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Will Soda Lovers Drink To Less Sugar In The Can?

Dry Soda, Q Drinks and Spindrift are a few of the sodas we tried.


Who's a member of the Pepsi Generation? Anyone?



But soda makers aren't giving up. They think mid-calorie soft drinks are a trend waiting to happen — that's the classification for soft drinks with roughly 60 to 100 calories in a 12-ounce serving, and four to six teaspoons of sugar. The same serving of a regular soda has 140 to 150 calories and 11 or so teaspoons of sugar or high-fructose corn syrup.


Pepsi and Dr. Pepper are also testing new formulas for mid-calorie sodas. Like Coke, they're cutting sugar and adding stevia, perhaps because it's not linked to health concerns. Health advocates agree: "We wanted more testing but it's probably safe," says Michael Jacobson, executive director of the Center for Science in the Public Interest.

Stevia does have a distinct aftertaste – some would call it bitter or metallic. The soda makers all claim to have figured out ways to fight it.

But there's more than one way to make a mid-cal soda. Small artisan soda makers believe you can cut the sugar and still create a taste sensation. They're betting that some Americans will prefer a subtler soft drink — and unconventional favors. Cucumber or juniper berry soda, anyone?

Dry Soda owes its birth to Sharelle Klaus's pregnancies. She gave up wine but still wanted a "unique flavor" beverage to pair with food. She experimented in her kitchen at first. It took over 1,000 tests to perfect lavender, rhubarb and other offbeat sodas.


Don't add ice, Klaus advises. "They were developed to drink out of a champagne flute." In fact, the name Dry Soda is an homage to dry wines.



Spindrift spent three years perfecting its sodas, which typically have fruit flavors like blackberry and mango orange. The goal is "to be as true to the actual fruit as possible" says a spokeswoman. There's even pulp in some. Spindrift also has a line of seltzers, with calories run from ten to zero: It's just carbonated water with fruit juice.

And there's also a start-up company, Veri Soda, that's trying the sugar-stevia blend.

Market share is so small that no one is tracking these small fries, but they all report that sales are increasing. And that's something considering the price: around $1.50 a bottle.

"They're pretty small, but more power to 'em," says Jacobson of CSPI. If you want a soda, he figures, fewer teaspoons of sugar is a good thing.

But what do these new breed sodas taste like?

We arranged a taste test. Coke, Pepsi and Dr. Pepper could not provide samples of their new mid-calorie lines, so Veri Soda represented the sugar-plus-stevia category.


"Cucumber tastes like body wash."

"Juniper berry is like a weak version of Scope."

"Veri Cola is like weak beer with sugar."

Then there were the back-handed compliments: "Pear soda is nice enough. I don't regret drinking it."


One taster is eager to make Dark 'n' Stormy's enhanced by the "good kick" of Q ginger ale.


Veri Soda's sugar-stevia blend also won over taste buds. One person is ready to switch from mainstream cola to the Veri Soda version. Sure there's an aftertaste, she said, but she didn't mind that much. Another said Veri Soda's orange had "that orange creamsicle taste," giving it a slight edge over the also tasty orange from Q.


Will the public buy it? Sicher of Beverage Digest isn't sure: "Mid-cals in the U.S. historically have not worked well." RIP, Coke C2 and Pepsi Edge. He adds: "It's too early to tell whether [mid-calorie] products will be successful."

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