Bottles in a Museum

2015 marks the 100 year anniversary of something special in the soda world. Do you know what it is? It is the iconic Coca-Cola bottle! That's right. The curvy, attractive bottle was released in 1915. This is kind of a big deal. At least, it is a big enough deal for the High Museum of Art in Atlanta to dedicate a huge exhibit towards the bottle!

The Real Bottle Deal

If I lived closer, I would go check it out! (And for the record, soda didn't start coming in cans until after 1935. We will have to wait for that centennial event.)

Pepsi at the Big Concerts

Pepsi is just swaggering it's gorilla way all over Coca-Cola's turf. I shared recently how Pepsi took the lucrative NBA sponsorship away from Coke. Now, Pepsi just took away a host of music festivals. Live Nation is an organization that organizes some of the most popular concerts in the nation. 75 of these concerts will now carry exclusively Pepsi and not Coke.

Pepsi Dragonfruit X from 2013. Because, you know, Pepsi
is taking over new territory like a dragon!

I don't really begrudge the move. A large bunch of moshing and hollering young adults certainly does better fit with Pepsi's marketing image. Coca-Cola still has the warm and fuzzy Olympics, and I doubt they will ever let that go. Now that Pepsi sponsors these musical festivals, let's hope they release limited edition cans at each one. That might actually give me a reason to go.

Artisan Sodas

The soda industry is always trying to look towards the future. (Heck, every any business worth its fructose syrup should do that.) However, people say the future for the soda industry is dim. I disagree. I think it will be changing. I just learned that Pepsi is already trying to shift the focus of soda from a casual lunch drink towards an upscale indulgence you want to enjoy on those special days. How? They are taking a lesson from craft beer.

Concern that Wild Cherry Pepsi Just Isn't Arty Enough Anymore

That's right. Pepsi has made Caleb's Kola to be sold exclusively at Costco. It's kind of a rival to the popular Mexican Coke, a coke made with real sugar and packed in real glass bottles. Executives are hoping people will reach for this and similar artisan creations when they want a soda. It might work. However, it would work best for this blogger if they put Caleb's Kola into a fancy can!

Coke Free Courts

Coke is out of the basketball business. That's right, Sprite. No more shall we obey our thirsts with you on the B-ball courts. Pepsi outbid Coca-Cola for a lucrative contract to be the official soft drink of the NBA. That's a quite a change after 25 years of Coke on the courts.

Guess what flagship Pepsi product will be the new face of the NBA? It's certainly not Diet Sierra Mist Cranberry Splash. It's Mt. Dew. This means we can probably start looking for Mt. Dew NBA cans next year. It also might make my LeBron James Sprite can go up in a value just a smidgen.

Classy Cans in a Scare Ad

If you read my blog, you know how I feel about all of the soda-phobia hype. Yes, it's not the best for you. But it just tastes so good. (Except Diet Dr. Pepper. Mr. Gump's beverage of choice absolutely crushes it. Dr. Pepper 10 does a good job though.) Scrolling through social media, I came across the latest soda-scare ad. I didn't get mad though. I was too impressed with all of those VINTAGE soda cans. Take a peek!

You can't get those sweet cans anymore! I believe they are all from the mid to late 00s. Also, you should know that Diet Soda sales are going down. The reason? Ads like the one above work. But people still buy soda. They just buy the full flavor versions as the real treat. Instead of having a Diet soda a day, folks are aiming for the pure version once a week. Makes sense. Still, I have no problem having several diet drinks a week if it suits me. I need the cans.

Soda Sugar Fighting Dream Team

So we've all heard of team work, and soda companies aren't above the old fashioned mantra of working together. Sure, these guys are competitors, but they also know they need to preserve the market they all compete in. They also need to preserve the country's goodwill.

To appease the strident calls of an annoyingly vocal few that soda is THE moral epidemic of our times, Coca-Cola, Dr. Pepper, and Pepsi have pledged to reduce the number of sugary calories consumed Americans by 1/5 by 2015.

Wowsers.

I mean, I've heard of pledges to increase gas mileage in cars, but this is a completely different beverage-of-change. Interestingly, former President Bill Clinton announced the initiative, which I think is kinda cool. I always remember him as the man who took a swig of Diet Coke during his video taped testimony for all of that icky Monica Lewinsky stuff.

"Bill"

I'm not quite sure what this means. Note that it is a reduction of the total number of sugary calories. It doesn't mean a can of Coke is gonna reduce its calories by 20 percent, although I suppose the companies could just downsize the product, charge the same amount, and end up making more money while keeping the pledge.

Actually, I suspect it is simply going to be the way the beverage market is moving. People want more diet, more energy drinks, more juices, so that is what these companies will sell. Tally up all the sugary calories sold in 2025, and I suspect with little intervention it will already be lower.

Still, I think its cool and I think it good marketing and that's why soda is so darn dope. It's a product that can packaged, sold, and defined as anything. Christmas, summer barbecues, and even weight loss initiatives.

Will anyone bother to follow up on this in 10 years? Probably not. And there is no penalty if it doesn't happen. Hopefully your little can collecting blog will still be around in 2025, and I will post a follow up.

Pepsi Flavored Cheetos

For those of you who don't think soda merits enough attention to bleed into the mundane areas of your life, consider what is happening in Japan.  Last month Cheetos and Pepsi teamed up to make, you guessed it, Pepsi flavored Cheetos! Apparently, the Cheetos are covered in a Pepsi powder, that, reminding us of Crystal Clear Pepsi days, is not brown. No word yet if these are coming to the U.S. yet.

Pepsi Flavored Cheetos!