Do dreams have a taste? Dreams are abysses in the mind that may contain memories and the subconscious, or they may be incoherent and meaningless, and Freud did his best to elucidate the strangeness and ambiguity that dreams hide, but he didn't say what they taste like either.
Coca-Cola offers an answer.
The flavor of dreams is "Dreamworld".
What a dream tastes like, drink it and see
Dreamworld is the fourth product from Coca-Cola Creations, Coca-Cola's creative platform, and is expected to be available in the U.S. and Canada for a limited time on August 15.
Dreamworld's flavors are based on elusive concepts rather than food, which is perhaps exactly what Coca-Cola intended -
"Bottling up the style and subliminal surrealism of Special Arts Technicolor, savoring the magic of everyday moments and dreaming with your eyes open."
It seemed to say something, and it seemed to say nothing at all.
However, Dreamworld is destined to come in 2 flavors and only 2 flavors, one with sugar and the other with aspartame. The moment you drink Dreamworld, you'll know that Coca-Cola has decided what dreams taste like.
Try the zero-sugar version of Dreamworld ahead of time according to reporter Katie Teague, which tastes like fruit-flavored candy with a more pronounced citrus flavor, and like Coca-Cola with rainbow sugar.
Journalist Marvo got a sneak preview of the regular Dreamworld version. In his opinion, it's a tropical fruit-flavored cola, with mango The mango flavor is the most prominent, with some orange and papaya flavors as well.
He even literally had the feeling of a dream: "Maybe you can imagine yourself sitting on the beach, basking in the sun getting your vitamin D and watching the waves gently lap the sand."
Echoing the taste of dreams, Dreamworld's bright blue packaging and background artwork features disco balls, floating cubes and ladders to multi-dimensional worlds, presenting a dreamlike landscape somewhat similar to the psychedelic art installations at Coachella.
To engage with Generation Z, Coca-Cola plans to launch a series of immersive digital experiences.
Partnered with electronic music festival brand Tomorrowland to create an AR music experience that can be accessed by scanning a QR code on a bottle; collaborated with digital fashion brands like DRESSX to design virtual clothing; and launched a Dreamworld-themed Snapchat AR special effects lens ......
▲ AR Music Experience Trailer. Image via: Coca-Cola® Creations Hub
And in the real world, Dreamworld will be running events on certain college campuses and appearing on the iconic Coca-Cola billboard in Times Square to appeal to a wider audience of young people.
Coca-Cola says Dreamworld is the fourth and final release of the Lechon No Boundaries platform in 2022 .
From February to August 2022, Coca-Cola brainstormed a succession of new limited-edition products because of Lets Create No Boundaries.
What Lechuang Wujie wants to do is to give a new look to the 130-year-old Coca-Cola through limited product launches, immersive interactive experiences and cultural creativity that fits the younger generation.
In other words, all products and experiences in the past and future will be limited, with a sense of 'one phase, one time'.
No flavor Coca-Cola dare define
In February this year, Coca-Cola officially announced Lechon Unlimited and launched the platform first product "Starwalk " (Starlight) in parallel. As you can see, it is inspired by space.
More than 30 years ago, Coca-Cola partnered with NASA and was one of the first soft drink brands to go into space. In 1985, astronauts sipped Coca-Cola in a special space can.
▲ Space Tank. Image from: airandspace
Coca-Cola has decided to recapture that connection with the Star Walk. Oana Vlad, Coca-Cola's Senior Director of Global Strategy, says there's no better way to do this than to "pay homage to the past so we can move into the future".
The outer packaging of Star Walk is a gradient color with stars scattered across it, creating a nebulous feel that constantly changes in the sunlight, complementing the slightly red liquid.
▲ Star River Walk Ingredients List.
Coca-Cola claims that Star River Walk "has a subtle coolness to it", but personally I feel it is an easily cloying plum flavour, not as good as the original, and there are opinions that it is "cranberry" or "cherry with raspberry".
Similar to Dreamworld, Coca-Cola has designed a digital experience for the Star Walk.
Scanning the Star Walk bottle, amidst red liquid and fading lights, pop singer Ava Max will present an AR performance of her three hit singles, including "Sweet but Psycho", her figurative interpretation of "Star Walk" - sweet and crazy.
Lechon Infinity also designed Instagram and Snapchat filters for the Star Walk, as well as AMSR for 'intracranial orgasms'.
▲ Star River Walk AMSR.
And in the real world, Coca-Cola has partnered with streetwear brand Staple, among others, to bring the Star Walk into everyday life.
In April, Lotron Infinity launched its second product, "Rhythm Cube " (Zero Sugar Byte) Coke Zero. This is the first time Coca-Cola has created a creative flavor with a meta-universe theme, reconstructing the classic logo with pixel squares that are said to have a "pixelated taste".
Once again, Coca-Cola whets the appetite and creates an elusive atmosphere. But the moment it enters the mouth is also the moment to dispel the charm, as the "pixel flavor" turns out to be "cherry and plum," "blueberry and lychee," "sugary version of cherry flavor," and even close to "ten bibs in water.
Just as pixels drive digital connections, 'Rhythm Cube' brings people together to share great moments. Its series of digital experiences are in the context of such a proposition.
