the coke mystery

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why does coke taste different in a can, a 20 oz. bottle, a litre bottle, and a 2 litre bottle?

― jess, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

also, whither the cocaine?

― jess, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Think of the Coke as art. The delivery system is The Frame. Different frames create different tastes.

― Pete, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

And why does Laughing Cow in 8 packs taste much nicer than the 6er?

― Graham, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I once disputed a flatmate's assertion that bottled Stella tasted much better than (the cheaper) canned stuff. I organised a blind tasting out of cups and of course he got it wrong.

― Nick, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Yes Nick because you put the drinks in CUPS.

Coke in a glass bottle better than coke in a can better than coke in a plastic bottle.

― Tom, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Everything tastes different in cans. I'm not sure why but I suspect it's because small amounts of metal get dissolved into the drink. Glass and plastic are less soluble than alumnium or steel, and so don't affect the taste as much, although if I'm actually drinking from the bottle the smell of the plastic is definitely noticeable.

― RickyT, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

RickyT has tried everything in cans. Yuck!

― Nick, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

That semen, tallow and gelatin mixture the Min of Ag sent me was particularly tasty when drunk from a steel can.

― RickyT, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Ah semen, tallow and gelatin. How long it has been since I heard tell of that yummy trio?

― Nick, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Urr yeah, sorry about that.

― it's called the department of environment, food and rural affairs now, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

yeah Sarah, you've really got to cook organic round our house from now on :):)

― katie, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

You already collectively disgust me. Nighttrain from a plastic cup solves all your woes.

― Ned Raggett, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Larger bottles allow for more time for it to go flat. Cos, you don't drink it all at once. Cans tend to be dranken all at once. Down in one for that special effect. That special effect of burping, that is. Cans are best.

― alix, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Whither the cocaine indeed Jess. We saw a cocaine tree in Sri Lanka but I couldn't work out exactly which part of the tree it came from.

― Emma, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Is 'whither' having some big comeback since the Pete Baran withered hand fiasco?

― Nick, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

You bother with the cup Ned? hightone. . .

― Samantha, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Whither is mine and Pete's Word of the Month. Innit?

― Emma, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

In Mexico they don't drink soda from plastic bottles cause plastic bottles in Mexico = forever associated with cheep portable "toilets" URK. Tom's heirarchy is of course correct.

― Tracer Hand, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

You bother with the cup Ned? hightone...

Well, see, you've got to distinguish yourself from the Boone's Farm crowd somehow.

― Ned Raggett, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Thas bollocks Tracer - I drank many a swig of Fresca from a PET 500ml bottle.

Though it tasted like wee.

Its partially about pressure as well. Plastic bottles are ever so slightly porous to pressurised gas, therefore the contents are not quite as Fizzy.

― Pete, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

But they fizz up more inside cause the plastic is rougher than the aluminium or steel used in cans. He said, making it up as he goes along.

― Nick, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Where can you still get Coke in glass bottles, by the way?

― Nick, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

The shop on the corner of Hoe Street and Second Avenue in Walthamstow.

― Jonnie, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Greece.

― Tom, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Jonnie speaks the truth, plus I saw them in the tesco express in Walthamstow the other week. Nick,you need to look harder for them.

― chris, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Also, coke in different countries = different concentrations of various elements of the potion. This I know because I visited the coke museum & they let us taste and compare the coke of the world.

― Sterling Clover, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Someone explained this to me but I have of course forgotten it completely. Something to do with the metal intensifying the carbon (?). Did you know that Christina Onassis could tell where a bottle of coca cola was made just from drinking it?

― helen fordsdale, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Most restaurants get their soft drink syrup wholesale in big cardboard boxes: coke, pepsi, sprite etc. These boxes are connected to a pressurised system which pipes the syrup out and carbonates/dilutes it. If you don't press the trigger on the nozzle hard enough, you get a shot of PURE coke syrup, which I imagine would be good for, say, chasing shots of Everclear.

― turner, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Did you know that Christina Onassis could tell where a bottle of coca cola was made just from drinking it

how she did it - the bottomglass of the bottle used to be imprinted with the state it came from, so when tipping up that last sip (which = ACE in an 8oz glass bottle but warm and YECH in a 12-oz can) she just snuck a peek.

― Tracer Hand, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

EVERYTHING tastes better out of a glass. Or out of a lass as I just wrote. Why aren't scientists researching this kind of stuff?

