Serious Eats - seriouseats.com

Welcome to the civilised world, you finally have a choice on your blends of Coke.

Here in the UK I can go into any local store and buy Coke from the UK, France, Germany and further afield. A local kebab shop sells Moroccan coke (with the old style ring pull tops) which all helps to create the correct feel when you're eating your various meats.

My local Costco sells UK and Irish Coke, but of those two I actually much prefer the UK version. The most widely available are the French and German can, which s tend to have a "Drier" taste (and a slight chemical after-taste). French bottles seem to have a slightly higher CO2 content (more fizz) whereas the UK bottles are closer to an average Post-Mix you'd get in a cheap eatery.

Small local shops generally sell the foriegn versions because they can buy them cheaply at wholesale. Costco Irish coke is about 10% cheaper than the "official" Uk version. The imports are so widespread that the UK cans now have a big "MADE IN GB" logo on them, but the arabic "COKE" logo a much bigger draw in my opinion. There are whole armies of people that spend their lives driving to france to load up a van of cans and bottles and then bring them back to the UK to sell on to small traders. They do it to save a few pence per item, but for Coke fanatics like me its a great way to enjoy all the Colas that Europe (and beyond) have to offer.

And to all the people that claim they can't tell them apart - fine, drink which ever is cheapest. I -can- tell them apart. And I can tell pepsi from pepsi max from diet coke from coke from french coke from german diet coke etc etc.

One of the the main differences (in Europe at least) is the local water that the regional bottlers use. If you can't taste the difference between English water and French water then all hope is lost.

Having spent a few weeks in Nevada, Arizona and California recently I can confidently comment that across the board the American Coke products are inferior to their various European namesakes. Do I sound like I take this too seriously? Well I just checked my cupboard and I have 26 difference types of Diet Coke alone! I'm drinking UK today but yesterday it was a 6 pack of 500ml bottles from Barbados... tomorrow I think I'll have some Turkish stuff I bought recently and haven't tried yet.

I hear that most Americans don't even have a passport. The world is a great place and a lot of it has great produce to offer. I'm just glad I live somewhere that has all this available within 10 miles of my house, I feel sorry for people that shop at walmart...

Even better than Mexican Coke? BERMUDIAN COKE. I'm fortunate enough to be a dual-national and grew up tasting the difference between US and Bermuda coke. Now that I've had a chance to try Mexican coke (I'm in Mexico now), I can tell you Bermudian coke is even crisper, and less harsh than Mexican. In Bermuda, you can also find Sprite made with real sugar. I've even gone so far as to bring back Coke syrup with me and carbonate it with a tabletop carbonator! The people in customs tell me it's not that uncommon to bring a Coke syrup-pack across.

MaryResta, they've been selling it at the Costco's in Colorado since early this summer...we are awfully close to Texas, but from the posts above, I am pretty sure they are selling it at more locations. Costco employees are usually very good, but I think the one you worked with didn't give you the complete story. I'd just request it with one of their forms and get your friends to do the same. It just might show up at your local warehouse. Also, in Colorado I've found it at Mexican grocery stores, not sure if you have those in NJ, but it might be worth a try. It is just very spendy outside of Costco.

Real Mexican Coke is made with cane sugar. I would change brands based on the corn syrup label. Did anyone else notice the study that shows HFCS makes you eat more :)

http://www.ajcn.org/cgi/content/full/79/4/537

Ever wonder why it is hard to drink just one U.S. Coke? Crazy. Seems like a great way to sell more soda. This study has been out since 2004. Cane sugar (glucose) and corn syrup (fructose) really are metabolized differently, and the Coke corporation is nuts for lying to us. Further more HFCS drinks not only have lots of calories but also may increase the number of calories you crave vs. just the extra calories in a cane sugar soda. Sounds like a great class action suit. I mean, they have read that study and know that the increased obesity rate coincides with the change from real sugar to HFCS

I am going to avoid the Diet Coke/ Coke/ no Coke debate for now, but just say that Coke with real sugar is availabe in the United States directly as well (sans import). Around Passover Kosher stores all over the country will have it because corn syrup is not Kosher for Passover for Ashkenazic Jews. Instead, they make Kosher for Passover Coke which is essentially just Coke made with regular sugar. So for all of you that are committed to drinking Coke with sugar, you have another source.

Diet Coke Drinkers,

I've been reading the discussion on diet coke vs regular coke, and I find it all to be a moot point. The fact of the matter is that research has shown a strong correlation between the consumption of Aspartame, splenda, and other synthetic sugar substitutes, and cancer. Of course it is nearly impossible to prove causation, but the correlation is uncanny. (Just like the strong correlation between birth control pills and breast cancer.)

Personally, who cares if you are thin and have nice teeth if you're going to die at an early age?