In the game Fortnite, Coca-Cola and the gaming organization PWR have created an island, Pixel Point, where players can participate in four sensory-engaging mini-games on the themes of Castle, Escape, Race and Tower. Players can participate in four sensory-engaging multiplayer minigames, with themes such as Castle, Escape, Race and Tower, all of which require teamwork and the practice of 'connection'.
The packaging itself is also a gateway between the digital and physical worlds. Players can scan the bottle to enter the AR game and use their fingers to guide the 'isolated' Bytes to 'jump' up the spiral staircase and help them return to the Coca-Cola logo.
On June 30, Roca Creation Unlimited launched the third product Marshmello's, a co-branded flavor with acclaimed DJ and Grammy-nominated artist Marshmello, and the first co-branding for Roca Creation Unlimited.
Prior to the product's release, the internet played with harmonics and speculated that the joint was Marshmallow (marshmallow) flavored. It's actually Watermelon Strawberry, which is much more figurative than Spacey or Pixel, but is also a surprising combination of flavors.
Marshmello is always shown with a black and white helmet, which Coca-Cola used as inspiration to redesign the Coke can: the slim white bottle not only has a helmet, but also the Coca-Cola lettering recreated in Marshmello style.
What's the digital experience of this co-branded product, as per what Lechon Unlimited has been used to?
Players can participate in live gaming adventures on Twitch, gain exclusive access to virtual items designed by face pinching app Zepeto, or scan the QR code on the can to access the Coca-Cola Creations website where they can make unique digital artwork while listening to Marshmello's new song "Numb".
From Star Walk and Rhythm Cube to co-branding with artists and dream-inspired, Lechon Infinity creates individual limited and overall continuous creative tastes and brings corresponding designs and experiences in the physical and digital world.
Taste has an end, but creativity has no end
With limited products, limited-time experiences and unlimited creativity, how does Lechon Unlimited know how to play so well?
If Coca-Cola had just announced a new limited-edition flavor and pointed to it and said it was 'plum' or 'tropical fruit', people wouldn't have been overly concerned about it.
In contrast, Coca-Cola says a mediocre bottle of drink actually tastes like space, pixels, dreams, and you always want to try it - it sounds outrageous, right, but the cost of trial and error is not high, so why not buy and drink it?
Good at using the concept to give the flavor mystery, so that Lechon Boundless wins half a step from the start. Meta-universe, dream world, space, all not easily explained, Coca-Cola is framed by a specific flavor. As long as it is unexpected enough before opening the cap, it achieves the desired effect.
As Alessandra Cascino, Program Director of Coca-Cola's North American Operations, puts it.
Lets create something unexpected to play with, which will undoubtedly spark consumer interest and debate ...... We welcome this.
Besides, the concept Coca-Cola is playing with is hot in its own right, with themes such as space, meta-universe, and dreamscapes common in the film, music, gaming, and fashion industries.
For example, Coca-Cola has made China one of its key markets for Lechon No Boundaries, collaborating across borders with IPs from different young trend circles in the country. Star River Walk and Bubble Mart launched limited edition hipster games, and Tangerine Duo launched themed makeup; Rhythm Cube brought in virtual warrior girl Ren Ziya to endorse it, in line with the meta-universe concept.
So, Lechuang Wujie is actually following the trend of young culture, centering around the interest centers and cultural trends of the Z generation, and resonating and connecting with a wide range of young consumers from mediums such as music, games and sports.
The limited-time, limited-edition approach is similar to the "Drop" model (https://hypebeast.com/zh/2022/7/does-drop-culture-really-suit-for-fashion-brand) that originated in Streetwear culture, where the novelty of limited editions and the urgency of The novelty of limited editions and the urgency of "first come, first served" keeps the brand fresh and surprising to consumers.
Culture-driven is the inside, immersive digital experiences are the outside.
AR, AMSR, social media, online gaming ...... Lets Create No Boundaries engages consumers in a variety of ways, portraying itself as "a young, tech-savvy brand". Josh Schwarber, Senior Director of Digital Design at Coca-Cola, said.
Lets Create Without Borders gives us permission to 'play'. The product will always be front and center, and in the meantime we are building multi-sensory stories and immersive experiences around each of these creations.
Real Magic, born out of Coca-Cola's new brand concept 'Real Magic' launched in September 2021: the world is now highly connected yet divided, when people embrace conflict and confrontation and celebrate inclusivity, real magic happens and it is more important than ever that everyday life is not mundane.
Manolo Arroyo, Coca-Cola's global chief marketing officer, noted that "Real Magic" is more than just an advertising phrase, it will be the North Star of advertising and the overall brand.
LeCreative Boundless straddles the physical and virtual worlds, focusing on pop culture and trends of the times, keenly grasping the high points of youth trends, and finding ways to interact with consumers, which is also a kind of connection in essence. If Starwalk looks outward to the starry sea, Dreamworld looks inward to the infinite possibilities of the mind and pays tribute to the common ground of humanity.
While the idea of Lechon Infinity is not entirely unexpected, and there's the suspicion that the formula is repetitive, when you notice it, want to try it, and even start thinking 'what does a dream taste like', Coca-Cola has won.