# I Pit thee, evaporated cane juice!
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-thee-evaporated-cane-juice/487227
**Category:** The BBQ Pit
**Created:** [February 24, 2009, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-thee-evaporated-cane-juice/487227 "2009-02-24T17:35:09Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@SuaSponte](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SuaSponte)
#### Post date: [February 24, 2009, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-thee-evaporated-cane-juice/487227/1 "2009-02-24T17:35:09Z")
In the latest “Americans are stupid, let’s take advantage!” trend I’ve noticed, more and more products in the supermarket now contain “evaporated cane juice” (or even better, “organic evaporated cane juice”).
Marketing dudes, we know what it is - it’s freaking SUGAR!!!
Sua
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### Author:  [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)
#### Post date: [February 24, 2009, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-thee-evaporated-cane-juice/487227/2 "2009-02-24T17:41:46Z")
And in moderation, it’s no worse than high fructose corn syrup. 😃
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### Author:  [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)
#### Post date: [February 24, 2009, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-thee-evaporated-cane-juice/487227/3 "2009-02-24T18:28:48Z")
> [@SuaSponte](#):
>
> In the latest “Americans are stupid, let’s take advantage!” trend I’ve noticed, more and more products in the supermarket now contain “evaporated cane juice” (or even better, “organic evaporated cane juice”).
>
> Marketing dudes, we know what it is - it’s freaking SUGAR!!!
>
> Sua
Yep, they fooled me on that for a while, sorry to say.
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### Author:  [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)
#### Post date: [February 24, 2009, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-thee-evaporated-cane-juice/487227/4 "2009-02-24T18:35:13Z")
It’s possibly useful info for vegans - I’m halfway assuming they mean it’s not processed like good ol’ table sugar, which means no bone char, but I don’t know that for sure - but otherwise, yes, it’s just telling you that you’re eating cane sugar (the norm in the US) rather than beet sugar.
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### Author:  [@badbadrubberpiggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/badbadrubberpiggy)
#### Post date: [February 24, 2009, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-thee-evaporated-cane-juice/487227/5 "2009-02-24T18:41:35Z")
Wait, I thought juice was healthy??
😉
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### Author:  [@teela\_brown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teela_brown)
#### Post date: [February 24, 2009, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-thee-evaporated-cane-juice/487227/6 "2009-02-24T18:51:39Z")
I was never fooled by these new labels. How stupid do they think we are?
I like cane juice un-evaporated, too. A nearby Vietnamese fruit juice/smoothie/tapioca pearl drink stand has a sort of mangle through which they squeeze fresh sugar cane. They use the resulting fresh juice to sweeten up their fruit smoothies. A passion fruit smoothie with plenty of un-evaporated cane juice is the drink of the gods. Probably has about 8,000 calories, too.
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### Author:  [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)
#### Post date: [February 24, 2009, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-thee-evaporated-cane-juice/487227/7 "2009-02-24T20:07:45Z")
There’s a meme that has been building for a few years now - and I’m surprised to see that it’s taken hold here - that the sugar from a plant that happens to be called “sugar cane” is “real” and good for you, and any other sugar is “fake” and bad for you. People also seem to think you can taste the difference, which I highly doubt in most products, but I swear one of these days I’m going to do a double-blind taste test and find out the truth once and for all.
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### Author:  [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)
#### Post date: [February 24, 2009, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-thee-evaporated-cane-juice/487227/8 "2009-02-24T20:18:42Z")
> [@Cisco](#):
>
> There’s a meme that has been building for a few years now - and I’m surprised to see that it’s taken hold here - that the sugar from a plant that happens to be called “sugar cane” is “real” and good for you, and any other sugar is “fake” and bad for you. People also seem to think you can taste the difference, which I highly doubt in most products, but I swear one of these days I’m going to do a double-blind taste test and find out the truth once and for all.
At least some of that is from the sugar cane producers, who (IIRC) had done a veritable smear campaign against beet sugar.
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### Author:  [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)
#### Post date: [February 24, 2009, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-thee-evaporated-cane-juice/487227/9 "2009-02-24T20:56:41Z")
> [@Cisco](#):
>
> There’s a meme that has been building for a few years now - and I’m surprised to see that it’s taken hold here - that the sugar from a plant that happens to be called “sugar cane” is “real” and good for you, and any other sugar is “fake” and bad for you. People also seem to think you can taste the difference, which I highly doubt in most products, but I swear one of these days I’m going to do a double-blind taste test and find out the truth once and for all.
I’m not sure about cane vs beet, but cane vs HFCS does taste different. It’s especially noticeable in Coke (to me, at any rate). Find some Passover Coke or Mexican Coke and compare with regular Coke.
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### Author:  [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)
#### Post date: [February 24, 2009, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-thee-evaporated-cane-juice/487227/10 "2009-02-24T21:03:48Z")
Bone char?
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### Author:  [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)
#### Post date: [February 24, 2009, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-thee-evaporated-cane-juice/487227/11 "2009-02-24T21:15:28Z")
> [@pulykamell](#):
>
> Find some Mexican Coke and compare with regular Coke.
