Kotas Reviews Cinnamon Coca-Cola

The soda flavor explosion continues to spread. So many different flavors of soda are coming out that I simply cannot keep up with them anymore. Also, I really shouldn't drink so much soda. Still, some products demand that I review them by their very existence. In fact, I didn't believe this was an actual real thing. Ladies and Gentlemen, let's take a look at Cinnamon Coca-Cola.

I honestly thought this was a joke product.

I first heard about this when a friend gushed enthusiasm about it. I initially dismissed it as mistaken naming, but I was soon corrected. Turns out, Cinnamon Coke is a thing and this person loves it. It was not until I saw it at my local lunch spot in the cooler that I truly acknowledged that it could exist. I mean, Pepsi Fire was a thing for a while. Could this be Coca-Cola's answer to that crappy product? Why would they want to duplicate failure? Still, whatever. Let's rock and or roll. The can is expertly designed. It's a Coke can, with some minor additional graphics and text to inform you what is different from regular Coke on it. Very understated, very cool. Let's crack it open.

Well, it looks like Coke. This will be good for pranking I predict. I mean, "spicy" soda just isn't really my thing, but we strive onward for Science. Oh. Oh no. I was completely wrong about this. This isn't spicy soda. This isn't spicy soda at all! The makers of this soda clearly took inspiration from the sweeter side of cinnamon than the spicy, as instead of being hot, this soda has the cinnamon that you find in a sweet roll rather then that of a Red Hot. Oh man, it compliments the cola flavor perfectly too. I think I love this soda! I need more.

On the FACE Rating System, this gets 3 Smileys. Holy shit this stuff is delicious. Put it in your drink chute immediately, then buy more and use it as a mixer. I have to stop myself from drinking this constantly and I think I like it at least as much as, if not more than, regular Coke. Get it. GET IT NOW!

Kotas Reviews Orange Vanilla Coca Cola

There are a pile of flavored sodas on the market. From the ignoble beginnings of Fanta (seriously, go look this up) to the plain weirdness of Jones Soda, there are beau-coup varieties of soda flavors available to the average consumer. Only rarely does the introduction of a flavor shake up the market, usually coming from one of the two 800 pound rhinos in the market: Coca-Cola and Pepsi. Cherry Coke ushered in the "cola with fruit flavor" soda as a type in the 80s and Pepsi Twist started the "cola flavored with citrus" craze of the mid-2000s, so they tend to have an out sized impact. Anyway, that's a lot of lead up for me to tell you that we're looking at Yet Another Cola With Additional Flavor product. Ladies and Gentlemen, let's take a look at Orange Vanilla Coca-Cola.

GLORY GREATEST SODA! Or not.

I'm not sure why Coca-Cola needed an Orange Vanilla flavored version, honestly. I have always enjoyed Coca-Cola, though these days it is more of a "once a week" thing than a "once a meal" thing as it was in my younger days. As a wee lad I enjoyed Cherry Coke more than perhaps was healthy, so I have experience with "cola + fruit" sodas. Orange Vanilla though, I'm not sure about. Vanilla and Cola is pretty tasty, but nothing I would go out of my way to get. Orange and cola is not a combo I would have ever thought might be good. Still, citrus flavors do compliment Coca-Cola pretty well so maybe it will be fine? Let's open it up!

I'm not sure what you were expecting.

Yep. It's a cola, which means it is a very dark liquid. Nothing too surprising here. The scent is a nice strong orange scent with hints of cola and a creaminess I assume is the vanilla peeking through. It's a pleasant scent that I wouldn't mind having as an air freshener in my car. Let's drink it up! The flavor is almost an inversion of the scent. The cola flavor is very strong, with a bit of orange flavor and a creaminess associated with vanilla that smooths out the whole thing, though definitely less vanilla-y than Coke with Vanilla. It's a nice little flavor, but it's not that much different from regular Coke. It's fine is what I'm saying.

On the FACE Rating System, this gets 0 Faces. It tastes fine, but it isn't a strong flavor nor particularly interesting. If someone hands me this, or I accidentally get one instead of a regular Coke I will happily drink it, but I ain't beating down a door to get this specific flavor. Try some at your local gas station today!

Kotas Reviews Coca-Cola Life

Coca-Cola is practically ubiquitous in my life, and I have been an avid consumer of Coke products since I was a wee tot (which probably explains this blog's focus on junk food). I've had almost every product they have offered: Coca-Cola, New Coke, Coke Classic, Diet Coke, the various "with Lemon/Lime" variants, Caffeine Free Coke, Diet Caffeine Free Coke, Coke Zero, Vanilla Coke, Cherry Coke, Vanilla Cherry Coke, and numerous Coke related products. I've even sampled Fried Coke. I guess I enjoy the soda, is what I'm saying. When you've produced as many things as Coca-Cola though, it is hard to really innovate. It is even more shocking when you completely change the color scheme of your packaging. Thus, in honor of St. Patrick's Day, we're reviewing the very distinct Coca-Cola Life!

COKE! LIFE!

It takes some marketing confidence to flip people's world view upside down by putting a Coke product in a GREEN PACKAGE. A little research (Thanks Wikipedia) informs me that this beverage was originally developed in Argentina in 2013, moving to Chile and the UK shortly after that. Distribution started in the US in November of 2014, and it has finally made its way to my town, I guess. This soda's claim to fame is that it is a "reduced calorie" soda, sweetened with a mix of stevia and cane sugar, putting its caloric content at 65% of a standard Coke. It's also sold in 8oz glass bottles at "regular" six pack prices. Because of course it is.

Majestic, I tell you.

Of course, you didn't come here for a history lesson or bitching about high prices, you wanna know how it tastes! Well, it's pretty much a Coke, with a little less sweetness and some different but not unpleasant overtones that I can't place, though I assume that's the stevia coming through. It's fairly tasty, and it satisfies my "I want a real soda" craving about as well as regular Coke. The problem here is that I don't know if I would pay a hefty premium over regular Coke simply to get this version. It's tasty, and I would totally drink it from a fountain or at a restaurant, but it isn't good enough to justify the hefty (in soda terms, anyway) price. Put it at the same price as your other varieties, and then we'll talk, Coke. 

On the FACE Rating System, this gets 1 smiley face. It's good, but it is nothing spectacular. I appreciate the lower calorie count, but this is NOT a diet soda by any stretch, though it is a good product. If you are a huge Coca-Cola fan, this is worth having at least once, but this will not become my "go to" product without some better price parity or availability.