Forget Holy Grail: I Found The Perfect Coca-Cola

[frigilux]

While strolling leisurely through the aisles of the Hy-Vee grocery store in Worthington, I came upon Mexican Coca-Cola in a bottle. It was actually in the Mexican food area, not the soda aisle.

The bottles were labeled for individual sale, at a pricey $1.19 each. Being a fan of Coke, I decided to try one, as it is made with sugar, not high fructose corn syrup.

I fired up the ice crusher, sliced a lemon and poured myself a tall one. It tasted more like the Coke I remember from my childhood (post-dinosauer/pre-digital). Seemed to less carbonation, too. Very clean tasting; less heavy than current US Coke.

I don't drink a lot of soda, so this was a real treat. The ultimate soda drink (for me, at least) has always been a Coke with a ton of crushed ice and a slice of lemon. Yum.

 

[dalangdon]

We have "Mexican" Coke in our neighborhood grocery also - and also in the "Mexican" aisle, where it's always stocked at room temperature. It's quite the delicacy around here for neighborhood picnics and such.

So when you were at the Hy-Vee, did you notice "A friendly smile in every aisle"? ;-) (The advertising slogan for Hy-Vee back in my day. Hy-Vee's are really quite nice stores - at least in Council Bluffs)

 

[gyrafoam]

Yes, along with a small bottle, it does make a difference. So does the water the bottler uses. They are lying whenever they call the Coca-Cola they now sell here in the US as "Classic".
Like everybody else, as soon as they quit using sugar they ruined the flavor of the drink IMO. I do wish they would change back!

There is a bottler in Texas ( I think it is the original bottling plant for Dr. Pepper) that still makes Dr. Pepper with sugar and has refused to change despite threats from corporate. Story goes that people will drive for hundreds of miles to buy it and stock-up. Loyal Dr. Pepper fans.

 

[swestoyz]

Oooo - Mexi-Coke from Hy-Vee! Doesn't get much better than that

Yes Dan, Hy-Vee still uses the lovely slogan, boasting that there are smiles in every isle. While growing up mom made Hy-Vee her usual stop for weekly groceries in Cedar Falls.

Ben

 

[saltysam]

bottler in Texas ( I think it is the original bottling plant

yes that bottling plant is in Dublin Texas about 30 minutes southwest of Stephenville Tx. They are only allowed to sell the ORIGINAL Dr. Pepper within a 60 mile radius of the plant. When my wife and I go to her family reunion in Stephenville we always load up the truck and bring about 100 cases home. I don't like Dr. Pepper but i will drink the Dublin Dr. Pepper......it tastes totally different than what you buy at the store now because they use Imperial Cane Sugar instead of the corn syrup. . I have included the link to their web site and they will ship the original Dr. Pepper to your home.

http://dublindrpepper.com/

 

[blackstone]

I recall reading some time ago that during Passover, Coke uses real sugar instead of corn syrup for kosher stores. I never checked into it; does anyone know if this is true?

I also remember as a child having Coke syrup in a bottle from the pharmacy as a relief for colds and sore throats.

 

[swestoyz]

Hey Fred -

I've heard of the Passover Coke as well. Don't know if I have seen it locally during Passover - but here is an article about it. Look for the yellow cap on the 2L bottles.

Ben

http://consumerist.com/consumer/coke/get-ready-for-passover-coke-244460.php

 

[brisnat81]

Australian Coke

We only have Coke over here, not Coke Classic. Ours is made with Cane Sugar and I was amazed at how syrupy the US stuff is by comparison. We still have a large sugar cane industry and most of the corn we produce is either for human or animal consumption in its unprocessed form. Karo is a very hard to get item here.

 

[appnut]

Eugene, what a "small" world. An article from this mornin's newspaper.

http://www.temple-telegram.com/story/2008/06/23/50310

 

[frigilux]

I'd never heard of Passover Coke, but maybe that's because the only Jewish people within 50 miles are the two guys who bless the Kosher kill at a nearby meatpacking plant.

Bob--I had no idea that Mexican Coke had a 'following'. Interesting! I agree; it does taste better. But at $1.19 per bottle, it will be a considered an occasional treat.

