Sunday, October 21, 2007

The Rundown

A brief overview of the sodas I have been drinking since giving up caffeine* last spring, in no particular order:

Caffeine Free Pepsi: Not bad, really. Tastes nearly identical to regular Pepsi, except for a slightly odd aftertaste that kind of sticks in one's mouth.

Caffeine Free Coke: Very similar to regular Coke. Goes well with Gummi Bears.

Squirt: Excellent soda. Unfortunate name. Has the added benefit of fewer grams of sugar compared to most of its soda counterparts, as well as a slightly tangy Grapefruit flavor.

7up: Produces the most BPCs (Burps Per Can) out of nearly any pop. Clean, refreshing taste.

Cherry 7up: Not bad, really, but it does get on my nerves after a little while. 7up has kind of an absence of flavor, whereas this is kind of sweet and cherry-ish, so it goes out of style quicker.

Sierra Mist: Very similar in taste to 7up, but a tad sweeter. Has a significantly lower BPC rating, so all things considered, best stick to 7up.

Cranberry Sierra Mist: Didn't know it existed either, did you? Odd. Give it a shot and you'll probably dig it.

A&W Root Beer: Highest BPC rating of any pop on the planet. Try drinking an entire can without letting one out, in under two minutes, and you will wish you hadn't. Best served with two large scoops of Vanilla ice cream.

A&W Cream Soda: Not caffeine free. Weird, eh? I didn't know it either.

Sunkist Cherry Limeade: The surprise of the bunch. It's very flavorful without being overly sugary (most fruity pops, like Orange or Grape, have tons, or perhaps I should say, grams, of sugar).

Caffeine Free Mountain Dew: The one that started it all, thanks to a suggestion from my big brother, that I almost entirely ignored, several years ago. It tastes kind of like a slightly salty version of its high-octane brother.

On an entirely unrelated note, if you have an interest in handmade Chain Maille, hop on over to my friend Joe's livejournal. He makes Chain Maille and has several good pieces up for sale)

*Every now and then I do have a caffeinated soda, but yeah, for all intents and purposes, I'm clean

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

so why give up caffeine, but not diabetes-inducing sugar? caffeine helps prevent parkinson's disease, but there is absolutely no benefit to drinking sugar. perhaps u picked the wrong battle.

Unknown said...

The battle originally picked was one against addiction: I got headaches if I did not have caffeine, and usually woke up tired and irritable in the morning. Giving up caffeine has made a tremendous difference in my daily attitude (well, in the mornings for sure) and I no longer need it to function without a headache. I still drink pop because I like the taste, but I offset it with nearly a gallon of pure ol' H2O every day.

Anonymous said...

i switched from fizzy drinks to juice... just as caloric, but a good move overall... and rarely caffeinated...

Anonymous said...

There's a Cheesecake Factory in the cities...I went with Bynthia once. If I remember correctly, it was kinda pricey, but our waiter was cute. :)

Chaviva Gordon-Bennett said...

I go through spurts of not drinking soda. When I was in high school I once gave it up for more than a year ... it was hard to start drinking it again. But mazel tov to alternatives.

I'm also trying to stop drinking so much coffee and focus on just tea. Oh the things we do :D

Anonymous said...

Here in my area of sunny Florida, we have 2 Cheesecake Factories. come on down and I'll take you there!