# Nostalgic American Beverages? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** food-cooking\ **Created:** [March 21, 2021, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nostalgic-american-beverages/938350 "2021-03-21T16:39:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2021, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nostalgic-american-beverages/938350/1 "2021-03-21T16:39:12Z")
I have a copy of an American food guide from 1979 which gives macronutrient and calorie counts for many foods from that time. I occasionally use it to find how much protein or carbs are in something, since it is more accurate than many internet sites. But it is outdated. Some of the beverages, in particular, are oddities I’ve never heard of or seen. **Tell me about Purple Passion, Teem, Cactus Cooler and Upper 10.** ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2021, 4:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nostalgic-american-beverages/938350/2 "2021-03-21T16:45:15Z")
There were a lot more regional soft drinks back then, and I recognize some of those names. However, Teem and Upper 10 were made by the major soft drink companies (Pepsi and RC Cola, respectively), as lemon-lime sodas, and alternatives to Seven Up and Sprite. Pepsi killed Teem at some point, as they introduced a different lemon lime soda, Slice, in the '80s. RC was bought by the parent company of Seven Up in 2000, which is probably why Upper 10 was killed. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2021, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nostalgic-american-beverages/938350/3 "2021-03-21T16:46:25Z")
The only one I remember is Cactus Cooler. I think it was a Mountain Dew knockoff (or maybe Mountain Dew was a knockoff of Cactus Cooler.) ---
**Author:** ![N9IWP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/n9iwp/32/3154_2.png) [@N9IWP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/N9IWP)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2021, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nostalgic-american-beverages/938350/4 "2021-03-21T16:56:49Z")
Jolly Good soda was a Wisconsin specialty. It disapeared for while but now is back: > **[Jolly Good Brings Joy to Weiler's Convenience Store Patrons - OnFocus](https://www.onfocus.news/jolly-good-brings-joy-to-weilers-convenience-store-patrons/)** > > Marshfield (OnFocus) – With its classic flavors of root beer, fruit punch, cherry, sour pow’r, grape, orange, cream soda, blue raspberry, and pina colada, Jolly Good is one of those classic sodas that brings back memories of warm summer days growing... Brian ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2021, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nostalgic-american-beverages/938350/5 "2021-03-21T17:02:50Z")
> [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](#): > > The only one I remember is Cactus Cooler. I think it was a Mountain Dew knockoff (or maybe Mountain Dew was a knockoff of Cactus Cooler.) Not really. Cactus Cooler was a Canada Dry product and is orange-pineapple in flavor. It was introduced in the mid-60s. Now it is part of Dr Pepper and still around in the South West. Mountain Dew was introduced back in the 40s and never, to my knowledge, had a pineapple component. Just that nasty fake citrus twang. ---
**Author:** ![markn\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@markn\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markn_1)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2021, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nostalgic-american-beverages/938350/6 "2021-03-21T17:33:48Z")
There was a local soft drink my family used to drink in Chicago in the 1960s called [Green River](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_River_(soft_drink)). It was a terrifying fluorescent green color. Apparently the drink’s name, rather than any actual river, was the inspiration for the Creedence Clearwater Revival song. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2021, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nostalgic-american-beverages/938350/7 "2021-03-21T17:37:18Z")
> [@markn\_1](#): > > drink in Chicago in the 1960s called [Green River](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_River_(soft_drink)) I’d kill for one of those. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2021, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nostalgic-american-beverages/938350/8 "2021-03-21T17:39:18Z")
> [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](#): > > I’d kill for one of those. It’s still available in Chicago, though the bottled version tends to only show up in grocery stores around St. Patrick’s Day. But, there are some restaurants (like the gyros place a few blocks from my house) which have it on their fountain. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2021, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nostalgic-american-beverages/938350/9 "2021-03-21T17:40:36Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > It’s still available in Chicago I was hoping for someplace closer to SeaTac. ---
**Author:** ![SCAdian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scadian/32/3292_2.png) [@SCAdian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SCAdian)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2021, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nostalgic-american-beverages/938350/10 "2021-03-21T17:40:41Z")
I remember Green River as a soda-fountain drink from the late '60s; never seen it bottled. I do remember Teem and Cactus Cooler, too. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2021, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nostalgic-american-beverages/938350/11 "2021-03-21T17:43:09Z")
> [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](#): > > I was hoping for someplace closer to SeaTac. It’s not cheap, but Amazon will ship you a couple of bottles. [https://www.amazon.com/Green-River-Soda-Pop-Pack/dp/B00LPMXHDY/ref=sr\_1\_1?dchild=1&keywords=green+river+soda&qid=1616348542&sr=8-1](https://www.amazon.com/Green-River-Soda-Pop-Pack/dp/B00LPMXHDY/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=green+river+soda&qid=1616348542&sr=8-1) ---
