# Why McDonald's Cokes are so good. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** soda-softdrinks\ **Created:** [November 11, 2016, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-mcdonalds-cokes-are-so-good/771468 "2016-11-11T04:48:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2016, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-mcdonalds-cokes-are-so-good/771468/21 "2016-11-11T15:44:39Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > A friend who now does home heating/air conditioning used to repair the milkshake machines for McDonald’s. > > He told me some horror stories about the lack of cleanliness with those units. Even the cleanest were pretty bad. Inside the machinery, sure. But not parts that touch food, which are carefully sterilized. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2016, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-mcdonalds-cokes-are-so-good/771468/22 "2016-11-11T16:12:44Z")
> [@Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](#): > > I like to put some olives in my Coke. Is that weird? Black or green? ---
**Author:** ![Nonsuch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nonsuch/32/2922_2.png) [@Nonsuch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nonsuch)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2016, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-mcdonalds-cokes-are-so-good/771468/23 "2016-11-11T16:52:06Z")
According to [this](http://totallythebomb.com/did-you-know-theres-a-reason-mcdonalds-coke-tastes-better), McDonalds Coke tastes different owing to a variety of subtle factors including better water filtration, a colder serving temperature and even a wider straw. ---
**Author:** ![Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/channing_idaho_banks/32/250_2.png) [@Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Channing_Idaho_Banks)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2016, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-mcdonalds-cokes-are-so-good/771468/24 "2016-11-11T17:23:51Z")
> [@Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](#): > > I like to put some olives in my Coke. Is that weird? > [@kayaker](#): > > Black or green? Any kind of fancy olive, not the black ones that come in a can and taste like metal. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2016, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-mcdonalds-cokes-are-so-good/771468/25 "2016-11-11T18:47:42Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > I guess cleaning the machine is very important? I’ve heard mold can get into dirty lines. Yes, that’s pretty critical, and McD’s are nuts for cleanliness. Also, they get Coke so cheap they dont try to cheap out and lower the syrup ration. Same thing as the Disney Parks. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2016, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-mcdonalds-cokes-are-so-good/771468/26 "2016-11-11T18:51:20Z")
> [@thelurkinghorror](#): > > It’s because you’re drinking it alongside terrible food so anything will taste better. > > Huh, I always thought Coke was more sugary than Pepsi to my taste. I. true. OK, Pepsi does have a little more sugar. BUT Coke has ‘spice notes" and Pepsi has "citrus notes’ and citrus makes it taste less sweet to many. To those that say they hate Coke or Pepsi, do note that most\* people cant tell them apart in a blind taste test. And in a blind taste test, more\* slightly prefer Pepsi. - about 60% in both cases. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2016, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-mcdonalds-cokes-are-so-good/771468/27 "2016-11-11T19:25:16Z")
> [@Channing\_Idaho\_Banks](#): > > I like to put some olives in my Coke. Is that weird? Try a [kalimotxo](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalimotxo) sometime. I did once. Not as bad as you’d think. > [@magnusblitz](#): > > The first hit of Coke is more sugary compared to the first hit of Pepsi, but Pepsi has this weird sickeningly sweet aftertaste. I can never finish a whole can of it, whereas I can keep guzzling down Coke (though I prefer to dilute it with Diet… 50/50 Diet/regular Coke is my drink of choice by far). > [@DrDeth](#): > > To those that say they hate Coke or Pepsi, do note that most\* people cant tell them apart in a blind taste test. And in a blind taste test, more\* slightly prefer Pepsi. > > - about 60% in both cases. This triggered a memory. I want to say it was in [Blink](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blink_(book)) - people preferred the first sip of Pepsi, but preferred Coke if allowed to drink a larger quantity. YMMV of course. Maybe it is the “spice.” I just feel like I have to brush after a Coke and less so for Pepsi. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2016, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-mcdonalds-cokes-are-so-good/771468/28 "2016-11-11T19:30:51Z")
> [@thelurkinghorror](#): > > Try a [kalimotxo](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalimotxo) sometime. > > I did once. Not as bad as you’d think. I tried that the last time someone mentioned it. Pretty good, actually. ---
