Are They Really Thinking Of Bringing Back Crystal Pepsi?
I was there in 1993. The original Crystal Pepsi has touched my lips, and like a lot of Americans, I found the experience weird. Up to that point we had been conditioned to expect clear cola to taste like lemon lime or seltzer water. This didn’t taste like either, nor did it taste much like Pepsi. A new flavor might’ve been fine if it was delicious, but that wasn’t the case either. My parents had similar feelings and only bought one bottle.
Since then, Crystal Pepsi has only grown as a legend from those who miss it and those who are too young to have tried it. There are popular personalities on YouTube who are known for their zest for Crystal Pepsi, enough to buy long-expired unopened bottles on eBay and down them for ad revenue. Brad Jones, known by his Internet personality The Cinema Snob, is the most notable one:
http://blip.tv/play/hJFxger4ewI.x?p=1
Kevin Strahle, who goes by the handle LA Beast, is another YouTube Crystal Pepsi fanatic, but unlike Brad, he wrote to Pepsi and actually got a response, and unlike previous responses others have gotten, this was NOT a form letter response dismissing the request.
This hints that Pepsi is seriously considering making Crystal Pepsi again, if only for a limited time. They may have been convinced to take this kind of chance due to the success of their Throwback line of sodas that use the original Pepsi and Mountain Dew recipes….though they still haven’t figured out that line is selling because high fructose corn syrup is the Boogeyman now. Real sugar was once the Boogeyman, so they took it out for corn syrup, and now society has flip-flopped.
There is a legitimate reason to drink invisible cola. The coloring in regular Pepsi isn’t entirely good for you, and taking it out does reduce the fat and sugar content. They weren’t lying about the health benefits, but the original ad campaign botched that message. If they can manage to demonize food coloring and make it the new corn syrup, Crystal Pepsi will have its market.
Don’t bother telling Brad Jones about this letter. I’m sure he’s already been notified about 5,000 times.