Did all the soda brands get spring fever early this year? Coke just unveiled Coca-Cola Starlight, which is supposed to be “space-flavored,” though it tastes more like bubble gum. It’s the most unexpected innovation (right after Peeps Pepsi), so of course, I had to taste test it. Nitro Pepsi, PepsiCo's "most ambitious feat yet," is a nitrogen-infused cola aiming for a creamier, smoother taste than traditional carbonated sodas. Nitrogen, commonly used in beers like Guinness and coffee drinks like Starbucks' cold brews, creates a silky, foamy texture. But does this innovation redefine cola, or is it just another experiment?
The Nitro Infusion: How It Works
If you’ve had a Guinness, then you’re already familiar with the format Nitro Pepsi is shooting for here. There’s a widget in the bottom of each can, like some beer and cold brew coffee products have, that infuses nitrogen into the drink. It makes that foamy, creamy Guinness-style pour possible.
Initial Impressions: The Pour and the Aroma
Opening a Nitro Pepsi can is kind of fun. It pops open loudly, like a beer in a commercial after the foley artist has pumped up the volume. Pouring it is fun, too, as it does create a foamy head. The can directs that I chill it, then pour it “hard” into a glass, then “admire & enjoy.” That was one hell of a sound the can made - like rubbing two pieces of vinyl together, or hosing out your inner ear. The scent is the traditional Pepsi aroma. As with such beverages, you have to give it a moment to form a creamy head, and while this isn’t Guinness, it does have a nice layer of creamy foam on top. According to the can, this is nitrogen-infused for “smaller bubbles” and “smoother taste.” Certainly it looks smooth.
The Taste Test: Draft Cola vs. Vanilla Draft Cola
Nitro Pepsi comes in regular draft cola and vanilla draft cola flavors (no diet or cherry). I started with the Draft Cola flavor to get a baseline of what to expect. While taking my first sip, the most delightful layer of cola-flavored foam greeted me. First impression: like flat Pepsi. It definitely doesn’t have that harsh, “chemical” flavor that you get with Pepsi and a lot of other colas. Regular Nitro Pepsi is so smooth it almost coats your throat. It’s not as distinct as the vanilla version because it features the same basic taste as a non-nitro Pepsi.
Nitro Pepsi Vanilla smells almost like a candy store, sugary and sweet. And the taste is notably smoother than regular Pepsi, as if the fizz and bubbles have all been kneaded out of the drink. The Vanilla Draft Cola offered the same experience but with sweet vanilla flavor, and it translated slightly better into the nitro process than the regular cola. I love vanilla and I would choose that version over regular Nitro Pepsi.
Read also: The Hoxsey Diet
The Texture Conundrum: Smoothness vs. Fizz
Pepsi promised a “nitrogen-infused cola that’s actually softer than a soft drink,” and well, that’s what I got. The drink itself was confusing at first. The sweet, familiar Pepsi flavor is there, but the texture sent my brain into a quick momentary confusion loop. It tasted like Pepsi, but it didn’t drink like Pepsi. The crispness you expect from the soda isn’t there. With the first sip, it’s easy to feel the drink might be flat. However, to describe the beverage that way is an unfair assessment. The more I sipped, the more the drink’s complexity showed.
Nitro Pepsi has a velvety mouthfeel-that’s good. Nitro Pepsi is, again, extremely easy to drink. The profoundly mild consistency and flavor allow one to “drink easy,” as the can states.
Drinking It Right: The Recommended Experience
The company has some tips for how best to experience the Nitro Pepsi. Serve it cold, without ice. Get a glass and once you snap open the can, immediately turn the whole can upside down over the glass to pour. To properly enjoy it, it’s recommended to use the right glass (pint glass), make sure the soda is cold, and follow the instructions to “pour hard.” It’s also suggested to refrain from using ice or straws with it.
A Polarizing Product?
Nitro Pepsi is a unique item that I thoroughly enjoyed, but I feel like it will be a polarizing product. But is there enough here to make devoted drinkers go back for more? Your mileage may vary, but for me it’s too mild to be truly compelling. It’s okay. It tastes pretty good those first 2 gulps. It has an almost creamy texture but it’s fizzy enough to still classify as a soda. Sort of like a rootbeer float but the icecream already melted into the drink. Also it’s Pepsi. So they should make this into Nitro Root Beer is what I’m saying. It also falls off in quality after those initial gulps because you drink all the foam on top that provides said creamy texture. Then it just tastes like flat soda.
Diet Soda Landscape: A Quick Detour
I’m a veteran of the Cola wars. I remember when “Diet” emerged as the new word attached to low-calorie sodas, and when the preferred label shifted to “Light,” as in Pepsi Light. Don’t get me started on Pepsi Free, the caffeine-free version that Marty McFly tries to order in Back to the Future, only to have the 1955 diner employee tell him he has to pay for it. But now, the hip descriptor for diet sodas is “Zero,” as in Coca-Cola Zero Sugar and Pepsi Zero Sugar. What’s interesting is that both Coke and Pepsi also have Diet Coke and Diet Pepsi, plus Coke Zero and Pepsi Zero. Diet Pepsi and Pepsi Zero have slightly different ingredients and tastes.
Read also: Walnut Keto Guide
Diet Pepsi vs. Pepsi Zero: A Side-by-Side Comparison
Diet Pepsi has a silver can and Pepsi Zero a black can, which is useful to know if you’re trying to find them on your grocer’s shelves. Both have the round red, white and blue Pepsi logo. Just as I did with Diet Coke and Coke Zero, I chilled cans of both Diet Pepsi and Pepsi Zero and poured them into glasses without ice, so they wouldn’t be diluted. I put the two colas in different-shaped glasses so I could tell them apart and sipped from them alternately as I watched Monday Night Football.
For me, Pepsi Zero is by far the better of these two Pepsi choices. Diet Pepsi isn’t terrible. It has a spicier aroma and an almost tangy taste compared to Pepsi Zero. It’s OK on its own, but I don’t love it with food. Both Diet Pepsi and Pepsi Zero contain carbonated water, caramel color, aspartame, phosphoric acid, potassium benzoate, caffeine and citric acid. The ingredients aren’t listed in exactly the same order. For example, aspartame is the third ingredient in Diet Pepsi and the fourth in Pepsi Zero. Diet Pepsi also lists the sweetener acesulfame potassium, which is not in Pepsi Zero.
Availability
According to Pepsi, Nitro Pepsi can be preordered at Walmart. The site says it should arrive by March 18. If you don’t want to preorder, look for Nitro Pepsi in stores nationwide beginning on March 28.
Read also: Weight Loss with Low-FODMAP