Yeah, you heard me… Coke Zero. It’s even got a trademark TM attached to it. It’s a real product.
Seems that Coke has figured out how to replicate the taste of original Coke without any calories. Sound a lot like Diet Coke or Tab? It should, because both of those have no calories and both products were originally marketed as “the taste of Coke with no calories” – the problem with that is that neither of them tasted like Coke. Diet Coke tasted like… well… Diet Coke and Tab tasted like a mistake.
I’ve been drinking Diet Coke for years now… it started after a vacation week while out of town with only DC to drink along (a quick look at the caloric content of the regular version didn’t help either) – and since then regular Coke has tasted extremely sweet and undrinkable, so I can’t say that it’s my first choice for soda… but I remember what it tastes like. And Coke Zero tastes just like it. Honest. It’s sorta scary, actually.
Of course, now the Coca-Cola Company will have to market this against Diet Coke – not to mention the PepsiCo line – and convince us all that “we were wrong the first two times, but this time we really mean it!” or something… should be interesting.
I’m intrigued. Where did you find Coke Zero? Or is it generally available in the grocery stores now?
I don’t know how wide spread it is, but the old QFC and Fred Meyer in Redmond had it… both of them being Kroger stores, it might still be a test market thing. QFC had singles in the cooler and a few 2-liter bottles; Fred Meyer had a 12-pack of cans and nothing else.
I remember that when they launched Vanilla Coke that there was a huge “kick off” for it – at least in CT, which is where they first launched it – or at least an official “kick off date”. Hadn’t heard a thing about this one, tho, so I was confused :)
I must concur with everything you said. I drink diet coke, which tastes nothing like coke yet I don’t drink coke because it’s too sweet and contains countless unnecessary calories. Then I stumbled upon coke zero; bought it assuming it was the new name for ‘diet coke’, took a drink and immediately remembered/realized this is what real coke tastes like.
I bought it at a Portland Fred Meyers, but I don’t think every Fred Meyers carries it….
Obviously Coca Cola learned from “New Coke” not to go full-on into a new product without testing it out first….
I love the new coke zero. It is amazing. No calories! I think this product is really going to take off.
HI:
I live in Des Moines, Iowa. We have had Coca COla Zero for about 2 weeks but only available in 20 oz bottles. You are correct this stuff tastes exactly like Coca Cola Classic. I do remember what Coca Cola Classic tastes like because up untill 2 weeks ago I have been drinking it regularly. Since I had a taste of Coca Cola Zero I have been drinking nothing but it.
I am anxious to see what the 12 oz cans taste like. I always preferred my Coke Classic form a can. It seemed like it always had the most bite to it. Which is why I really love Coke. I am hopeing that Coca COla Zero in a can will have that same little extra bite. That would make it even better.
I decided to start drinking diet coke a few months back, now I am totally used to it. I can’t stand regular soda..at least pepsi. It is too damn sweet.
I found this Coke Zero crap…and tried it…it tastes EXACTLY like regular coke. I could get used to this stuff. I wish that they had figured out how to make it years ago. If enough of the public likes it…new diet drinkers will flock to this one, if they don’t like that diet taste. But I think diet lovers…will stick to their old poison.
I found Coke Zero at deli in Chicago last week.
This tastes remarkably close to regular Coke. But I have a feeling Coke had developed this a long time ago, and is being forced to release this now…
After Diet Coke was launched, Coke essentially created two markets – one that stuck with regular, and another that beared the taste of the diet product. I never understood why people drank Diet Coke other than the fact it has no calories, sugar, etc.
Other Diet products (Diet Pepsi, Diet Rite) have actually improved their taste (due to Splenda)…as much as I’m sure Coke would love to continue feeding two taste markets, Coke was liekly forced to roll Coke Zero out to stop people from ditching Diet Coke for the better tasting Diet Pepsi.
My 2 cents
LOVE IT! I HOPE IT STAYS!!!
I have tried 6 20 oz bottles of Coke Zero. Not too impressed. It’s “ok”, but not the same taste as regular Coke. They should have went with Splenda with this and it would have been great. I will stick to the new Diet Coke with Splenda.
They did go with Splenda for Coke Zero…
Tried it today and it tastes like Tab which Coke made in the 1960’s
Um. Was the last time you’ve had Tab 1970? Cuz like, I think you forgot what Tab tastes like.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coke_Zero
This explains the differances between Zero and Diet Coke.
WHAT a freakin mess Coca-cola has made of the their product line… jeesh.
