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There are few things in this world that I know as well as I know soft drinks. I understand that different people have different tastes, so some people might disagree with what I say on here, but no one cares. This is my website.
My tastes have changed a lot over the years. For instance, I used to despise diet drinks. Now they're just about all I drink. I don't think I'll ever get to the point where I prefer diet drinks over regular ones, but the realities of getting older and trying to not get fatter kind of made the switch for me. I like Diet Coke, and I probably drink more of it than any other drink. But that's because it's the most common diet drink around. It takes absolutely nothing like Coke, and I would take a Diet Dr Pepper or a Diet Cherry Coke or a Cherry Coke Zero over it any day, but few restaurants have those. More and more are starting to, but still, most don't.
One thing that has definitely not changed is the fact that Pepsi is evil. Not just bad. Evil. Diet Pepsi is quite possibly the worst thing I've ever tasted, and Pepsi doesn't compare to Coke. Pepsi has never been satisfied with the fact that it will always be second to Coke, hence some of their ridiculous offerings over the years like Crystal Pepsi and Pepsi Blue (okay, I take it back, Diet Pepsi might not have been the worst drink ever). I don't even like AquaFina water, although that's probably just a mental thing. I did soften up a little bit in late high school/early college and start liking Mountain Dew. Yes, it's owned by Pepsi, but we'll just overlook that. They didn't invent it...they bought it later on.
Another interesting thing is the taste of packaged (cans or bottles) soft drinks vs. fountain drinks. They just don't taste the same, and I've always found that interesting because I think theoretically they should. For example, fountain Coke generally is a lot better than a can of Coke. Canned Diet Dr Pepper is better than the fountain variety. Diet Coke seems to be about the same to me either way. I don't really like Sprite that much, but the fountain is better.
Pepsi was never really meant to be consumed by humans (it was a science prank gone wrong), so this explains why Coke is in a lot more restaurants than Pepsi. I think I read that Coke has like 80% of the market share in restaurants, but then again I could be making that up and you'd never know. It definitely seems believable. The few restaurants that are stuck serving Pepsi instead of Coke (I think they lost a bet or something...I'm looking at you, Arby's in Gardendale) almost always have Dr Pepper as an alternative. The common belief is that this is because Pepsi often distributes Dr Pepper, but the real reason is because people would die of thirst in restaurants if Pepsi was their only choice, and then you have a lawsuit on your hands.
I'm pretty well torn on the Sprite/7 Up/Sierra Mist thing. I don't really like any of them. They all fall into that "I'll drink them if Pepsi is the only other choice" category, but you'll never see me choose one of those over a good drink. A lot of people seem to think that Sierra Mist is the best, but I can't really tell. I drank a lot of Sprite growing up, and maybe I just got sick of it or something.
Mr Pibb or Pibb Xtra or whatever you call it will never compare to Dr Pepper. End of story.
Mellow Yellow, which has always been the red-headed stepchild of the Coke offerings, can't touch Mountain Dew. Coke has tried to compete with Surge and now Vault. I can't say that I've ever actually seen someone drinking Vault.
Caffeine-free versions of colas are not good. I wish that they were, but they're just not. Then again, what exactly is the point of caffeine-free Mountain Dew? Doesn't that kind of defeat the purpose of Mountain Dew? I really wish Diet Mountain Dew were drinkable (all the caffeine, none of the calories), but sadly, I just couldn't make myself like it. I did try for a few weeks. When you sit in front of a computer in a small jail cell/cubicle for 8 hours a day, you need caffeine. I know it's not good for you, but trust me...programming and a lack of caffeine are a dangerous mix.
Certain drinks are better for certain meals or times of the day. Mountain Dew, for example, should NEVER be paired with a meal. It is to be drunk all by itself. The citrus flavor doesn't mix well with...well...anything. Colas are always your best bet with a meal. And yes, getting a Diet Coke to go with your Big Mac and large fries does seem a little silly, but hey...every calorie counts. Also, I am lobbying Congress to make it illegal to eat pizza with anything but a cola soft drink to go with it. I will not argue about this. There is no other way.
So, what's my favorite drink? The answer is that I can't say. There are too many different types. But if you break it down into sub-categories, my answers are:
Favorite Drink By Itself - Mountain Dew
Favorite Drink With Food - Dr Pepper
Favorite Diet Drink - three-way tie between Diet Dr Pepper, Diet Cherry Coke, and Cherry Coke Zero
Favorite Drink in Glass Bottles Or Those Cool Contoured Glasses - Coke
Favorite Drink Poured Over Orange or Pineapple Sherbet - Sprite
Favorite Drink To Serve Convicts in Prison - anything with Pepsi in the name
Okay, I'm done now.