Cherry Nasty (Diet Cherry Coke)

Member Name: ButterBear

Product:	Diet Cherry Coke
Date:	13/09/07 (69 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Low Sugar

Disadvantages: Tastes Foul!

I'm a big cola drinker certainly of the Coca Cola variety and their main rival who I shant name but everyone will know. Usally I stick the full sugar versions, as drinking the diet ones had made me ill during my pregnancies and habit made me stick to the more unhealthy versions, but i'm always up for trying new varieties which included the vanilla, lemon and lime verssions as well as the classic cherry coke. I'd never really liked cherry but my husband raved so much about the diet version that I gave in and gave it a try.

Diet Cherry Coke was actually released in 1985 but recently in 2005 had it's image revamped in an attempt to raise interest in the drink, now sporting the traditional silvery colours of Diet Coke the labelling has splashes of purple/red to symbolise the all important cherry aspect of the drink. It's availabilty seems limited and i've only been able to find it in the single serve bottle variety, Coca Colas website however does assure you that it is available in 2 litre bottles, cans and fridge packs(smaller boxes of cans perfect for keeping in the fridge)

Unfortunately in today's society it's frowned upon to eat or drink anything deemed unhealthy, my beloved full sugar cola drinks would see me a social outkast among the health concious of those out there, yet even so called "diet" drinks like Diet Cherry Coke, with their no sugar 1 calorie claim, will not escape the health food army because it still contains caffeine. Still I can't escape the lure of these drinks and will have to face the floods of "how can you drink that stuff, it's really bad for you"

So anyway to the drinking experience! Any form of cola is best drunk ice cold, it's at it's most refreshing that way, so it's rather handy that Superdrug (which is so far the only place i've found this) keeps thier drinks in a chiller cabinet. When opened the bottle greets you with a suitable escape of fizzy gas, there's nothing quite like the sound of opening a cold cola on a warm summers day, it's a sound full of the promise of total refreshment. Next comes the smell as the sweet but tangy aroma that is diet coke fills the air, you can vaguely smell a little something different, a richer more fruity smell that can only be the cherry. There's quite alot of fizz in this drink so watch it doesn't get up your nose!

The first taste of the drink to me is the traditional flavour of diet coke, not as rich as the full sugar variety and with the definite presence of sweeteners. The taste fills my mouth with the cherry flavour coming almost as a second wave of flavour. It's difficult to describe the taste, if you've ever tried a black cherry yoghurt the flavour is very similar to that, a deeper flavour than you expect from real cherries and somewhat warm, if a cool fizzy drink can feel warm! There's a real tang from this drink catching you at the back of the mouth, in my case at the back of my bottom teeth.

While my normal cola would leave me satisfied yet wanting more and feeling refreshed I found that the Diet Cherry Coke left my mouth feeling almost dry, like cotton wool lined my mouth, if you've ever had bad instant gravy you'll recognise the feeling of a fuzzy film lining the roof of your mouth. I actually found, which was rather unpleasant for my companions at the time, that this version of the cola actually made me more gassy than a regular cold cola would. Now it's just not easy, and certainly not nice, trying to be demure and feminine whilst burping like a trooper, it doesn't go a long way in impressing that cute guy (or girl) that you're trying to flirt with, luckily for me I'm already married so no need for me to worry about that, he just laughed at me and told me I was foul.

Like standard Diet Coke is less rich than full sugar coke, Diet Cherry is less sickly sweet and has a less full flavour than normal Cherry Coke. It is far easier to drink a full bottle of the diet version but even with the easier flavour I still find the drink unappealing, after a whole bottle I found there wasn't the level of refreshment I would have recieved from regular coke or another drink. I also found it hard to shift the strange fuzzy aftertaste of the cherry.

When it goes warm, which on a really hot summers day is quickly, this stuff tastes horrible, the fuzzyness previously mentioned increases and the drink is quick to go flat should you not drink it quick enough, something I was unfortunate enough to experience. Just imagine warm, flat cola and add the taste of gone off fruit! YUK

There are a few drinks in this world that I avoid Dr.Pepper is the main one quickly followed by Cherry Coke. I may have been convinced to try the diet version but wont be doing so again. Of course all of this is my opinion, everybodies drinking experience will be different and what I deem as warm and fuzzy other's will consider a delight to their taste buds. I wont be drinking it again but I wont tell you not to, after all you might actually like this, many people seem to. Certainly if you're a Dr.Pepper fan I think this will appeal to you.



Price-
Well I know you're going to think this a little pointless but as I've found this stuff hard to find I'm a bit limited in my pricing information. I got my bottle from Superdrug who were at the time doing 2 bottles for £1.09, thier special offers change all the time though and a regular bottle was 99p. Although having gone off to raid ASDA website I can tell you the 6 pack of cans is £2.45 and the fridge pack is £3.35 for 10 cans.







So overall i'm not a fan of this drink, the flavour is not to my liking and I don't find refreshment from it. It would make a nice change for someone who is watching their calories but is bored with the usual drinks on offer, if you're a regular Cherry Coke fan then give it a try you just might like it.

Summary: A thoroughly unpleasant drink, i'll stick to regular cola.