Hi, I am a blind guy who’s just a guest to this forum. Anyway, I tried Coke Zero, and I think it tastes like what regular Coke used to taste like before they switched from sugar to corn syrup. I wasn’t born before the switch, but I could still get the cane sugar stuff outside the United States. Now I can get that taste without searching in mexican delis or waiting for Passover and stock up on the Kosher Coke, which uses real sugar. If you think Coke Zero smells like burned sugar, it’s because that’s what Coke is supposed to smell like; we’ve been drinking this corn syrup stuff for way too long that we’ve forgotten that cinnamon nutmeg spice that Coke had before 1980. Oh yeah, Coke Zero was marketed in Europe under the name Coca-Cola Light; I could have gotten a Coke Zero a decade ago in Europe.
Zero is the best name for this new Coke. It is an absolute zero! Flat taste and not impressed. Will stick with the diet coke.
You’re absolutely right. Zero has a flatter taste than Coke Classic, but Coke with cane sugar also has a flatter taste than Coke Classic. Try a Coke Zero from a plastic bottle; it’s got tons of cinnamon and nutmeg. Cans screw up the flavor a little too much for my liking. I have to eat some pasta or something to get the cinnamon taste out of the can.
When I mean flatter, I don’t mean less flavorful; I mean less sweet. The corn syrup Coke Classic tastes too sweet for me so I stick with Coke Zero or imported sugar Coke.
I dont know why it took so long for this to happen. While Coke sat on its butt with a 20+ year old formula, Pepsi kept improving the taste of thier diet sodas and stealing thier drinkers.
Coke Zero tastes and has the same “feel” in your mouth as Coke Classic does. It’s not perfect but it’s the best tasting diet cola I have tasted in my 40+ years of drinking sodas. If Coke.co was smart they’d switch all thier diet sodas to the Zero formula and leave the old formula behind.
I dont know why people love the nasty taste of Diet Coke – I guess for the same reason we have crack addicts in this country.
Possibly. I maintain that DC kills off the tollerance for the sweet tasting colas. In fact, Diet Pepsi is too sweet, in my opinion.
As to whether it’s as addicting as crack, that’s open for speculation.
Live in Des Moines, Iowa. Coke Zero is the best taste of the three diets(DC, DP, and CZ). Tastes just like regular coke, in fact I prefer it over regular coke. DC just doesn’t taste right, DP is pretty good, but CZ is the closest thing to regular-sweetened pop I have ever drank. Unfortunatly the local stores have stopped selling it in 2-liter bottles and switched to 12-packs. I hope this doesn’t spell the end for CZ, because for the time we’ve had it, its become part of my lifestyle :( . Anyways, 99% of the people I know who have tried it say it beats DP/DC flat-out, I don’t know how anyone could seriously like DC.
Simply put, try it. You’ll love it. If you don’t like it from a can, try it from a bottle or cup.
Personally, I think that if you prefer DC over DP, then you’ll probably hate CZ because of its origional coke-like taste. Diet Coke is one of the worst tasting pops there is, in fact, i’d rather drink DMD than it. Most DP fans will love CZ though.
I’ve never liked diet sodas in the past. I’ve been a Classic Coke drinker for years. And I’ve always hated the taste of Diet Coke. Last week I started a diet and I had to give up my Classic Coke. I just bought and tried Coke Zero and I am VERY happy with the taste. I can’t say it tastes exactly like Classic Coke as others mention above, but it’s an easy transition if you like the taste Classic Coke. I hope that Coke Zero stays around forever! It’s a real winner.
Love is two people sipping Coca Cola from the same straw on a warm sunny day.
TAB is still available in grocery stores. If you think all diet sodas taste ok, buy a can of TAB. It is way beyond horrible.
As an avid (2 – 3 liters/day) Coca Cola drinker, I can say that Coke Zero is the best thing that’s ever happened to me. Coke Classic is the best, but as I get older I can’t tolerate the calories any more. I can stomache Diet Coke, but the aftertaste still gets to me even after 20+ years. Diet Coke with Splenda–forget it, tastes weird. Coke Zero doesn’t have the nasty aftertaste and almost tastes as “thick” as regular Coke Classic. Want some now…
If this is a real message board, then my apologies, but… i suspect that this board is a total marketing gimmick. Look at all these people going on and on and on and on about how GREAT coke zero is. Seems like a marketing ploy that Coke itself has come up with.
It’s more of a blog than a message board. The fact that people leave comments is a bonus. Like on the iTunes posts – a lot of readers have left comments for trouble shooting problems, but I’m in no way, shape, or form connected to Apple. Aside from owning two iPods and a Mac mini myself, that is.
Maybe that many people just like Coke Zero? I mean, if it’s a viral campaign for Coke, I’ve yet to get my check for running it! :)
Coke zero = fantastic
I have been waiting sooooo long for coke to come up with a diet drink that tasted like the real thing. I have been going on and on about coke zero to all of my friends.
