Review: China Cola

China Cola-my first foray into weird, obscure cola-dom. I remember that fateful day three years ago when I was with the whole fam-damily at the local Food Co-op store getting some groceries when the wife decided that we should eat lunch from their deli. I agreed, and although I don't remember what food I ate(probably a bean salad of some kind...), I do remember what beverage I grabbed.

I went to their refrigerated display case and perused the shelves, looking for something that would grab my interest. They had a few "natural" soda mainstays-Blue Sky and Hansens of all varieties in individual cans(ugh). They had a few bottles of Izze-avoided that because I wasn't(and still remain) a big fan of carbonated juice drinks, and something interesting looking called Kombucha Wonder Drink. But alas, my palate craved something semi-familiar. I wanted a cola, and China Cola was sitting there in all of it's bright yellow glory, screaming at me to give it a shot.

So, I grabbed the bottle, and proceeded to pop it open. There was a moderate amount of fizz, but nothing too great. Reminded me of all those endless amounts of Faygo over the years-a decent bit of carbonation in the first drink or two, and then quickly diminishing returns every drink thereafter. My initial impression was that of sweet worcestershire sauce, but after I got over the bitter herbal aroma the rest of it went down relatively fine.

However, I felt that I hadn't given China Cola a fair go-I was still smoking regular cigarettes at the time, and I discovered that my taste buds had deceived about a lot of foods and drinks. Another factor was that in between then and now I have significantly cut back on my addition of salt to foods, which helped me better appreciate subtle flavor notes I had often drowned out with the delicious ground rocks I had been putting on my food for so many years.

Boy howdy, I was glad I decided to give it another go. Upon getting my bottle, I cracked it open, and that same familiar herb and roots aroma wafted into my nostrils, and I prepared myself for the potential horror that lay within. I brought it to my lips, poured it onto my tongue, and surprisingly, detected none of that hard-to-pronounce grog made with dissolved sardines that I was expecting.

It was rich, slightly bitter, and had a bit of tang to it. There was a bit of sweetness and the underlying burn of acid, and I was quickly reminded of something I had sampled not too long ago-Pepsi Natural.

For those of you who missed it's relatively short run, Pepsi Natural was a gimmicky attempt by Pepsi to break into the naturally-flavored, cane sugar sweetened glass bottle world. It wasn't bad, mind you, but it wasn't what one would expect from a major soda brand. It was flavored with kola nut(most colas use a combination of vanilla and cinnamon as their "cola" flavor), and it came in an interesting bottle with a clear label, a bleached-out(remember, white is a "healthy" color in corporate food packaging) Pepsi logo, and was an almost unappetizing pale brown color. It greatly resembled carbonated tea in a bottle. 

Anyways, back to China Cola. It was good, and they decided to package it in a dark amber bottle, much like beer, which made it look more appetizing, not seeing the dirty-dishwater tannish brown of brewed tea. It was everything that Pepsi Natural wanted to be(and more), and it most definitely predated by a number of years. This leads me to believe that either Pepsi-Co optioned the recipe for it's marketing campaign, or that a Pepsi-Co executive had tried China Cola and decided he needed to share it with the world, all the while lining his pockets with the profits of his plagiarism.

I shouldn't really complain though, because it's entirely possible that if Pepsi Natural had completely tanked we may not have seen the "Throwback" line of sodas hit the shelves. That would have made me a sad panda indeed-you haven't had Mountain Dew until you've had Mountain Dew Throwback.

So, in short-you should find yourself a bottle of China Cola. Gaudy packaging and all, it's an interesting soda experience. I wouldn't drink it all of the time, but it's worth tasting a relatively obscure cola that may have inspired the big guys to try their own trumped up version-and how often do you see Pepsi or Coke ripoff a "generic" brand instead of the other way around? Usually they just buy the company and fold it into their own.

Side-note. I just did a bit of research and found out that China Cola is distributed by Reed's(makers of a fine ginger ale, and distributor of Virgil's heavenly brews). However, it is only the American labeling of a product called "Future Cola"-which is based in China and has the third largest market share of sodas in the world. Not really fair to call it a "generic" brand, I suppose, but it's still of note that Pepsi copied one of their competitors so blatantly. It's like the modern day equivalent of the "New Coke" fiasco of the eighties, but Pepsi kept their original formula available the whole time.