― Ally C, Tuesday, 27 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

two years pass...

Perverts are.

― N. (nickdastoor), Wednesday, 7 April 2004 20:17 (twenty-two years ago)

one year passes...

"Have a Coke anywhere else in the world and it will taste good. Coke in the USA is undrinkable unless you can buy Passover Coke (once a year in certain markets) or Mexican Coke (in a glass bottle, yum) both of which have real sugar."

thoughts?

― OLD SPICE® CHEMTRAILS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (ex machina), Monday, 18 July 2005 15:00 (twenty years ago)

Coke is a triumph of hypnosis

― Tigerstyle Shamanic Vision Quester (sexyDancer), Monday, 18 July 2005 15:14 (twenty years ago)

I had a dutch coke a few weeks ago. It was fantastic. If I could have access to that on a regular basis it would be all I'd drink.

― Miss Misery (thatgirl), Monday, 18 July 2005 15:16 (twenty years ago)

aaron from the icarus line/Nine Inch Nails thinks the UK has shit tasting coke, and in fact prefers pepsi to coke UK.

― stevie (stevie), Monday, 18 July 2005 15:17 (twenty years ago)

coke is fine by me. pepsi is just too sweet and syrupy.

― latebloomer: lazy r people (latebloomer), Monday, 18 July 2005 15:39 (twenty years ago)

i havent had non US coke since i was very little so i can't comment.

― latebloomer: lazy r people (latebloomer), Monday, 18 July 2005 15:40 (twenty years ago)

i rock Royal Crown in the US

― stevie (stevie), Monday, 18 July 2005 15:59 (twenty years ago)

its true. US coke is a shockingly badat first. now it just tastes the same.

also US chocolate tastes really bad too. i found out its because they put wax in it for preservation and shaping reasons.

― sunny successor (he hates my guts, we had a fight) (katharine), Monday, 18 July 2005 22:21 (twenty years ago)

http://www.unc.edu/~egunn/Las%20Vegas/doozie_mike.jpg

― Pleasant Plains /// (Pleasant Plains ///), Monday, 18 July 2005 22:31 (twenty years ago)

THAI COKE IS HELLA SWEET

― hstencil (hstencil), Monday, 18 July 2005 22:32 (twenty years ago)

Dude, UK chocolate = FALSE GRAIL

― OLD SPICE® CHEMTRAILS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (ex machina), Monday, 18 July 2005 22:35 (twenty years ago)

im talking down under

― sunny successor (he hates my guts, we had a fight) (katharine), Monday, 18 July 2005 22:57 (twenty years ago)

glass bottle keeps it colder, no? colder = better. this applies to beer too obv.

when i lived down south there was a place that sold it in glass bottles, it was damn good.

― Ô¿Ô (eman), Monday, 18 July 2005 23:00 (twenty years ago)

as an "ugly american" child living in europe (my dad was stationed there) i remember swiss and german chocolate and candy being very, very good.

― latebloomer: lazy r people (latebloomer), Monday, 18 July 2005 23:02 (twenty years ago)

Whither the cocaine indeed Jess. We saw a cocaine tree in Sri Lanka but I couldn't work out exactly which part of the tree it came from.

-- Emma (emmaluvscak...), November 27th, 2001 8:00 PM.

the leafy part?

― Ô¿Ô (eman), Monday, 18 July 2005 23:05 (twenty years ago)

"SAY HELLO TO MY LEAFY LITTLE FRIEND"

― latebloomer: lazy r people (latebloomer), Monday, 18 July 2005 23:10 (twenty years ago)

T/S: GREEN BOTTLECAP DIET COKE W/ LIME VS BLUE BOTTLECAP COKE W/ SPLENDA VS NEW "COKE ZERO"

― vahid (vahid), Monday, 18 July 2005 23:18 (twenty years ago)

do they still make tab?

― Amateur(ist) (Amateur(ist)), Monday, 18 July 2005 23:22 (twenty years ago)

Skipping 7 messages at this point... Click here if you want to load them all.

rc cola shd be had w donuts!

― 007 (thoia), Tuesday, 19 July 2005 03:15 (twenty years ago)

ah, snopes

― hstencil (hstencil), Tuesday, 19 July 2005 03:20 (twenty years ago)

coke is so much better in a glass bottle.
maybe it's for the same reason that a good red wine or champagne are much better in a glass than in a plastic cup...
or maybe it's all in my head.