When I thought they were not selling it in the larger bottles, I would give out tiny amounts to my friends to show them how great it was, I was being stingy, lol. I must admit one friend did not like it, but she does not like coke either. Another friend did not think it tasted like the real thing, only to find out that he has not tasted coke for many many years, he admits it is way better than diet coke. I feel like I am being sinful when I drink it. Last but not least, I do not work for coke, but I do wish I could pick up a few shares of stock
I live in Ames, IA and have been drinking Coke Zero for a few months now and love it. However, I have looked for it several different places over the past week, including Target, Hy-Vee (local grocery store), and the convenient stores. I cannot find it anymore and am wondering where it has gone!! On the Coke webpage it states that Coke Zero will be coming in June. I’m wondering if that means we were a test market, and now we have to wait for the big rollout this summer? Any thoughts?
And no, I don’t work for Coke, just a big fan of their products.
I think regular coke has been changed – in some places you can get one that tastes like it should, but almost everywhere it tastes all wrong – it is sweet and dull when it used to be sharp and have that “bite” – I would love to know what happened to the real thing….
If you think Coke zero tastes anything like regualar Coke then you have no idea what regular Coke tastes like. Someone who drinks Diet Coke and tries Coke zero and then claims its just like regular has no basis for comparison. Coke zero is horrible and will never make it. You heard it here first folks.
Coke Zero tastes perfect if you are not a “bitter taster”. If you have the gene for tasting bitter then it tastes bad.
As a pre-diabetic, I found Coke Zero to be a godsend. It tastes exactly the same as Coke Classic to me when cold (too sweet when room temp).
Coke Zero is Coke Classic formula with artificial sweeteners. Diet Coke is “New Coke” with artificial sweeteners.
It uses Aspartame- which like Splenda- has some really nasty side effects for a small portion of the population (basically, if you are an absorber, it’s bad- if you don’t absorb it and it passes through you- then no problem.).
I am going to be looking into “ZCola” soon- it is sweetened with a natural sweetener called Stevia.
In the mean time- with caveats about the aspartame and bitter tasters, Coke Zero is wonderful.
Id rather drink my grandmothers festering bed sores through a straw than to drink this shit!
Then be sure to chew the chunks before swallowing.
I don’t like it, I think it has a weird aftertaste which is why i don’t drink diet pepsi. Unfortunately my store is now carrying only diet coke zero.
I was forced to give up my beloved coke, due to a diabetes diagnosis. Tried Diet Coke….YUK! A friend suggested Coke Zero…just awesome! A little too sweet for my taste. I “cut” it with about 20% club soda, and defy ANYONE to distinguish it from Classic Coke in a blindfold test. It’s so fashionable to be diet-conscious today (I personally never gave a damn) but Coca Cola would be wise to start HEAVILY promoting this stuff….they’d wipe Pepsi off the map!!!
This is a true breakthrough. I’ve been a diet cola drinker for most of my adult life and I will readily admit it’s only because I can’t stand the syrupy sweetness of the regular stuff. But – that said – I’m not about to sit here and pretend regular Coke doesn’t taste better than DC. If you claim to like DC better you should go to the doctor and get your taste buds realigned because that stuff was not intended to taste like the battery acid foulness it truly is. The only drawback to CZ is that my friends still don’t respect me for drinking anything other than real, manly Coca-Cola. But… I say F#!K those naysayers! Raise your CZ high and let thy can runneth over!!!
As a UKer we just got hold of the stuff over here.
much nicer then diet coke. not as nice as the normal stuff (i drink 4 cans a day) i would like to convert but i really dont think i can the inital is ok not great but its the nasty after taste like th diet coke only not as bad.
what i want to see is a coke 1/2 (half) 1/2 sugar, and 1/2 sweetners. that should keep my dentist happy
A Coke worker here in the UK.
Trust me, this one is MASSIVE already judging by initial sales. I think it tastes a lot better that Diet Coke but not quite the Real Thing.
My concern is that it will just dilute our sales of Coke and Diet but the powers that be are convinced that this will attract new consumers, literally the third Coke. I guess I am one of the new consumers, I don’t like Diet Coke, love Coke but too much sugar to drink it that often. Zero is definately pallatable and I will be drinking lots of it.
Audio – we did consider ‘C2’ a half and half product but they thought the taste of Zero was good enough not to put any sugar in it.
I’m sorry, but everyone on this board who says Coke Zero tastes like regular Coke is dead wrong. Coke Zero tastes like dumping a packet of Splenda into your mouth and nothing more.
Coke “Zero” tastes like flat regular Coke. PERIOD. Those on this discussion board who have waxed poetically about the virtues of Coke Zero are most likely affiliated with the Coca Cola Company.
Coke Zero is horrible – way too “cinnamony”, and not AT ALL like classic Coke. So easy to tell the difference. Diet Coke is fine.