Mark--I went to the Dublin Dr. Pepper website; seems there's quite a following for that, too. I'm not a Dr. Pepper drinker, mostly because when I was a little kid back in the early 1960's, my sister and her friends used to heat Dr. Pepper and drink it like hot cider in the winter. She gave me some and I threw it up. Haven't had Dr. Pepper since then.

 

[sudsmaster]

This is the same stuff I posted about last month ("Life's Simple Pleasures", now scrolled off the board). I bought a case of 12-12oz bottles at the local Costco Business Center for $18. Lasted about a month. Just bought another case on Saturday.

It's good stuff. Much much better than the junk they try to pass off otherwise.

Still, it's all empty calories, and I treat it as such.

 

[MrX]

Coke in Ireland (and anywhere else in Europe that I've been) is still made with Sugar. There is no major drive to put high fructose corn syrup into everything here. It's still all beet or cane sugar.

I found Coke in the US pretty vile. I really couldn't drink it. Thankfully, a vist to the states weaned me off my Coca-Cola addiction! I moved on to just drinking water or fruit juices.

 

[whirlcool]

We've switched over to bottled water and only on occasion will have a Coke.
One thing we've noticed is that lately Coke Classic doesn't seem to taste good until it's chilled almost to the point of freezing.
It is just to heavy otherwise. And HFC is definitely much more fattening than cane sugar.

What did they do to Dr. Pepper? It seems that ever since they came out with Dr. Pepper 23. it doesn't taste the same as the original Dr. Pepper. It tastes to me like medicine. Anyone else taste the difference?

 

[gansky1]

the only reason I'm awake is...

Diet Coke - and lots of it! I can't stand sweet sodas - but I would like to do a taste-test between the HFCS and genuine sugar to see the difference.

A while back when Hy-Vee was celebrating an anniversary, they ran some B&W vintage commercials - one with a great shot in the detergent aisle. I think if ad agencies used them right, people would love the vintage commercials again.

 

[sudsmaster]

Oops, I meant to write that I paid $18 for case of 24-12 oz bottles of Mexicoke, not 12 bottles.

Interesting what goes into a cola beverage. Mostly sugar, then the flavoring is mostly vanilla, cinnamon, and maybe some citrus peel or oil or flavor tossed in. Apparently cocaine and/or cola nuts for flavor are optional.

 

[fa_f3_20]

Interesting about the Dublin Dr. Pepper. A Jason's Deli here was carrying it for a short time back in the spring. I thought it was delicious. One day I went in and they didn't have it any more. There was a sign next to the drink fountain explaining that they weren't allowed to carry it any more. It was rather sarcastic. It also stated that they were pursuing getting drink syrup made with cane sugar from other manufacturers, but so far, I haven't seen anything else turn up there.

 

[maytagbear]

Jones Soda

in the sugared varities has real sugar. Plus their sugar-free varities are pretty good.

Lawrence/Maytagbear

 

[spiceman1957]

Re: Coke

This reminds me of Barbara Hutton (Woolworth Heiress) who became addicted to Coca-Cola. Appartently, Ms Hutton like Coke so well that she knew (and could taste) where any Coke was manufactured. I believed she only wanted her Coke-Cola that was made in Louisiana. My quess would be it had something to do with the type sugar the Louisiana used.

 

[whirlcool]

The Mexican Coke I bought at Wal Mart, in the Mexican aisle had lime in it. It was similar to the lime Coke you can buy American style. But the bottle didn't say anything about lime or lemon in it.
Mexican Coke with Cane sugar is not as sweet as HFC Coke. It also seems a little bit fizzier too, much more lighter in taste and very refreshing.

http://www.seriouseats.com/required_eating/2007/05/costco-is-selling-mexican-coke.html

 

[angus]

Yes, the info about kosher Coke for Passover is correct. Our grocery chains (Stop & Shop, Shaw's, Shop Rite and Big Y all carry Coke sweetened with sugar at Passover. There really is a difference in taste - I don't drink sugared sodas as a rule, but will always pick up a few bottles at Passover for a treat. It really is "lighter" tasting than the one with HFC.