Dude, look at my location. The Mexican Coke is on the shelf right next to the American Coke. We’ve been through this before here. My hypothesis is that it tastes better because it’s in a glass bottle. A global, multi-billion dollar corporation is not going to change the recipe of their flagship product to a sweetener that tastes worse.
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### Author:  [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)
#### Post date: [February 24, 2009, 9:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-thee-evaporated-cane-juice/487227/12 "2009-02-24T21:19:51Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#):
>
> Bone char?
It’s a really thin fish.
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### Author:  [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)
#### Post date: [February 24, 2009, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-thee-evaporated-cane-juice/487227/13 "2009-02-24T21:31:32Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#):
>
> Bone char?
Charcoal produced from animal bones. The sugar is filtered through activated charcoal to remove impurities, which isn’t needed with beet sugar. [Many sugar processors in the US use this method.](http://www.vegsource.com/jo/qa/qasugar.htm) Checking that article, it’s considered kosher pareve, but vegans may not want to use it depending on their standards.
I’m assuming that “evaporated cane juice” doesn’t get to that level of processing, but for all I know, they’re opening up big bags of good old C&H cane sugar and dumping it into their products.
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### Author:  [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)
#### Post date: [February 24, 2009, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-thee-evaporated-cane-juice/487227/14 "2009-02-24T21:43:21Z")
Is that what activated charcoal is? Eeeww.
I guess it’s a good thing I never smoked Tareytons.
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### Author:  [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)
#### Post date: [February 24, 2009, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-thee-evaporated-cane-juice/487227/15 "2009-02-24T21:55:52Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#):
>
> Is that what activated charcoal is? Eeeww.
>
> I guess it’s a good thing I never smoked Tareytons.
No, you can get it from other sources too, like wood and such. At any rate, once it’s activated charcoal, unless you have moral or other issues from the source used for that particular kind, charcoal is charcoal.
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### Author:  [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)
#### Post date: [February 24, 2009, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-thee-evaporated-cane-juice/487227/16 "2009-02-24T22:09:03Z")
> [@Cisco](#):
>
> Dude, look at my location. The Mexican Coke is on the shelf right next to the American Coke. We’ve been through this before here. My hypothesis is that it tastes better because it’s in a glass bottle. A global, multi-billion dollar corporation is not going to change the recipe of their flagship product to a sweetener that tastes worse.
When money is involved, sure they will. Cost cutting ingredients isn’t exactly new in the corporate playbook.
Anyhow, I think it’s the sugar, you think it’s the glass. There’s a bottler here (Filbert’s) that sells all their sodas in glass bottles. Some have HFCS, some have cane. To me, the taste is different. Maybe I’m imagining it, but I know I’m not the only one. _shrug_
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### Author:  [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)
#### Post date: [February 24, 2009, 10:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-thee-evaporated-cane-juice/487227/17 "2009-02-24T22:17:12Z")
And maybe you’re right; I just don’t think you are. But finding out is more important to me than being right, which is why I want to do the double-blind.
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### Author:  [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)
#### Post date: [February 24, 2009, 10:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-thee-evaporated-cane-juice/487227/18 "2009-02-24T22:19:49Z")
> [@Cisco](#):
>
> And maybe you’re right; I just don’t think you are. But finding out is more important to me than being right, which is why I want to do the double-blind.
From what I’ve read, some people do prefer HFCS to sucrose. I don’t really see why they wouldn’t taste different personally. It should be an easy enough experiment to do. Get some HFCS55. Get some cane sugar. Make some Kool-Aid or Flavor-Aid or whatever the fruity drinks that come unsweetened are. Experiment.
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### Author:  [@catsix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/catsix)
#### Post date: [February 24, 2009, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-thee-evaporated-cane-juice/487227/19 "2009-02-24T22:37:18Z")
> [@pulykamell](#):
>
> I’m not sure about cane vs beet, but cane vs HFCS does taste different. It’s especially noticeable in Coke (to me, at any rate). Find some Passover Coke or Mexican Coke and compare with regular Coke.
Mexican Coke is nowhere near as good as Colombian Coke.
(Kidding. I was in Mexico recently. Their Coke is better than ours. Because they use sugar instead of HFCS.)
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### Author:  [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)
#### Post date: [February 24, 2009, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-thee-evaporated-cane-juice/487227/20 "2009-02-24T23:58:41Z")
> [@Cisco](#):
>
> Dude, look at my location. The Mexican Coke is on the shelf right next to the American Coke. We’ve been through this before here. My hypothesis is that it tastes better because it’s in a glass bottle. A global, multi-billion dollar corporation is not going to change the recipe of their flagship product to a sweetener that tastes worse.
You are both partly correct. Glass bottles help a lot. But HFCS has a different “mouth feel” to some and also a slightly different flavor.
Here’s my conspiracy theory reason why they changed (besides slightly cheaper)- _you drink more_. HFCS has an extremely low “satiety” rating, thus you drink more. I give as my exhibit the huge current sizes, whereas in the past _“16 ounces, that’s a lot”._
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