coke, diet coke and sprite

I figure you can't have a blog about bottle caps and not have a post on one of the most universally recognized brands in the world: Coca-Cola. There have been literally thousands of different types of Coke bottle caps over the years. Since I have only just started collecting, I'm well aware that I don't have the knowledge that my dedicated readers might have. This sampling is simply from around my neighborhood, which has a nice variety nonetheless.

 

It's been a while since I've actually had a Coke or a Diet Coke, and it's been even longer since I've had one out of a glass bottle.  I recall a few years ago when I took a trip to Israel, my sister and I, after a long day of walking around in the heat, took a break and had Diet Cokes in a plaza. There might even be photo documentation, but I'm not sure where it is!  Another memory was from a much earlier trip to Israel, when my whole family was sitting in a rug shop.  The owner of the shop was a friend of the family, and the boy who worked for him brought us four bottles of Coca Cola on a beautiful copper tray.  I think I was more excited about the tray at the time. Now I would have been excited about the Israeli bottle cap.

It is funny.  I recently listened to an episode of This American Life about the (possible) discovery of the original recipe for Coca Cola. One of the topics discussed was how taste-tests of Coke brings back so many childhood memories.  My experience is no different.  People really do associate Coca Cola with childhood....

These older Coke and Sprite caps were purchased in bulk via ebay. Always a good place to help further your collection.  My one complaint was that there were quite a few duplicates in the lot, so I didn't get as many originals as I would have liked.  It just means I'll have to keep scouring for additional caps!

International versions (from Chile!):

I would like to make a side note about bodegas today.  It has been brought to my attention that NYC bodegas are a dying breed. Many of my more unusual bottle caps (as well as your standard Cokes and Sprites) are purchased in bodegas across the city. Please support your local bodega!

cockta

You will not believe the things you'll find in your local grocery store.  If you look beyond the coke, pepsi and sprite in the regular beverage aisle, you'll discover some hidden gems. OK, and maybe some really off-the-wall stuff.

Case in point: Cockta Soda. Hailing from Slovenia, this "refreshing drink" made from "natural ingredients" including dog rose berries is quite the find at my local grocery store.  I found it in the international section of the grocery store, but seriously? Slovenia? I'm impressed with the international-ness of this particular find.  I can't think of a single Slovenian restaurant in my neighborhood. Maybe I haven't been looking hard enough.

Before I get to the review, I want to strongly encourage you to visit the Cockta website (well, read the rest of my post first, and THEN go visit Cockta!).  It has some great animation -- and be sure to turn up your volume. It also tells the history of Cockta better than I could and offers original print ads, TV advertising and all sorts of other fun stuff.  It makes me want some of the other flavors of Cockta. Who knew?

Upon opening my 8.45 fl oz of Cockta and smelling it, I detected a faint hint of vanilla, which already reassured me that this was not going to be another Malta experience.  It's mildly carbonated, and definitely does not taste like a traditional cola. There is a caramel-like taste, but I can't really put my finger on the exact flavor.  All in all, its not a bad soda, which is high praise indeed. Slovenia, I commend you. You have made a pretty tasty international soda!

Oh! And I would like to thank both Eric and Elaine for letting me know that the mystery Pacific Northwest bottle cap from the last post was, in fact, Pyramid Brew.  Thank you!!!  And I think that I have also fixed the comment problem.  Let me know if you still have issues. laurenwalles [at] gmail.com.

northwest microbrews

In January, I had an opportunity to take an extremely short trip to Seattle.  I was there for roughly 24 hours to take in a few meetings and then hopped on a red-eye back to New York City. It wasn't my first time to the West Coast, but it was my first time to the Pacific Northwest, and despite the shortness of the trip, I had a blast and can't wait to go back there for a longer stretch to explore the city.

I did manage to snag three amazing bottle caps to add to my repertoire. Across the street from my hotel was an amazing deli that had a wide variety of sandwiches, breakfast options, beers, sodas and micro-brews.  I was in heaven!  It was a little overwhelming with so many selections, though I'm not ashamed to admit that I purchased my beverages based SOLELY on the bottle caps.

Alas, I do not know the name of one!  Bottle cap designers be forewarned -- if you do not put the name of your company/beverage on your bottle cap, people like me wills not remember you in the long run.  Anyone with insight into the names of these companies so that they can get their proper due, do not hesitate to reach out! 

Let's start with what we do know.  Cricket Cola is described as an alternative to Coke & Pepsi.  I believe it includes green tea (or at least my bottle did!).  I think it is an acquired taste, but I definitely liked it.  I enjoyed the bottle cap even more. I mean, come on, it says "Twist for happiness." I'm a softie for things like that. You'll notice that it's in this blog's hall of fame. Obviously.

Next on the list from Seattle are two root beers.  This one:

Is apparently Henry Weinhard's Soda -- and there are quite a variety of caps within the company.  There is "Can't Top This," "Mmm, My Favorite," "Flip My Lid," "Roll Out the Barrel," and "Heads Up!" (Thanks, BottleCap.net!)  I desperately wanted to get a bunch of caps, but with limited time and limited funds available, I could only get one (and I also didn't want to look like a complete lunatic to the woman at the checkout counter.)  It makes me always want to travel with friends in order to get the most out of deli outings. Where were you, Michael Lober?