― AleXTC (AleXTC), Tuesday, 19 July 2005 13:59 (twenty years ago)

No I agree. it can't be in BOTH of our heads.

I bought a plastic bottle of Coke with Lime in NY tho and it wasn't as bad as I thought it was gonna be (due to plastic bottle, not limeness - lime in Coke is good).

You can buy non-Diet Coke with Lemon in my work local newsagents now. Only place I've seen it.

― Sociah T Azzahole (blueski), Tuesday, 19 July 2005 14:07 (twenty years ago)

passover coke???

― phil-two (phil-two), Tuesday, 19 July 2005 21:30 (twenty years ago)

yeah, corn syrup is considered off limits for lots of jews on passover.

its hard to find Tab, but it's there. hard to find coke in bottles but its there. but more easily found for me is Indian Thums Up cola, which is made by coke and tasts similar, but with a mystery tang twist which is quite nice. I eat it with naanwiches.

― AaronK (AaronK), Wednesday, 20 July 2005 03:36 (twenty years ago)

xp- stevie, i've still got some cans of full fat coke you left here last summer. will they have improved with age? or is that just bottled?

will i find thums up in london? can't say i've ever seen it here.

― snotty moore, Wednesday, 20 July 2005 09:05 (twenty years ago)

could it be there are some chemical reactions with glass that aren't with plastic ?

― AleXTC (AleXTC), Wednesday, 20 July 2005 11:21 (twenty years ago)

"aaron from the icarus line/Nine Inch Nails thinks the UK has shit tasting coke, and in fact prefers pepsi to coke UK."

stevie, i remember you telling me that you could tell where a coke was manufactured from the taste. also: i have never seen you without a can of coke in yr hand!

― david mc, Wednesday, 20 July 2005 11:48 (twenty years ago)

royal crown is delicious. there were rc vending machines in prague when i lived there, which made me very happy.

for some reason, the plastic-bottled coke in the czech republic is unbelievably tasty and way better than the canned version.

― lauren (laurenp), Wednesday, 20 July 2005 12:34 (twenty years ago)

stevie, i remember you telling me that you could tell where a coke was manufactured from the taste. also: i have never seen you without a can of coke in yr hand!

-- david mc (allourfeeling...) (webmail), July 20th, 2005 7:48 AM. (later)

i can do this too. it takes years of practice ie drinking. just like i can tell you which brand of vodka im drinking sans label/bottle. i can even tell you which fast food chain a postmix coke comes from. sure, its a sickness.

now if a vodka and diet coke is called a 'skinny bitch', is vodka and coke a 'fat bitch' or somethin' else?

also, has anyone tried the new diet coke w/ splenda? have they got the sugarfree thing right yet?

― sunny successor (he hates my guts, we had a fight) (katharine), Wednesday, 20 July 2005 23:20 (twenty years ago)

there was one gas station near my college that would sell pepsi in bottles. couldn't get it ANYwhere else. i was about the only one in my dorm who had a car, and so would make about 20 bucks a week peddling bottles of pepsi. no doubt it tastes better.

― oops (Oops), Wednesday, 20 July 2005 23:37 (twenty years ago)

If I see one more person talking about how they can't find TAB anywhere, I swear that I'm going to start selling the shit on eBay.

That, or bootleg it like Snowman carried Coors.

― Pleasant Plains /// (Pleasant Plains ///), Thursday, 21 July 2005 16:09 (twenty years ago)

yeah, corn syrup is considered off limits for lots of jews on passover.

Depends on which authority is proclaiming it kosher/nonkosher. Supposedly some of the less stringent are giving corn syrup thumbs up, so read those labels carefully.

Years ago in a creative writing class, one guy came in with one of the old-style 8-ounce glass Coke bottles. All at once the rest of said "Where did you get that?!?"

― j.lu (j.lu), Thursday, 21 July 2005 16:26 (twenty years ago)

as for the "whither the cocaine" question, coca-cola Doesn't use cocaine in their soda anymore. they do, however, still use coca leaves to keep it tasting all cokey. apparently there's only one company that's legally authorized to import coca leaves to the US, and that's where coca-cola gets it from.

BOOYAH.