Packaging- 4/5

Goddamn if it isn't gaudy as all hell. That's what I like about it though. Catches the eye. It looks like someone designed a logo specifically for a t-shirt, slapped it on a bright yellow field and called it a day. The source of the brew in the bottle looks like a Chinese knock-off Coke can, but Reed's went all out to make sure that didn't happen here in the States by making it look like it was designed by a fourth grader from the early nineties.

Aroma- 2/5

It doesn't smell like it would taste that good-exactly like a medicinal tea. I blame the peony root and kola nut.

Naturally caffeinated by the kola nut, but naturally a little bitter for the same reason.

Taste- 5/7

It's not sicky sweet, there isn't as much of a bite to it as one would expect from a cola, and it has a complex blend of bitter and aromatic that dances on the tongue. As stated above, I couldn't drink this bottle after bottle, but it would go quite nicely with a tomato-based dish.

Overall- 11/17

Try it out. It might not be for everyone, but I quite enjoy the change of pace every now and then. I think it would probably be good to drink flat for an upset stomach, too.

Buy China Cola

Coke vs. Pepsi: An in-depth comparison, Part 1

The two major contenders in the soft drink world-Coke and Pepsi. A rivalry so deeply seated in our psyche that their modern packaging even reflects the rivalry in it's colors-red and blue. Coca Cola carries one of the most universally recognized logos, and Pepsi consistently beats Coke in taste tests.
I, personally, am a Coke fan. Always have been, always will be. However, the flagship pops in their respective corporate empires each have their own unique taste for both being colas, are hardly ever copied by the generics, and each definitely have their strong points. That's what I wish to explore.
Being such a connoisseur of sodas, I have noticed many similarities, and those things which make Coke and Pepsi quite distinct from each other, and where one is flat out better then the other in their respective categories.
Let's start with the basics-packaging. Coca-cola has a very distinct bottle shape, and it should-it was designed in such a way that a person would recognize a coke bottle from every other bottle, even amongst debris when shattered on the ground. The glass bottle also carried a quite distinct greenish color. While the green color didn't translate over to the plastic bottles, the shape certainly did, and recently the company even redesigned their 2 liter bottles to reflect that brand recognizable shape as well. Then there's the label-bright, firetruck red. It catches your eye from across the store, and the brand name is easily recognizable at a distance with it's flowing font and stark white contrast against the firetruck red field.
Flavored versions-
I love Vanilla Coke, and it's still readily available. However, as a whole, Pepsi is hands down the victor in the "added flavor department". Pepsi Vanilla was delicious, Pepsi Lime was tasty without carrying that weird, dish soap flavor that Coke Lime has, and Wild Cherry Pepsi is far superior to Cherry Coke. In addition, I've tasted better Cherry Colas from store brands(I'm looking at you, Meijer Cherry Cola) then Cherry Coke. I think the biggest reason behind this is that Coke has a very complex, rich and distinct flavor onto itself. When you start adding in other things, it tends to take away from that complexity. Pepsi, on the other hand, tastes sweet and flat. There's a lot to be desired from the vaguely citrus, cinnamon rich flavor of Pepsi-and adding flavors to that helps dial it up a few notches. They only work to enhance the sweetness of the drink, and Coke's added flavors try to distract you from it. I only wish Pepsi Vanilla were still around.
There was also an "added flavor" Pepsi that was never labelled as Pepsi, and it was a personal favorite of mine. I was such a big fan, in fact, that I will say it qualifies as my first addiction, so to speak. I'm talking of course, about Josta. That ill-fated, obscure fruity soda that tried to be an energy drink before energy drinks were on the market. It was caffeinated like the other sodas, but had a kick of guarana to push it to the levels of caffeine usually only found in coffee. What was the added flavor, you may ask? Well, besides the guarana(which is a distinct flavor in and of it's own right), it had a dragonfruit flavor as well. I didn't know what it was at the time, but everyday after school I would walk to either the local gas station or Tackacs' meat market and buy a 20 oz. It was usually chugged before I got home. Jesus christ I wish Josta were still on the market.Save Josta! <--go here to sign the petition to bring Josta back.

There's more to this comparison, and I'll get to it as soon as possible-coming up, which is better from the fountain? Which is better with cane sugar? Caffeine free? Diet?