Yummy Synesthesia
So a few years back, there was a new product on the market called "Pepsi Blue." It was, as might be expected of the name, blue. No, I mean BLUE. As in Gatorade. Antifreeze. Smurf juice.
As can be inferred from the fact that I feel the need to describe this to everyone, Pepsi Blue was not a hit, and I'm fairly certain that it's off the market. Rather like the other major product that changed the appearance of Pepsi: Crystal Pepsi (oh, the memories...).
Now, the soft drink industry used to be one of the more conservative ones out there. For the longest time, there were the major drinks and no variations. Even adding cherry flavor to Coca-Cola was a radical move that cheesed a bunch of people off, much less promoting New Coke atDrink for thought... the expense of the original formula. And then compound this with the fact that all the major flavors were pretty much duplicated across the board between Coke and Pepsi--Mr Pibb versus Dr Pepper, Sprite versus Slice versus 7up (I forget the affiliations around these), Mountain Dew versus Mellow Yellow (sp?), and of course COKE versus PEPSI.
Now, it's taken pretty much for a given that in such an even market standing out is important--perhaps even more important than quality (after all, New Coke beat out Coca-Cola in blind taste tests, but sold for crap). Heck, the distinctive Coke bottle is considered one major reason Coca-Cola beat out the various other colas from the days of its conception (the cocaine probably being another).
Now, in order to stand out, what can be changed? Well, the appearance is a great example. Put a bright blue beverage up, and you're going to stand out among the soft drinks. And so long as it doesn't look particularly disgusting, that means you're going to catch the attention of little Bobby who's not sure what he wants to drink so long as it's sugary and fizzy. And the brand name certainly doesn't inspire fear of the contents (even though I far prefer Coke to Pepsi).
Of course, Crystal Pepsi is another story...a rather unfortunate one. Unfortunately, clear beverages are all over the place, so it only catches attention with the inclusion of the Pepsi moniker--otherwise it just stacks up against Sprite and Clearly Canadian. But maybe if you're (by virtue of the name) comparing it to the two biggest sellers in the market...
ANYway, the idea is that you have a drink with the Pepsi name and without the Pepsi coloration. What happens? Well, here's where an unforseen problem lurks. It either doesn't look right, doesn't taste right, or doesn't fit the name.
The PROBLEM is...well, imagine bright green coffee. Something that tastes just like your favorite roast of java, but which looks for all the world like it was poured out of a Midori bottle. It boggles the mind. Not only is it a color we don't associate with the flavor, it's a color that has different connotations. Bright colors correspond to bright, fruity flavors. Lime or melon would go with green...coffee less so.
Or maybe try clear coffee. Here we've got less of a Crayola paradox, but it's still not right. A clear beverage suggests a lighter, crisper flavor. Something cleaner. And, I guess, just doesn't seem right for hot (can you think of a single clear beverage you drink warmed up? I can't).
And of course therein lies the problem. The cola flavor so prominent in Pepsi is a dark flavor. I'm sure it's chemically possible to put it in a clear beverage (and thus, any colored beverage), but the psychologically "correct" color for it is of course a deep brown. Maybe it's just associations we've grown up with, maybe it's ingrained in the psyche, maybe it's an extrapolation from colors of foods we see, but somehow or another this seems to hold pretty well true.
Now, Pepsi Blue tasted...blue. That's exactly how I described it to my family when we all stopped for drinks and I got the new Pepsi flavor. It's bright and "round" and was a very singleminded and clear flavor, all things that seem "right" with a blue drink. Of course, none of these adjectives would I use to describe Pepsi itself. Put it up as...I dunno, Cerulean Splash, and nothing's wrong. But if you're drinking it and thinking the word "Pepsi," it's most certainly not Pepsi...has nothing to do with that particular cola. Therein lies the problem.
Now I don't remember Crystal Pepsi well enough to say what happened with it. Does anyone remember it well enough to say? Was it flavored like Pepsi or was it a new flavor? Was it any good? I remember enjoying it, but I enjoyed anything fizzy back then...
