Does soda taste different in other countries?

32 comments

1. Yes.

2. The major soda brands basically license their product to local bottlers so you could arguably have differences within the same country.

   Some bottlers even within the US still use real sugar instead of high fructose corn syrup, or will produce it for certain occasions within Passover.

   Coke imported from Mexico (but nowadays mostly made for the US market rather than Mexico) still uses real sugar and is packaged in the classic glass bottles. It used to be harder to find but now is very easy to find.

   I’ve tried soda in Mexico, Spain, France and Italy and the major brands I don’t notice a notable taste difference. The major difference is more portion sizes and price. Mexico loves their Coke. It is cheap and plentiful. In most of Europe the small cans are relatively expensive compared to what you get, and soda fountains even in fast food aren’t as common.

   That said I am not a big soda person. For me its a very rare treat. I probably drink less than 12 sodas a year.

3. Yes, a lot of countries don’t allow the high amount of sugar in drinks that the US does, so that drastically alters the taste.

4. Soda can taste different even within the US. Fountain drinks use tap water and that can change the taste

5. Yes. Case in point, Coca Cola is better in Mexico and Central America. (At least in my limited experience).

6. It does if they use sugar instead of HFCS

7. Yeah but it still tastes like Coke.. very minor differences in tastes unless you’re putting them under a microscope (in which case, some may say the differences are major)

8. Diet Coke tastes very different to me in the UK. I think they might use a different sweetener.

9. The only soda I have tasted abroad was in Central America. I only noticed carbonation differences after coming home.

10. I can get either American coke or Mexican Coke in my local grocery store and the Mexican Coke tastes much better,

11. Mountain dew in Russia was….. different

12. Covid might have changed it but World of Coke in Atlanta used to have a tasting room where they had different sodas they served internationally. It’s been a while since I’ve gone but I think the biggest difference in “Coke” was Sugar Vs HFCS, the rest was just different flavors they don’t serve in the US

13. Yes

    But if you’re bringing back a soda from Europe, bring back fanta

14. My folks brought back Coca Cola from Jamaica with sugar instead of corn syrup and it’s a far better drink

15. The biggest one is European Fanta which uses actual fruit juice and sugar, ours uses HFCS and no juice. We have Orangina and also regionally there is Polar Orange Dry, and those taste more like European Fanta.

16. Yeah I’ve had American sodas before and they do taste slightly different but honestly it’s not really that noticeable. If you didn’t know then you probably wouldn’t notice

17. The first time I had Orange Fanta was in England and I really loved it. I was drinking it every day while I was there. I’d never had it in the US before, so when I got home I got some and it just wasn’t the same.

18. Yes. I had a coke at the airport in Paris. It took me a realize that they use real sugar in Europe, not HFCS.

19. The recipes for most sodas are adjusted for regional tastes.

20. They carry various flavors of Coke Zero in the Netherlands that are fun. Raspberry, Lemon and more.

    But otherwise, it’s the same.

21. I’ve never yet left the US, but I do know that Coke de Mexico uses real sugar instead of corn syrup.

22. Fanta in Europe tastes more like actual orange juice than the U.S. version.

23. When I visited Ireland, I noticed coke and pepsi tasted different, but also found Dr. Pepper there which I think they imported? and it tasted the same to me.

    Also, many ingredients used in some places aren’t allowed or readily available in others. Case in point, check out [Orange Fanta in the US vs the UK](https://www.reddit.com/r/mildlyinteresting/comments/tj7lyv/usa_fanta_vs_uk_fanta/?ref=share&ref_source=link)

24. YES. World of Coke is in my town because it was invented here by dr Pemberton. At the end of the tour U can taste coke sold all over the world and each area is different – BTW I find Israel’s coke disgusting.

25. Ugh, Britain has artificial sweetener in their Dr. Pepper. It’s a damn travesty.

26. Japan has a lot of exclusive flavors. They vary from being ok to crap. Peach Coke was awful. I literally poured out half of it on the ground.

27. They do, particularly Coca-Cola, which is known for having variations to its recipe in different regions. I’ve had Mexican, German, and Arabian Gulf region Coke, and all taste different than the American product. The German one was my least favorite, more bland and less effervescent than elsewhere.

28. I had a Canada Dry Ginger ale on a flight back from Sydney. It was nowhere near as sweet as it is in the US.

29. The coke museum in Atlanta actually has a room with fountains to dispense i would guess 100 different sodas from around the world.

30. Some countries use different sweeteners, and the flavor is often modified for different markets. If you’re a diehard American Coca-Cola lover, you might notice a difference… But if you’re like me and only drink Coke every once in a while, it’ll probably still taste like Coke.

    Japan has an [exclusive “Raw” Pepsi](https://www.google.com/amp/s/soranews24.com/2021/06/23/raw-pepsi-the-most-refreshing-flavor-ever-is-out-in-japan-but-how-does-it-taste%25E3%2580%2590taste-test%25E3%2580%2591/amp/) that still just tased like *Pepsi* to me, even when I tried them side-by-side 🤷‍♀️

31. Yes, mostly because of HFCS.

32. I feel like coke tasted better in Europe. It was also a shock to me how specific the labeling was in regards to chemicals found within the bottle. Took me back to chem class, man.