistencies in the liquids. When I asked her for the recipe, she said, ‘It’s in my head,’ and I told her, ‘That’s great for you, but it doesn’t help the rest of us’. For the project to succeed, we needed clear and precise guidelines – a defined recipe, a consistent process and a method for scaling production effectively.”
Drawing inspiration from a book on food ratios, which demonstrated how basic ingredients like water, flour and yeast could create every type of dough through variations in proportions, Chris applied the same concept to their citrus creations. He introduced a methodical process, meticulously weighing the lemons, measuring the amount of peel and documenting each step.
Chris: “We discovered an online limoncello calculator from LimoncelloQuest that helped us work out how to dilute 97% alcohol down to the desired ABV. I can’t give enough credit to that calculator. It gave us a foolproof recipe for citrus, not just lemon. That whole exercise took a year and a half – it was a long and detailed process.”
And that was just the start…
RamTang’ Lemon and Lime Cellos were truly coming into their own, but the journey was far from over. Stay tuned for part two, where we explore the next chapter: transforming a kitchen creation into a scalable reality.
