My Coke vs. Pepsi test

Cafe Society
#1

When I drink a cola, it’s usually Diet Dr. Pepper or Diet Cherry Coke or Diet Cherry Pepsi. The Dr. Pepper has a distinctive taste, but I’ve never done a comparison between Coke and Pepsi. So I decided to do a taste test.

One can of Diet Cherry Coke and one can of Diet Cherry Pepsi (I think it’s called Wild Cherry or something like that). Alternating one or the other, either right after the other or waiting for my palate to adjust. Either way, I can’t tell the difference. And not only that, but as time goes by, I’ve totally lost the Cherry flavor in both. And as time goes by I’ve totally lost any appreciation of the flavor of either.

If I had done this test with regular, not diet, or non-cherry. would the result be any different?

For now, I’m sticking with Dr. Pepper (Diet, Cherry).

#2

I lick the tears of the damned from their face. Tastes like Fanta Cream Soda
.

#3

I don’t know about cherry, but Diet Pepsi tastes better than Diet Coke to me.

You should really try this single/double blind, ideally. get identical cups, label the bottoms or something, and have someone else pour them, note the labels, and leave them somewhere so that their eyes don’t give it away. Then try it without peeking.

Gladwell talked about how the Pepsi Challenge IIRC means is that people prefer a sip of Pepsi to Coke. But they might prefer an entire can of Coke to Pepsi.

The tears of unfathomable sadness taste yummy and sweet, in my experience.

#4

Pepsi is sweeter, so it tastes better when you merely sample it.

Pepsi Wild Cherry (and the diet version) are sweeter than the Cherry Coke versions (of course), but also the cherry flavor is a little different to me.

Cherry Coke Zero is my drink of choice. At least, now that I’m a diagnosed diabetic and can no longer drink the regular stuff except as a rare ‘eating out’ treat.

#5

Moving to CS.

#6

What’s the difference between “zero” and “diet”? And while we’re at it, what’s with “ten”?

#7

Diet has no calories, while Zero also has no caffeine.

The ten-calorie versions try to mitigate the diet-soda flavor by using some real sweetener. Its something you see tried in other drinks. For example, Crystal Light uses a little bit of the corn syrup solids so that a drink has 5 calories.

#8

This is not correct. Coke Zero has caffeine in it. The difference is that Coke Zero is intended to be a zero-calorie version of Coca-Cola in terms of flavor, while Diet Coke is intended to be an entirely different drink (again, in terms of flavor). In fact, Diet Coke was modeled more on Pepsi than on Coca-Cola.

Coke Zero is the ambrosia of the gods.

#9

Coke Zero Vanilla trumps all.

#10

0 calories have different sweeteners. Diets usually have aspartame. Maybe Nutrasweet. The Zero/One formulations are usually acesulfame potassium (Ace-K), often with aspartame as well. Pepsi MAX has extra caffeine and ginseng. All should have caffeine unless otherwise stated, e.g. Caffeine Free Diet Coke. I think Barq’s rootbeer is an exception in that they don’t have caffeine (where’s the bite, then?) in some markets, and you have to read the ingredients to find out.

#11

Write when you get work!

#12

I second Coke Zero (and also Cherry Coke Zero). I love it but it is hard to find in restaurants etc.

One time in a supermarket I actually saw Caffeine Free Coke Zero and bought one bottle. I never saw it there or anywhere else ever again…on week days I prefer drinking Caffeine free in the evenings.

#13

I agree . . . except that it tastes more like perfume than vanilla.

#14

The Soda of Kings! A close 2nd is Cherry Coke Zero, tho.

#15

I thought it didn’t have caffeine anywhere. (And I considered this proof that there is no god.)

If there are markets where it has caffeine, I will have it shipped to my house! Where can I find it?!

#16

Let’s go to the quarry and throw stuff down there!

#17

Once upon a time, there was Coke. Then there were millions of dollars in taste tests that proved people liked the orangey-citrus hit of Pepsi more than the flat-acid hit of Coke. So Coke reformulated to be more like Pepsi, and lo, rediscovered that what people prefer in a sip or nibble is not what they like by the canful or plateful. By that time, Diet Coke had been introduced and was successful, but regular Coke returned to its original composition. (New Coke or Coke II actually stuck around for quite a while as a separate option, but it’s long gone now.) Coke Zero is the regular Coke formulation in a diet version.

So: Diet Coke is “new Coke”; Coke Zero is “old Coke.” Only Cecil knows what the new “ten” stuff is.

And Diet Cherry 7-Up is the drink of the discerning Cokeologist.

#18

Regular Barq’s has caffeine. Diet Barq’s doesn’t. Regular Barq’s is also available without caffeine in some markets (such as in Utah), but not nationwide.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barq's

#19

This is the third most Mormon state, but last can I had was free of glorious caffeine.

#20

Icy cold or from a fountain, I like diet Pepsi. Coke Zero beats all diet colas, hands down, bottle, can or fountain, IMHO. Diet Coke is tolerated only if there are no other sugar free beverages available.

A few years back, Dr Pepper had a berry version that was the nectar of the gods. The first couple of sips didn’t taste much different than plain diet, but once it warmed up a couple of degrees, you were hit with the berry flavor. Sublime! Of course, they quit making it, :frowning:

I also wish they’d bring back diet Pepsi twist (with lemon or lime).