By Jae-Ha Kim
Chicago Sun-Times
May 15, 2002
Vanilla gets a bad rap. Vanilla ice cream is dismissed as bland. Boring celebrities are put down as vanilla. And let’s not even get into Vanilla Ice.
But Coca-Cola hopes to boost the hip factor of the much maligned flavor with its latest soft drink, Vanilla Coke, which debuts today at stores nationwide.
“Vanilla is a very compatible flavor for Coke,” said Monique Acevedo, Coca-Cola’s senior brand manager. “Older people may remember the taste. In the early 1900s, they could go to their favorite drugstore soda fountain and order a Coke with a shot of vanilla in it. We thought, ‘Wouldn’t it be great to bring this flavor to a new generation?’ ”
Experts agree the timing is right for vanilla to make its mass market entrance.
“It makes a lot of sense for Coca-Cola–which already has a hint of vanilla in it–to introduce a greater vanilla flavor,” said Dr. Alan Hirsch, neurological director for the Smell and Taste Treatment and Research Foundation. “People have been consuming sweeter and sweeter drinks. Vanilla also has been a popular flavor in Mexico for a long time, and our population has a greater Hispanic influence than ever before.”
Industry analysts predict Vanilla Coke could be just the drink to rejuvenate U.S. soda sales.
“Over the past four or five years, carbonated soft drink [market] growth in the United States has slowed down dramatically,” said John Sicher, editor of Beverage Digest. “Part of the reason is a lack of new products. Vanilla Coke is a very good idea. Young American consumers like experimenting with new products, and vanilla will add excitement to Coca-Cola’s trademark lineup.”
“It tastes like flat Coke with too much syrup. I don’t like it at all.”
–Amy Svendberg, general manager at Atwood Cafe
“Four of us tasted it and thought it was too sweet. It tasted more like root beer than a vanilla-enhanced drink. It needs a higher level of vanilla. If they carbonated it more, it would be a very successful drink.”
–Dr. Alan Hirsch, Smell and Taste Treatment and Research Foundation
“It was refreshing and very vanilla-y. It doesn’t have a lot of carbonation, which I like.”
–Tracey Alexander, Loop concierge
“It reminded me a lot of cream soda, only not as sweet. It had the Coke flavor that I like with the vanilla flavor. I wouldn’t drink it every day like I do with regular Coke, but I would probably buy it every once in a while.”
–Nicole Gran, 32, account executive
“I don’t really care for a lot of vanilla, but it had just a subtle taste. It was different and I liked it.”
Gretchen Drury, 30, account executive
“I was afraid it was going to have a cloying vanilla aftertaste. It’s very agreeable to the palate. It has a very fresh flavor. It’s smooth–not quite like a merlot. But if you’re not going to drink wine with pizza, it’s the next best thing.”
–Pat Bruno, Sun-Times restaurant critic
