ENTERTAINMENT - Vanilla Coke was first introduced in 2002 and despite widespread popularity and being hailed as "the greatest innovation since Diet Coke in 1983" it was pulled off the market in 2005.
At the time Coca-Cola claimed they pulled the product due to slumping sales. Bullsh*t. It was selling out constantly. You'd go to the grocery and to the soft drink / pop aisle and Vanilla Coke would be SOLD OUT!And it was so frequently sold out that the regular Coca-Cola Classic was just sitting there like someone's ex-boyfriend who can't get over the rejection.
Truth be told I can't even drink the old Coca-Cola Classic any more. Boycotting the damn stuff and will only drink it on rare cases (ie. I am dying of thirst). Once I had Vanilla Coke I couldn't go back to the ol' crappy coke.
My theory is as follows... Vanilla Coke was so wildly popular that the company worried about slumping sales of Coca-Cola Classic. That is the real reason the product was pulled. And its a pretty stupid reason to pull a product off the shelves.
But here is the good news, Vanilla Coke is back under a new name: Coca-Cola Vanilla. It was reintroduced to the USA market in 2007 but they've been keeping it pretty quiet, possibly because they don't want it to diminish their sales of Coca-Cola Classic.
As far as Canada goes however only a few stores are carrying it. You have to go to a convenience store in Ontario and pay a premium ($2.25 for a 591 mL Vanilla Coke, tax included) because they're being bought in grocery stores in the USA and shipped north to Canada for the die-hard fans to enjoy.
I bought two bottles yesterday. I am saving them for a special occasion.
In the meantime I have a message for Coca-Cola executives: Stop being a bunch of morons! Bring Vanilla Coke back to Canada!
Seriously, it should be called Vanilla Crack. Its that addictive.
Cans are available at the convenience store in my building at the same price as regular coke. oh and cherry coke as well, and zero versions of both.
ReplyDeletei live in ontario and hoping you can tell me where i can find vanilla coke. its eating me away that i cant find it! thanks!
ReplyDeleteim hoping you can help me and tell me where in ontario you purchased it! ive been looking everywhere!
ReplyDeletethanks
I first found it at the convenience store on Queen street, just north of the movie theatre on Richmond. (Toronto)
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