This PepsiCo Pepsi-Cola 1893 Original Cola is inspired by the original cola recipe created in 1893 by Pepsi founded Caleb Bradham and introduced as ‘Brad’s Drink’ before it was renamed Pepsi-Cola in 1898 after the root of the word “dyspepsia” and the kola nuts used in the recipe. The original cola was made at Draham’s drugstore where the drink was sold and the recipe used kola nut extract, herbal and botanical extracts, sugar and aromatic bitters.
The drink was a translucent brown black colour with an immensely pleasant aroma of kola nut and dark brown malt and light carbonation. Served chilled, gentle bitter notes recalling aromatic bitters came through at the head of each sip with a herbal hint deepening the flavour into the body ahead of a hint of vanilla and the rounded sweetness of dark brown malt in the finish.
This drink is similar to Bickford’s Old Style Original Kola with its emphasis on the flavour of the kola nut, but markedly different to the standard Pepsi that’s widely available now. This one is less acidic, with a more rounded and restrained sweetness from the use of Fair Trade Certified sugar rather than high fructose corn syrup.
This Pepsi-Cola 1893 Original Cola contained 300 ml. It was produced in Australia and purchased in Sydney, Australia in 2019.