I like to think that I try to eat and drink things which are tasty, but does Coke taste good? I ask this because I drink Diet Coke every day and few foods or drinks give me as much pleasure as my post-lunch fizzy fix. Does that pleasure come from the fact that I am a shaky Coke addict, or does it actually come from the taste of the Coke? If I compare Coke to another of my favourite canned drinks - San Pellegrino's lemonade - then Coke seems to lose out on all fronts: the lemonade is good because it really tastes of lemons and because it retains the sourness of lemons rather than masking that trait with sugar, it is rightly proud of the specifically Sicilian provenance of the lemons with which it is made, and it leaves you feeling rather more refreshed than would be the case with a can of Sprite or 7-up. The taste of Coke, on the other hand, is hard to identify. Just which vegetable extracts are included and why do they taste so good to me? Why, in mid-winter, is the idea of sitting outside at a Mediterranean cafe with a Coke fizzing away with ice and lemon so damn appealing? I don't want to sound as though I feel guilty about the fact that I love Diet Coke; perhaps its the mysteriousness of this romance which keeps it so strong...
1 comment:
I know exactly what you mean. I am a diet pepsi addict, currently on one can a day. However, I know that I can easily have 2, even 3 cans a day. But I force myself to stick to only having one, otherwise I will need to visit the dentist on a much more regular basis. I don't think it's the taste. It's just the combination of fizz, temperature, and thirst-quenching ability, that makes it so appealing. The taste is only a small part of the overall enjoyment.
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