The manufacturer of Coca-Cola now has a new chief competitor after Dr Pepper knocked Pepsi down a peg in soft drink sales.
Are you a Pepper? A popular ad campaign from the 1970s and 1980s put that question to music in a catchy tune. Apparently, there are a lot of Peppers — fans of the soft drink Dr Pepper — these days. In fact, there are so many that Dr Pepper just surpassed Pepsi as the second-biggest soda brand in sales.
(And yes, the company abbreviates doctor but does not use a period.)
As for that song in question, it was part of an ad campaign that featured actor David Naughton. (You might recognize Naughton from the 1981 horror-comedy film An American Werewolf in London.)
Brace yourself: it might just get stuck in your head:
If you’ve never tried Dr Pepper, well, where have you been?
It’s hard to describe
Seriously, describing it is a little difficult. The ad carries these lyrics:
Us Peppers are an interesting breed.
An original taste is what we need.
Ask any Pepper and he’ll say…
Only Dr. Pepper tastes that way.
Dr Pepper definitely isn’t like other colas. It doesn’t taste like Coca-Cola or Pepsi. But it’s not root beer, either.
A pharmacist in Waco, Texas, developed the drink, which he first served around 1885. The American Food and Drug Administration has ruled that Dr Pepper is not a cola, nor a root beer, nor a fruit-flavored soft drink, according to Wikipedia. The FDA says that it’s in its own category: a “pepper soda.”
It predated Coca-Cola by a year and like both Coke and Pepsi, it was advertised as a healthy drink. Early ads claimed it could aid digestion and restore “vim, vigor, and vitality.”
It probably never did any of those things…but for its fans, it’s a source of enjoyment. That, in itself, should be enough.
But back to the point: How does one describe the taste? I found this description on AllRecipes:
It is very sweet, but also peppery. It has a hint of vanilla, but also a hint of citrus. It also has a slight nutty flavor. You may think caramel is added somehow.
That’s a little vague and detailed at the same time.
But Dr Pepper has a total of 23 flavors. AllRecipes lists the 23 that have been circulated. They range from amaretto to black licorice to ginger to rum.
I have to admit that the black licorice did pop into my head. But it’s been long enough since I’ve had one that I’m actually curious to taste one again to see if I really can detect that flavor.
Peppers everywhere
The trade publication Beverage Digest reported that Dr Pepper outsold Pepsi to become the number two soda brand in America in 2023. Here is the breakdown of market share that CNN reported:
- Coca-Cola: 19.2%
- Dr Pepper: 8.3%
- Pepsi: 8.3%
- Sprite: 8.1%
- Diet Coke: 7.8%
While both Dr Pepper and Pepsi appeared to tie at 8.3%, data apparently shows that Dr Pepper had slightly more than Pepsi.
Then there are the new varieties of the drink. They’ve introduced alternatives to the classic flavor with options that range from Strawberries & Cream to Creamy Coconut. I can’t say I would feel tempted to try any goofy combination like that.
But the diet version of the classic flavor might be worth a shot. If nothing else, it might be nice to relive the childhood memory.
What will be interesting is seeing how Pepsi responds now that the word is out about their new rival. And, for that matter, how many people will try Dr Pepper once they hear that it pushed Pepsi down a slot in sales.
I wonder how long the trend will continue…or whether it was a one-time fluke.