Lately I have been looking at labels more closely to avoid HFC when possible -for example with preserves. There is a lot of HFC out there!!!

 

[frigilux]

I wonder if the Costco's in Minnesota carry MexiCoke? I have a membership, but Sam's Club is much closer to me, so I rarely go to Costco. I'll have to check it out next time I'm in the metro area.

 

[jamiel]

Probably negative to any Costco/Sams (other than in the border area) selling MexiCoke...too expensive to ship. Explains why you see Mexican chlorine bleach in border areas, and Canadian chlorine bleach in Michigan.

Also MexiCoke can be construed as a breach of the local bottler's contract...they have the permanent right to sell all Coke (Pepsi, RC...) products in their defined territory. Coke in Atlanta has apparently come to some sort of accommodation with the border areas.

I've been really intrigued in the past about the bottling process and companies...when I lived in Tampa there was a Tarpon Springs Coca-Cola bottling company...this was an independent (rest of Florida was CCE, I believe) They had the right to sell all Coke in a roughly 5 mile radius...they had (as I recall) a single bottling line and bought all other packaging wholesale from CCE. Other small and/or private bottlers are/were in Milledgeville, GA, Tulsa, OK, Philadelphia (!)...

 

[gizmo]

In Australia in the dim past (till maybe the 1970s??) there was a tax law that said all fizzy drinks with at least 5% apple juice would be taxed at a lower rate. It was to protect the apple growers. So guess what drink had 5% apple juice in AU?

Chris.

 

[rp2813]

Not to send things too far off topic, but what do people think about Coke from a fountain as opposed to bottled? I prefer it from a fountain and can detect a difference between fountains. Is it my imagination? Does the fountain syrup use a different sweetener (actual sugar maybe?) than HFC used in cans & bottles?

Oh, and remember those soda machines that used to drop the cup down, fill it with ice, syrup and carbonated water? They must have been very problematic, and these days a little 6 oz cup would seem skimpy.

 

[maytagbear]

Fountain Coke-

depends a GREAT deal upon the local water supply. If the water is unpleasant to drink, the Coke and other beverages will be less pleasant.

However, a good fountain Coke is pretty awesome.

The gas station mini-mart across the street and up from me is finally installing a fountain, and I am delighted that diet caffeine free Coke is one of the choices.

Lawrence/Maytagbear

 

[frigilux]

Why is that Coke from McDonald's (or any fast-food place, for that matter) tastes very little like Coke from a can or bottle? There are times I don't even recognize it as Coke.

 

[maytagbear]

Uh, dear,

see the post immediately above.

L/Mb

Bottlers use filtered water for the uniformity.

 

[redcarpetdrew]

I think Frigilux has a point...

To me, as well, McD's coke DOES taste different from any other coke, canned, soda dispenser, bottled, etc. The taste of McD's coke seems to be the same to me no matter where the restaurant is located (example California and Nevada). It seems to me, as well, that I heard that McD's has their own syrup mix variant so there would be a difference. (The possible joy of being one of CocaCola's biggest customers?) I do remember seeing syrup containers with both CocaCola's and McD's emblems on them when there doing service...

RCD

 

[sudsmaster]

I recall fondly a news item in the 60's or 70's about the Russian equivalent of an American coke machine.

The Russian equivalent was made primarily of raisins (Russia for some reason produces a lot of raisins) with other added flavors like citrus. Apparently it wasn't bad stuff, but the dispensing machine was a real trip.

It would use real glass tumblers... the customer was expected to return the glass to the machine, where supposedly it would be washed automatically and be ready for the next customer. I suppose theoretically that could work (with hot enough water and proper detergent/disinfectant), but the ick factor was undeniable (although most bars use a similar method to serve mixed drinks).

 

[frigilux]

My older sister worked in a movie theater (The Plaza, in Waterown, SD) when I was a little kid---this would have been 1963-65. The pop machine next to the concession stand was cool: A paper cup would drop, then it would fill with a mixture of syrup and carbonated water. You could opt for crushed ice, which, of course, I always did. You'd lift a little plexiglass door and pull out your glass of pop.

Does anyone else remember pop machines like that one?

Rich---Very interesting story about the Russian pop machine. Ick factor is right!