― matlewis (matlewis), Thursday, 21 July 2005 16:42 (twenty years ago)

You know, Fanta in the US tastes like artificially colored corn syrup, but Fanta as drunk in Greece was sharp, citrusy, and delish in all three flavors (lemon, orange, and grapefruit).

Biding my time for Passover '06....

― Laurel, Thursday, 21 July 2005 17:03 (twenty years ago)

WOW STUFF IS BETTA TASTIN' IN EUROPE THAN THE USA

JUST LIKE... EVERYTHING.

*exception: London tap water.

― TOMBOT, Thursday, 21 July 2005 17:44 (twenty years ago)

I think I saw Mexican Coke in the new intl. market in Memphis...must investigate.

― Truckdrivin' Buddha (Rock Hardy), Thursday, 21 July 2005 17:50 (twenty years ago)

Please report back on that.

― Pleasant Plains /// (Pleasant Plains ///), Thursday, 21 July 2005 18:48 (twenty years ago)

re: Diet Coke with Splenda. It's not bad for a diet drink, it doesn't have that slightly bitter aftertaste that regular Diet Coke kinda has

― jedidiah (jedidiah), Thursday, 21 July 2005 19:14 (twenty years ago)

PP, it'll be 2 or 3 weeks before I make it to Memphisto. If you're there in the meantime, it's a newish grocery opened in a big supermarket location (previously a Seesel's I think) on Winchester, somewhere between Hickory Ridge and the Sam's/Costco vicinity. (Sorry I can't pinpoint it more closely.)

― Truckdrivin' Buddha (Rock Hardy), Thursday, 21 July 2005 19:54 (twenty years ago)

two years pass...

I haven't had coke in half a dozen years or so, but I am drinking a Mexican one that contains sugar as opposed to high fructose corn syrup, and it is really good.

― dell, Monday, 7 July 2008 03:04 (seventeen years ago)

ya, mexican/jewish coke is sort of a holy grail to some.

― s1ocki, Monday, 7 July 2008 07:56 (seventeen years ago)

http://creativebits.org/files/images/Coca-Cola_logo3.gif

― Zeno, Monday, 7 July 2008 09:25 (seventeen years ago)

australian coke is made the same way as mexican/jewish coke. growing up me and my friends used to covet the american fructose style coke that you could only find at cinemas

― sonderborg, Monday, 7 July 2008 09:36 (seventeen years ago)

afaik it's only the u.s. that uses high-fructose corn syrup in coke, and in pretty much anything else

― Tracer Hand, Monday, 7 July 2008 10:04 (seventeen years ago)

Q. Why do you use High Fructose Corn Syrup and/or Sucrose instead of sugar in 'Coke' Classic yet keep sugar in 'Coca-Cola' (UK)?

A. The type of sweetener used depends on the market in which the product is sold. in Europe there is not enough High Fructose Corn Syrup available to use on 'Coca-Cola' as the ingredient is controlled by an EU quota system. This quota system protects the EU sugar producers. In the USA no such restrictions exist as the USA is a major producer of corn (the raw material for HCFS). In the United States bottlers can use Sugar (sucrose) or HCFS. In Europe we have no such option and have to use sugar (sucrose). Having said that the product is formulated to have the same flavour regardless of whether HCFS or sugar is used.

http://www.letsgettogether.co.uk/DetailQuestionAnswer/QuestionId=511/

― Tracer Hand, Monday, 7 July 2008 10:05 (seventeen years ago)

hey i drank my first (at least this century) mexican coke a couple of week ago. pp found them in the mexican food section of kroger!

― sunny successor, Monday, 7 July 2008 13:58 (seventeen years ago)

WOW STUFF IS BETTA TASTIN' IN EUROPE THAN THE USA
JUST LIKE... EVERYTHING.

*exception: London tap water.

-- TOMBOT, Thursday, July 21, 2005 12:44 PM (2 years ago) Bookmark Link

this is incredibly RONG

*exception: London tap water.

― sunny successor, Monday, 7 July 2008 13:59 (seventeen years ago)

on saturday kitchen they said that the reason new york pizza is the best in the world is because the quality of the water was so great. i was like whoa.

― blueski, Monday, 7 July 2008 14:03 (seventeen years ago)

The Mexican "sugar" Coke I've had has been good, but actually tasted...brighter, sweeter, thinner -- more like the US diet version. The taste was a little thin and then disappeared faster, whereas the US HFCS Coke tastes darker to me, with more body, and the sweetness kind of clings to my tongue and teeth, and lingers.

