Everyone's eating habits may vary, but they can agree on certain food pairings, such as eating fried chicken with Coke (of course, there are other pairings, such as the fried chicken with beer that became more popular a few years ago because of the TV series "You Who Came From the Stars"), using the refreshing carbonated beverage to neutralize the inevitable greasiness of fried chicken.
▲Image from: Taste Life
To make it even better for fried chicken lovers, Suntory (Suntory is responsible for Pepsi's production and sales in Japan) has launched a limited new product, "Pepsi for Fried Chicken", available in a 600ml version from June 14 for 140 yen (about $7).
▲ Image from: Hypebeast
Unlike common colas, this "Cola for Fried Chicken" is transparent in color, and has a reduced flavor and sweetness, with 0 calories and increased dietary fiber.
▲ Image from: SUNTORY
The main reason for this adjustment to the recipe is to make it more "compatible" with fried chicken. The taste of the "Coke for Fried Chicken" is refreshing, highlighting the flavor of the fried chicken and making it less greasy to eat. 0 calories also slightly reduces the "guilt" of eating high-calorie fried chicken.
▲Image from: SUNTORY
In the pre-launch commercial, a taster with fried chicken tried the chicken with "Coke for Fried Chicken" and BIG "Raw" ZERO, another Pepsi product, and concluded that the two were indistinguishable from each other.
▲Image from: SUNTORY
In addition to the "fried chicken-only" model, it seems that there are many other colas with unique flavors in Japan. For example, the BIG "Raw" ZERO featured in this commercial is a mix of "raw cola spices" selected from dozens of spices, and is made without heating to maximize the fresh taste and texture of raw cola spices, making it feel like you're drinking draft beer.
▲ Image from: Gigazine
Not only that, but Pepsi has also launched cherry blossom flavors, cucumber flavors, Christmas Coke with strawberry aroma, and J-Cola Midnight's Blackcurrant flavor ...... in Japan, but they all seem to be mostly gimmicks over flavors.
▲ Image from: Pinterest
Coca-Cola, a "hard to beat" rival in the cola world, has innovated a lot in terms of flavors: cherry, vanilla, lime, strawberry, and a flavor that "stands out" just by its name, "Starlight" (Star River Walk).
▲Image from: Delish
Even not too long ago, Coca-Cola's Tmall flagship store launched an herbal tea product, 'Xia Ku Cao'. This herbal formula of traditional herbal tea is a product of Coca-Cola's 'Healthworks'.
▲Image from: Coca-Cola Tmall Flagship Store
Xia Ku Cao is an herb commonly used in herbal teas, and judging from the recipe, this drink from Coca-Cola is a very common herbal tea, but it is sold at a discounted price of $297 for 24 bottles, which is about $12.40 per bottle. Not a great value for money for an herbal tea drink.
Although Coke is a commodity that has been carried on for hundreds of years, it seems to have been 'begging for change'. Whether it's the variety of special flavors or the introduction of different types of drinks, both Coke brands are trying to appeal to a wider range of consumers. Consumers satisfy their curiosity, brands achieve their promotional goals, and each gets what they want.
▲Image from: SUNTORY
However, in the opinion of many consumers who will buy Coke, it should still be the original flavor that tastes best.