Diet Coke, a beverage that has been around for ages, recently launched a new line of flavors inspired by millennials. These flavors come in taller, thinner twelve-ounce cans, an attempt to attract more millennials who are drinking other low-calorie beverages, such as flavored seltzer waters. As a consumer of diet sodas, I decided to review these new flavors. I bought all five cans, including the original Diet Coke, to see if there’s any potential in them.
Original Diet Coke
The original Diet Coke comes in a new, thinner can that is thin enough to easily fit in a toddler’s hand. This tastes exactly like you’d expect. It’s Diet Coke, just in a thinner can that couldn’t possibly fit in a cupholder. Pretty much anything convenient about the classic can is gone. The new color scheme looks nice. However, there is no need for the new sizing of the can.
Feisty Cherry
I don’t like cherry-flavored foods and drinks. I like actual cherries, but I’m not a fan of cherry flavoring. But this cherry drink is feisty, so I gave it a chance anyway. I was pleasantly surprised. I typically find cherry colas to feel syrupy, and the cherry flavor to be overpowering. Given the promise of feistiness, I thought my normal grievances with cherry colas would be amplified. They were not, and the cherry flavor blended with the rest of the soda quite well.
I enjoyed this flavor, and I’d recommend you give it a try, especially if you can enjoy Dr. Pepper. With that said, I don’t see what is so revolutionary about this. After all, Diet Cherry Coke already existed. Because I don’t typically enjoy cherry-flavored drinks, I haven’t had Diet Cherry Coke in a while. This was a more enjoyable experience than I remembered, so perhaps Coke tampered with the formula. Other than that, they’re just betting on the redesigned can and feistiness to get millennials to buy it. Let’s be honest, that’s why I’m drinking it, so it guess it worked.
In 2018, new Diet Coke flavors were released, including the Feisty Cherry. Some editors wondered if the Feisty Cherry flavor was just Cherry Coke, which has been around for a long time. Diet Cherry Coke is classic, so what makes this "feisty?"
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Diet Cherry Coke originally launched in 1986 and was discontinued in 2020, but it has now been resurrected for a limited time store release at Kroger (and Kroger owned) stores. It features the iconic branding from the ‘80s. Flavorwise, this has the classic Cherry Coke flavor that I know and that I love. To be completely honest, as I sipped on this, I almost forgot that this was even a diet soda. It goes down smooth, and the aftertaste is very inoffensive, which is something that can’t be said about a lot of diet sodas. On the spectrum of diet sodas, this is far and away one of the best I have ever had. If you like cherry cola, this is worth checking out, whether you’re a nostalgia seeker or a diet soda drinker, this is one for the ages.
Zesty Blood Orange
This flavor made me question if I ever really knew what the word “zesty” truly meant. There’s a lot of words I’d use to describe this flavor, but zesty isn’t one of them. Now, I will say blood orange is a fruit whose popularity has risen in recent years. While it’s not the first flavor I’d think of when I think of millennials, “blood orange” is definitely a millennial flavor. That might be the only thing that is right about this drink.
When you crack open the can, the orangey aroma is almost on par with a can of Orange Crush. Then you taste the drink, and you can barely taste the Diet Coke. If I had to describe the taste of this beverage in a single statement it would be: Diet Orange Crush with experimental new sweetener. The flavor in this drink is about as authentic as the scent in citrus Fabreeze, but the sweet tanginess of a blood orange does shine through.
I wouldn’t really recommend this flavor, but some sorority girl out there just found the perfect mixer for any vodka that comes in a plastic bottle.
In 2018, new Diet Coke flavors were released, including the Zesty Blood Orange. This type had the best balance between the iconic Diet Coke taste and a new fruity flavor. The blood orange did taste a bit more like mandarin oranges, as multiple tasters noted, but who's really keeping tabs on that? This one wasn't too sweet.
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Twisted Mango
Have you been dying to drop a Tropical Starburst into a can of Diet Coke, but you’ve been too afraid of the outcome? Well, it appears Coke took the risk for you. I have to say, this flavor works more for me than it ought to. My first thought: this is really sweet (well, as much as you can expect from Diet Coke). To the point where it tastes like a mango smoothie where the milk was replaced with Diet Coke. While the mango flavor is apparent upon the first sip, the flavor of the Coke is not completely lost. It also smells overwhelmingly mangoey, but unlike Zesty Blood Orange, the aroma doesn't punch you in the face when you open the can.
I can’t say I’ve ever had a carbonated mango beverage before, so twisted may actually be an appropriate way to describe this fusion. I also can’t say I’ve ever wanted to have a carbonated mango beverage before, so I think the novelty of this drink will wear off quickly. I would recommend trying this, especially if you like tropical flavors, but I don’t see this becoming a staple flavor in the Diet Coke line. The mango flavor is strong enough where I think I would grow sick of it quickly.
In 2018, new Diet Coke flavors were released, including the Twisted Mango. While the rest of the flavors had a clear essence of classic Diet Coke, Twisted Mango tasted a bit more like a new variety of Fanta. It was far and away the sweetest flavor, and while some liked that, others had better ideas for getting twisted with this one. "The mango was sickly sweet, but would probably make an okay mixer with booze since the alcohol would cut it," they wrote.
Ginger Lime
For the millennial who can’t decide between a Moscow mule or a “vodka diet,” Diet Coke has a solution for you! Ginger Lime Diet Coke was the flavor I was most curious about. I’m not sure if I was expecting ginger ale or Diet Coke with Lime, but this drink is definitely a mix of the two.
If I did a blind smell test of this drink, I’d think I was about to drink a Sprite Zero. The citrus of the lime overpowers any other fragrance in the drink. You taste the lime as well, but it doesn’t overpower the ginger or cola flavors. These three flavors work better together than I anticipated, and I actually enjoyed this flavor of Diet Coke.
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Diet Coke successfully took the feeling of a sick day and put it in a can with this drink. There’s ginger ale and enough citrus to flavor tea, though you can still identify the Diet Coke through this mix. This is the type of drink you sip, and one can will last longer than unflavored Diet Coke. While this flavor may not be for everyone, I wouldn’t be afraid to try it.
In 2018, new Diet Coke flavors were released, including the Ginger Lime. The ginger lime is the most subtle, but the ginger is surprisingly spicy on the finish. Some editors had trouble finding the lime flavor in this can. Luckily, the ginger flavor came through at the back end of our palates with a nice little bite.