Anyway, I just want to close with the thought that Mountain Dew is a fine drink, looks just right for its flavor...but I can't possibly think of its color as being anything but "urine yellow."
As can be inferred from the fact that I feel the need to describe this to everyone, Pepsi Blue was not a hit, and I'm fairly certain that it's off the market. Rather like the other major product that changed the appearance of Pepsi: Crystal Pepsi (oh, the memories...).
Now, the soft drink industry used to be one of the more conservative ones out there. For the longest time, there were the major drinks and no variations. Even adding cherry flavor to Coca-Cola was a radical move that cheesed a bunch of people off, much less promoting New Coke atDrink for thought... the expense of the original formula. And then compound this with the fact that all the major flavors were pretty much duplicated across the board between Coke and Pepsi--Mr Pibb versus Dr Pepper, Sprite versus Slice versus 7up (I forget the affiliations around these), Mountain Dew versus Mellow Yellow (sp?), and of course COKE versus PEPSI.
Now, it's taken pretty much for a given that in such an even market standing out is important--perhaps even more important than quality (after all, New Coke beat out Coca-Cola in blind taste tests, but sold for crap). Heck, the distinctive Coke bottle is considered one major reason Coca-Cola beat out the various other colas from the days of its conception (the cocaine probably being another).
Now, in order to stand out, what can be changed? Well, the appearance is a great example. Put a bright blue beverage up, and you're going to stand out among the soft drinks. And so long as it doesn't look particularly disgusting, that means you're going to catch the attention of little Bobby who's not sure what he wants to drink so long as it's sugary and fizzy. And the brand name certainly doesn't inspire fear of the contents (even though I far prefer Coke to Pepsi).
Of course, Crystal Pepsi is another story...a rather unfortunate one. Unfortunately, clear beverages are all over the place, so it only catches attention with the inclusion of the Pepsi moniker--otherwise it just stacks up against Sprite and Clearly Canadian. But maybe if you're (by virtue of the name) comparing it to the two biggest sellers in the market...
ANYway, the idea is that you have a drink with the Pepsi name and without the Pepsi coloration. What happens? Well, here's where an unforseen problem lurks. It either doesn't look right, doesn't taste right, or doesn't fit the name.
The PROBLEM is...well, imagine bright green coffee. Something that tastes just like your favorite roast of java, but which looks for all the world like it was poured out of a Midori bottle. It boggles the mind. Not only is it a color we don't associate with the flavor, it's a color that has different connotations. Bright colors correspond to bright, fruity flavors. Lime or melon would go with green...coffee less so.
Or maybe try clear coffee. Here we've got less of a Crayola paradox, but it's still not right. A clear beverage suggests a lighter, crisper flavor. Something cleaner. And, I guess, just doesn't seem right for hot (can you think of a single clear beverage you drink warmed up? I can't).
And of course therein lies the problem. The cola flavor so prominent in Pepsi is a dark flavor. I'm sure it's chemically possible to put it in a clear beverage (and thus, any colored beverage), but the psychologically "correct" color for it is of course a deep brown. Maybe it's just associations we've grown up with, maybe it's ingrained in the psyche, maybe it's an extrapolation from colors of foods we see, but somehow or another this seems to hold pretty well true.
Now, Pepsi Blue tasted...blue. That's exactly how I described it to my family when we all stopped for drinks and I got the new Pepsi flavor. It's bright and "round" and was a very singleminded and clear flavor, all things that seem "right" with a blue drink. Of course, none of these adjectives would I use to describe Pepsi itself. Put it up as...I dunno, Cerulean Splash, and nothing's wrong. But if you're drinking it and thinking the word "Pepsi," it's most certainly not Pepsi...has nothing to do with that particular cola. Therein lies the problem.
Now I don't remember Crystal Pepsi well enough to say what happened with it. Does anyone remember it well enough to say? Was it flavored like Pepsi or was it a new flavor? Was it any good? I remember enjoying it, but I enjoyed anything fizzy back then...
Anyway, I just want to close with the thought that Mountain Dew is a fine drink, looks just right for its flavor...but I can't possibly think of its color as being anything but "urine yellow."