The other root beer I purchased has a beautiful design with snow-capped mountains/pyramids:

If anyone knows what this brand is, let me know!  I do remember that it was a root beer, and that it was quite tasty. Not like some of the fruit-flavored sodas I've been taste testing recently.  And 100% better than a Malta.  In fact, I wish I had one of these to chase the next Malta I have to drink! Oh, Goya Malta, why do you haunt my dreams?....

original sin, woodchuck and mystery cap!

A few weekends ago,  a friend of mine came to visit NYC from Massachusetts. It was wonderful to see her, and we managed to take in a concert of a folk musician known for his humorous lyrics. It was a great night - the food was great, the music was great and the company was great. On the walk home, we stopped in a local deli to check out the beer selection. We decided to switch things up a bit and go totally domestic in our selection, since we'd been a bit disappointed with all the international beverages we've been sampling.

An old standby in my house is Woodchuck Cider.  Always delicious and refreshing in a pinch, Woodchuck Hard Cider comes in many flavors.  Going with what seems to be a theme in this blog, we went for the Granny Smith Apple variety.  And it didn't disappoint!  Woodchuck hails from Vermont. Any cider (or beer ... or beverage in general, for that matter) that has an animal as its mascot is OK by me.

A new cider for me, however, is Original Sin.  It was crisp, refreshing and the bottle cap is awesome.  (and isn't that what it is all about, people?) You gotta love a devil tail incorporated into the design.   It looks like OS and is even made in and distributed out of New York City.

The last beverage procured on that fine evening in February is this IPA from Green Flash Brewing Co. in San Diego, CA:

If I had not taken a picture of the bottle, I promise you I never would have remembered what it was called.  My friend drank the whole bottle, and didn't even let me taste-test. I guess that means it was good and therefore gets the super cool bottle cap seal of approval.

manzanita sol - guest post by michael lober

Lauren asked me to do a guest post this week. We both live in an ethnically diverse neighborhood of New York City, and one of the things we enjoy doing occasionally is strolling through grocery stores and mini-marts and taking stock of the packaged food imported from all corners of the globe--powdered milk from Greece, mate from Brazil and, of course, sodas from everywhere. If Lauren weren't interested in the design and packaging of these products, we'd probably stick with plastic bottles of Coke, Diet Coke, and Sprite like most everyone else; instead, we search for bottles stacked somewhere near the back in their own section of overlooked drinks that look like they've been gathering dust for years. On a recent trip we found bottled sodas from Slovenia, Jordan, and Peru all in the same store!

Yet, as we've learned, searching for these bottled sodas is often more fun than consuming them. In my admittedly limited experience, too many international sodas are overly sweet and leave an aftertaste that coats your entire mouth. Case in point: Manzanita Sol. We found this sparkling apple drink from Mexico in the back freezer of a neighborhood convenience store, and were mildly optimistic, since fruit flavored international sodas usually go down better than colas and, especially, malt sodas. The bottle cap is rather plain--bright red and perhaps reflective of a tropical landscape. But the soda is a sugar overload--a carbonated apple juice concoction with three scoops of sugar mixed in. The experience is akin to drinking an apple-flavored lollipop. Perhaps what I'm trying to say is that if you ever see a bottle of this soda sitting forlornly on a rack in the back freezer of your convenience store, well, stick with what you know.

china cola, marathon & more malta

You would think that a product with a name like "china cola" would a) be from china and b) maybe have a panda on it or even some bamboo. But no. It's actually an American soda, with some natural herbs (the company claims the herbs are imported in from China).  Anyway, China Cola isn't too bad. At first sip it tastes somewhat like Coca Cola, but with a funny, lime-like aftertaste.  If it was the only cola left on the planet, and I really had a craving, I would probably go ahead and have another one. But with real Coca Cola still around, I think that I'll pass if ever offered China Cola again.

Next on the agenda is Marathon Beer. Procured at a local Greek grocery store, Marathon has an excellent bottle cap with a crown and some runners.  It invokes not only an actual marathon, but Greece as well!  Good job, Marathon Beer. I approve of your bottle cap!  The beer, well, it tastes like Budweiser. Which is not necessarily a bad thing, but I was hoping for something a little more, I don't know.... Greek. In a pinch, I'd drink it again.  There is nothing inherently unpleasant about it!

Last on the list today is... another Malta.  Malta Vitarroz.  I enlisted my sister to try this one, because I'm done with maltas. The last one did me in. Once opened, the aroma is very off-putting.  But it doesn't taste as badly as it smells.  The taste might best be described as halva-ish with a vaguely rice-y aftertaste. The only other Malta I've noticed in the neighborhood is Goya Malta.  That is for another day....and I may have to find someone else to taste test Goya!

mirianda and sidral mundet

I think I'm going to go with some fruity (tasting) sodas with this update.   Mirianda is a soda made by Pepsi.  It is billed as an "orange drink".  The carbonation left much to be desired, and after a few sips,  I concluded that  really tasted more like an expired orange popsicle. The bottle cap isn't very exciting to look at, and according to the bottle, it's from Honduras. 

The second bottle cap is much more exciting.  Sidral Mundet is an apple flavored soda from Mexico.  It tastes a lot like sparking cider, but a bit sweeter.  And you cannot beat the cap!  With a big apple and a pleasing font, it is most certainly eye catching.

I have a lot of fun beers and sodas coming up, so stay tuned!