Monday, March 03, 2008

An interesting combination

We have a place in the newsroom we like to call The Usual Spot, or
TUS, for short. This is where we put food or any other kind of goodies
to share with our co-workers.

Today in TUS was an 11 pack of the new Cherry Chocolate Diet Dr Pepper. It came to me minus one can from my mother, who didn't like it. I didn't know how my taste buds would react, so I figured I shouldn't test it alone.

I guess the verdict is still out. I immediately got e-mails from people in the building who said they didn't want to try it. And some said it was gross. But another said she thought it tasted like a "cherry Tootsie Pop," which was a good thing to her.

I thought that was accurate, but I don't know if I would call it good. It is quite a juxtaposition of tastes. I like chocolate, cherries and Dr. Pepper separately, but I don't know if this will work for me. I think the cherry and chocolate does mask the diet taste, though. Diet flavor tastes nasty to me in any drink.

The stuff hasn't gotten a lot of good reviews outside of here, as evidenced by blogger Derek K. Miller in Canada.

Apparently it is only the third "flavor extension" Dr. Pepper's history. They've had a good run, so it seems like it's only good business for them to try to branch out and hook some more lovers of all things carbonated.

Got any opinions on the new drink out there? Zero calories and carbs, according to the nutrition facts.

And if you need a little... entertainment... on this rainy Monday, enjoy this Cherry Chocolate Diet Dr Pepper-inspired video from Tay Zonday featuring Mista Johnson. I'm not sure this helps or hurts.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

this kind of stuff is pathetic.. they first need to go back and figure out how to make the basic Dr. Peeper have some resemblance to it's original taste.. it's like coke.. it, taste like sugar water when it's hot, it's nasty.. and when it's cold all you get is chilled carbonation... the true flavor is gone..
when they bulk up and sell this stuff in mass volumes on holidays, it's even less quality. they make it to push the label.. not the quality...

when time came that cocaine could no longer be used in these drinks.. they lost what created them..

if you notice the names of them were all related to the main ingredient that made them popular..

DR Pepper .. was the pep up from cocaine,

Coke-a cola- is self explanatory

Pepsi - get the pep up.


and etc...

but the search to get the coca from chocolate, and the other derivitates from the coca plant as much as possible..
but it's still not effective..

it's sugar , syrup and water with a bit of carbonation.. and it's pathetic that a can of this stuff should never had gone over 25 cent..

you can buy the no name brands from the store and get a better taste..

Adam Kealoha Causey said...

Hey, anonymous. That is one way to put it! I wasn't around to try the coked up versions of any of these drinks, so I just can't really say. Thanks for chiming in.

Donecia Pea said...

Wow, anonymous, I never knew that about the origin of Dr. Pepper and Pepsi. Lol, very enlightening.
Like Adam, I wasn't around to know the coked up versions of any of those drinks, but I DO know that Dr. Thunder (Wal-mart brand) could whup Dr. Pepper ANYDAY, not to mention it's cheaper, too. That Dr. Thunder used to come WITH it back in my college days!

Adam, I'll give you my take on the drink by tomorrow, after it's been good and chilled in the fridge. But I gotta tell you, I'm not expecting a positive review, lol. We'll see...

Anonymous said...

A “pinch of coca leaves” was included in John Styth Pemberton's original 1886 recipe for Coca-Cola, though the company began using decocainized leaves in 1906 when the Pure Food and Drug Act was passed. ( so they claim :)) ).. . The actual amount of cocaine that Coca-Cola contained during the first twenty years of its production is practically impossible to determine.


big time Drug reduction acts did not take the "full effect" on big companies, until the 60's.. to curtail many things in many products.. yup to the 60's "coke was still working it's way to be the leading soft drink, of the world.. and, big money had it's privileged..

Anonymous said...

In 1885 the U.S. manufacturer Parke-Davis sold cocaine in various forms, including cigarettes, powder, and even a cocaine mixture that could be injected directly into the user’s veins with the included needle. The company promised that its cocaine products would “supply the place of food, make the coward brave, the silent eloquent and ... render the sufferer insensitive to pain.”

Parke-Davis is a subsidiary of the pharmaceutical company Pfizer

Stephanie Bemrose said...

Thanks, Adam, for bringing it in. I had been looking for it in the stores to try but wasn't sure which stores would have it.

I tried it over ice. I didn't find a strong enough chocolate flavor to really grab me. I like cherry Coke zero for a diet alternative with some good flavor. Cherry Pepsi and Diet Cherry Pepsi are good, too.

Although I like Dr. Pepper and Diet Dr. Pepper, but this cherry chocolate wasn't a great hit. I probably wouldn't try it refrigerated, I'd most likely go for something else to drink.

Donecia Pea said...

Ok, I tried it and out of fear, had my parents take a sip when I stopped by there after work yesterday.
Their reactions were priceless and I'll just say they didn't like it at all.
As for me, it was bearable until that final chocolate aftertaste. It's like first you taste the Dr. Pepper, which is familiar, then the cherry, which is tolerable, but then it finishes off with this strong chocolate flavor that comes outta nowhere and negates the whole experience. Bleck, lol. No more for me.

Btw, that video is hilarious and unbearable as well. I only managed to watch/hear about 10 seconds of it and I was done!