**Author:** ![Drum\_God](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drum_god/32/44_2.png) [@Drum\_God](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drum_God)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2016, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-mcdonalds-cokes-are-so-good/771468/29 "2016-11-11T19:42:38Z")
A few years ago, I had several hours to kill at the airport in San Salvador, El Salvador. (By the way, I don’t recommend that airport for a layover. Not much to do there.) I went to a shop there and bought a bottled Coke. I figured with it being packaged by the bottler, the water would have been purified and taste more like the purified water offered by American bottlers. I didn’t want to try a fountain Coke since that would be made with local water. Anyway, the bottled Coke was AWFUL. It hardly tasted like a Coke. What could the Salvadoran bottler have done to it that would have tasted so bad and still passed muster with Coca~Cola? ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2016, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-mcdonalds-cokes-are-so-good/771468/30 "2016-11-11T21:01:41Z")
> [@thelurkinghorror](#): > > It’s because you’re drinking it alongside terrible food so anything will taste better. Dude, McDonald’s is hardly terrible food. I mean, I find some of it terrible, but their burgers and fries are pretty good. I like most of McDonald’s and only find Filet-O-Fish and that McRib thing disgusting. Then again, I haven’t tried the vast majority of their menu. I don’t find their Coke or Diet Coke tastes all that different. I like Coke from those Coca-Cola Freestyle machines, though. The best is the Cherry Mello Yellow you can get from them. ---
**Author:** ![DMC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dmc/32/18049_2.png) [@DMC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMC)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2016, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-mcdonalds-cokes-are-so-good/771468/31 "2016-11-11T21:22:52Z")
> [@Amateur\_Barbarian](#): > > Other than the the quantity==freshness factors, I always thought McCoke was mixed a _just a trifle_ light on the syrup, leading to a fresher, crisper taste than others with a heavier hand on the goo. I’m pretty sure that Coca Cola is supposed to have a 4.75:1 ratio, while many other drinks have a 5:1. Perhaps McDonalds is very strict about this, while others don’t want to swap out (or have lost) [Brix cups](http://www.google.com/search?q=brix+cup&source=lnms&tbm=isch) every time they check a different beverage. Edit: This would actually be the opposite effect, but there are many other ratios of cups available, so perhaps this is what you are experiencing. ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2016, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-mcdonalds-cokes-are-so-good/771468/32 "2016-11-11T21:40:01Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > IThey filter their water I read somewhere that each McDonald’s uses a very expensive water filtration system to filter any and all water that ends up in a beverage. ---
**Author:** ![Cartoonacy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/848f3c/32.png) [@Cartoonacy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartoonacy)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2016, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-mcdonalds-cokes-are-so-good/771468/33 "2016-11-11T22:26:53Z")
> [@magnusblitz](#): > > I can never finish a whole can of it, whereas I can keep guzzling down Coke (though I prefer to dilute it with Diet… 50/50 Diet/regular Coke is my drink of choice by far). Have you tried Coke Life? It’s a cane sugar/stevia blend. Been around a little over a year, but I haven’t found too many places that carry it. ---
**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:** [November 11, 2016, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-mcdonalds-cokes-are-so-good/771468/34 "2016-11-11T22:53:27Z")
It’s all in the Brix. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2016, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-mcdonalds-cokes-are-so-good/771468/35 "2016-11-11T23:04:25Z")
The atmosphere of diabetes and despair enhances the flavor. ---
**Author:** ![Rushgeekgirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rushgeekgirl/32/3715_2.png) [@Rushgeekgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rushgeekgirl)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2016, 5:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-mcdonalds-cokes-are-so-good/771468/36 "2016-11-12T05:20:39Z")
I love their Diet Dr. Pepper too. It’s hard to tell the difference between regular and diet. ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2016, 7:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-mcdonalds-cokes-are-so-good/771468/37 "2016-11-12T07:44:01Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > Black or green? Black, usually, unless they forgot to clean the hoses… Oh, you meant the _olives_! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-mcdonalds-cokes-are-so-good/771468.md?page=1)