What is your favorite flavor of soda? Depending how much you’ve travelled in the world, it may be too soon to make a full appraisal. That’s because every country has its own regional variations on the fizzy drinks that you’ll find on the shelves. If all you know is Coca-Cola, Fanta, and Sprite, you’re missing out on a world of flavor. Cola, orange, and lemon are just the start. It’s amazing what soda manufacturers come up with when they’re given the opportunity to experiment!
In Chile, for example you can find an exotic papaya-themed soda named Pap. It’s made by the same company that make Bilz, a sparkling red drink that tastes a bit like cherry but is mostly made from artificial flavoring – kind of like drinking liquid jello. Still, on a hot day, sometimes you need a cold sugar hit to keep you going!
In nearby Colombia, you can get a beer-like drink without the alcohol. Pony Malta is brewed from barley, hops, and water and has a dark, malty taste. Great after a hot day’s work when you still need to stay sober enough to drive home! Whoever would have thought it: beer soda?
But exotic fruits and flavors are not the reserve of South American countries. In France, you can get a bottle of Lorina Coconut Lime, which does exactly what it says on the label. It’s a luxury soda that sounds like it’s just waiting for some rum or vodka to be added. Still, we’re talking about soda here, not cocktails!
For truly unexpected soda flavors, you need to make your way to Asia. Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam all stock rather weird sounding bird’s nest flavored sodas. Actually, bird’s nest is a common ingredient in Asian cooking. You’ve probably heard of bird’s nest soup. Bird’s nest recipes are supposed to rejuvenate your health and even work as a beauty product. If you’ve eaten seaweed, you might have some idea what to expect from the flavor. Keko, the company that make Malaysia’s bird’s nest soda, also make Ginseng Chrysanthemum Tea and a herbal tea made of 10 different traditional herbs. So you can imagine that KEKO Bird’s Nest Drink is healthier than your average cola drink, be it South African King Cola, Venezuelan Frescolita, or Burmese Star Cola!
In addition to its bird’s nest soda, Vietnam can boast the wonderfully named Number One Active Lemon Salty, which is actually a sports drink. Tasting primarily of its special lemon salt, Number One Active contains 3 further mineral salts as well as essential minerals including sodium and potassium. A salty sports drink? Why not. The Number One company also produces a range of soya milk drinks, rich in vegetable protein and cholesterol-free. How does green bean flavor sound? Number One’s Zero Degrees Wintermelon Green Tea with Collagen may even make for a drinkable alternative to plastic surgery, such are the properties of its added proteins!
So let’s take a last look at some less wholesome-sounding sodas – because after all, you don’t drink soda to be healthy, but to get that tasty sugar hit. There are several chocolate-themed sodas around the world, including the United States’ own Faygo Chocolate Cream Pie, Coco Fizz, and Bedre Diet Chocolate Soda. Japan’s Suntory Chocolate Soda is a fizzy chocolate drink that contains no real chocolate and tastes like a whole new flavor of Jelly Belly. Apparently it tastes much better than Sapporo’s alcoholic chocolate beer, and maybe that’s just as well. Too much fun can be dangerous.
You can find a pretty good guide to the world of soda in this new infographic from Home To Go. Just pick out the flavor you’re missing, and book a ticket to the only country that serves it. Because what could be more important than soda?
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