**Author:** ![Pork\_Rind](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pork_rind/32/111_2.png) [@Pork\_Rind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pork_Rind)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2021, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nostalgic-american-beverages/938350/12 "2021-03-21T18:27:23Z")
> [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](#): > > I was hoping for someplace closer to SeaTac. [Rocket Fizz](https://rocketfizz.com/locations/rocket-fizz-seattle-wa/) in Seattle might have it. The store down here in Santa Barbara had all sorts of uncommon/retro sodas before it closed. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2021, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nostalgic-american-beverages/938350/13 "2021-03-21T18:34:04Z")
Perhaps he’s referring to the Green River area by SeaTac, of Green River Killer fame. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2021, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nostalgic-american-beverages/938350/14 "2021-03-21T19:33:11Z")
Yay! Someone got my lame joke. ---
**Author:** ![Asimovian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asimovian/32/172_2.png) [@Asimovian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Asimovian)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2021, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nostalgic-american-beverages/938350/15 "2021-03-21T19:35:09Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Cactus Cooler was a Canada Dry product and is orange-pineapple in flavor. It was introduced in the mid-60s. Now it is part of Dr Pepper and still around in the South West. Mountain Dew was introduced back in the 40s and never, to my knowledge, had a pineapple component. I feel like Cactus Cooler was a staple of my teenage years. I miss it dearly. So delicious. > [@silenus](#): > > Just that nasty fake citrus twang. Them’s fightin’ words. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2021, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nostalgic-american-beverages/938350/16 "2021-03-21T19:56:06Z")
[Vernors](https://www.amazon.com/Vernors-Ginger-Ale-Soda-Cans/dp/B00019TVC8)…mmmmm… ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2021, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nostalgic-american-beverages/938350/17 "2021-03-21T20:55:30Z")
I remember Cactus Cooler and would have thought it was a Mountain Dew clone too. Must be misremembering that. One product that was Mountain Dew simply rebranded was Kickapoo Joy Juice. There was a now-defunct amusement park in Arkansas called Dogpatch USA, with a Li’l Abner theme. It was a couple hour’s drive from my grandmother’s place, so we went there once or twice. The vending machines all had Kickapoo Joy Juice, which again was just Mountain Dew. And I’m pretty sure I remember a limited-time promotion where it was also Kickapoo Joy Juice in Texas too, maybe a nationwide promotion. ---
**Author:** ![nightshadea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/7ba0ec/32.png) [@nightshadea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nightshadea)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2021, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nostalgic-american-beverages/938350/18 "2021-03-21T21:06:41Z")
they still make and sell cactus cooler … try walmart … [cactus cooler where to buy - Search](https://www.bing.com/search?FORM=SK2DDF&PC=SK2D&q=cactus+cooler+where+to+buy) not much om the wiki tho > **[Cactus Cooler](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cactus_Cooler)** > > Pages for logged out editors learn more > > Cactus Cooler is an American brand of orange–pineapple flavored soft drink sold primarily in Southern California and the surrounding Southwestern United States. Distinguished by its orange, yellow, and green label with saguaro cacti, the soda is part of Keurig Dr Pepper and was previously distributed under the Canada Dry brand. The drink was inspired by fictional character Fred Flintstone's favorite drink, Cactus Coola. > This soft drink–related ar... I dont care for it much because it taste like that fake orange flavor they use for baby asprin Threes an interesting story about mountain dew … back in the 40s and 50s there wasn’t an exact recipe for it So the local bottlers tried to get as close as they could but it was said it never tasted the same from area to area … and apparently there were convention type gatherings when people would trade bottles of it Well when PepsiCo bought in the late 60s it they had one big bottler meeting and everyone brought their version and had a big vote on which one tasted the best and that’s the formula they’ve used since the 60s supposedly… and they’ve never said whos version of it they used … ---
**Author:** ![whitetho](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whitetho/32/1059_2.png) [@whitetho](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/whitetho)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2021, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nostalgic-american-beverages/938350/19 "2021-03-21T21:12:48Z")
> [@Dr\_Paprika](#): > > Tell me about… Teem, Wikipedia’s page about Teem: > **[Teem](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teem)** > > Teem was a brand of lemon-lime-flavored soft drink produced by The Pepsi-Cola Company. It was introduced in 1959 as Pepsi's answer to 7 Up and Sprite. > In the pre-planning stages, Teem was known as "Duet"; however, due to a potential copyright dispute with Swift's, a food manufacturer with a margarine carrying the same brand, the name was changed before marketing could begin. On April 10, 1959, three Pepsi-Cola representatives from Chicago, New York, and San Francisco converged on St. Joseph, Mis... the can image came from the soda can collection my brother used to have. ---
**Author:** ![nightshadea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/7ba0ec/32.png) [@nightshadea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nightshadea)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2021, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nostalgic-american-beverages/938350/20 "2021-03-21T21:15:44Z")
I remeber when slice first came out it was pepsi’s version of fantas 31 flavors … [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/nostalgic-american-beverages/938350.md?page=2)