― Laurel, Monday, 7 July 2008 14:16 (seventeen years ago)

Mmm fructose film.

― Tracer Hand, Monday, 7 July 2008 14:17 (seventeen years ago)

Yeah, that's what I think is gross about it...

I don't like really sweet stuff anyhow, so I would dilute a sugary soft drink with tons of ice cubes.

The Mexican Coke smelled really good, too. I could pick up all these notes of spiciness as the bubbles were doing their thing in the glass. But maybe all Coke smells good? Again, it's been a looong time for me

― dell, Monday, 7 July 2008 18:16 (seventeen years ago)

Having said that the product is formulated to have the same flavour regardless of whether HCFS or sugar is used.

well you formulated wrong hotshots!

sunny, we get the mexican bottled cokes at the super mercado fresco (harvest foods' latino supermarket) in southwest and at the little mexican grocer in levy. also, the little grocer has a tiny restaurant in back that has the best tacos on the planet. y'all must must go. las delicias is the name.

― andrew m., Monday, 7 July 2008 18:30 (seventeen years ago)

wait, is it across from US Pizza?

― sunny successor, Monday, 7 July 2008 18:32 (seventeen years ago)

yah

― andrew m., Monday, 7 July 2008 18:36 (seventeen years ago)

the little one is. the big one is way out on geyer springs

― andrew m., Monday, 7 July 2008 18:37 (seventeen years ago)

i think we can see that from our window. i havent seen the latino harvest foods. did you hear about starlite?

― sunny successor, Monday, 7 July 2008 18:37 (seventeen years ago)

Having said that the product is formulated to have the same flavour regardless of whether HCFS or sugar is used.

that is such a lie!

― lauren, Monday, 7 July 2008 18:41 (seventeen years ago)

when I was in Australia a few weeks ago I definitely noticed the difference w/ their Coke.

― some dude, Monday, 7 July 2008 18:41 (seventeen years ago)

yes ^^^^^^^^^^^

its not sugar though

― sunny successor, Monday, 7 July 2008 18:44 (seventeen years ago)

those aren't pillows

― and what, Monday, 7 July 2008 18:53 (seventeen years ago)

Jones soda makes a cola with sugar that isn't as overwhelmingly sweet as a lot of their other stuff and if you squeeze some lemon into it over ice it has been proven mathematically to be 10,000,000x better than HCFS coke

― J0hn D., Monday, 7 July 2008 19:30 (seventeen years ago)

or HFCS even

― J0hn D., Monday, 7 July 2008 19:33 (seventeen years ago)

From the Cokes I have tried from around the world:

Canada, France, UK, Italy and Holland = Nice.

Spain, South Africa, Poland, Russia and Germany = Not nice.

I haven't been to all of these countries, but for some reason, soft drinks from abroad crop up quite a lot in the UK.

― Bodrick III, Monday, 7 July 2008 19:35 (seventeen years ago)

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2374/1527596089_19cea02e76.jpg?v=0

― PappaWheelie V, Tuesday, 8 July 2008 01:31 (seventeen years ago)

Having said that the product is formulated to have the same flavour regardless of whether HCFS or sugar is used.

maybe he's being sneaky and differentiating between flavor and taste? eg raspberry soda made with HFCS or cane sugar can both have the flavor of raspberry and yet can taste way different.

― Granny Dainger, Tuesday, 8 July 2008 01:37 (seventeen years ago)

I haven't been to all of these countries, but for some reason, soft drinks from abroad crop up quite a lot in the UK.

There are (or were before I tried to cut that stuff out) a lot of Georgian Coke bottles in cheapo shops and fast food places here. Fun trying to read the alphabet. Seemed to taste slightly different but I couldn't really describe how.

I didn't actually notice the difference when I was in the US, nor when I went to Germany via France-Belgium-NL, but I've had imported US Jolt and Mountain Dew which has been heavy and sticky as hell, is that HFCS?

― a passing spacecadet, Tuesday, 8 July 2008 11:22 (seventeen years ago)

Yes.

― Tracer Hand, Tuesday, 8 July 2008 11:48 (seventeen years ago)

Is Canadian Coke the same as American Coke? We undoubtedly have more HFCS per capita up here.

― fields of salmon, Wednesday, 9 July 2008 01:04 (seventeen years ago)

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