Coke - what do you call it in your area?

[kdonnel]

Me either.
Just like I don't understand why Pepsi dropped their lemon lime soda Sierra Mist, and replaced it with a lemon line soda called Starry. A friend was crushed that they dropped Sierra Mist, but after trying Starry she says it seems the same to her.

Because Sierra Mist was a loser. It had .1% market share.

It had so little market share that many didn't even notice it left the market until months later.

The hope is that Starry will appeal to Gen Z.

https://fortune.com/2023/02/14/pepsi-sierra-mist-starry-sprite/

 

[soccerdad72]

Grew up saying pop, more people call it soda around here. I fluctuate between the two normally.

 

[Kestryl]

I grew up saying pop (midwest), and now I live in an area that borders the soda/coke territory.

If you say coke, I'm assuming you want a Coca Cola.

 

[BlueStarryHat]

Grew up in Philly, and always called it soda...or with my accent, 'sow-deh.'

 

[aprilgail]

From the south, and it is all coke.

Waitress: "Would you like a coke?"

Customer: "Yes, I'll take a Dr. Pepper."

That is SO strange! Why in the world would every soda be referred to as coke- what a ridiculous added step to ordering rather than just saying "I will have a sprite" you have to say I would like a coke and they have to say what kind and then you say "Sprite"- insane LOL. I will never ever understand why this is such a thing.

 

[_19disnA]

Seems to be a regional thing to call a soft drink soda vs. pop. If ordering in a restaurant there are several flavors of soda/pop so you have to be more specific. Most places now either serve Pepsi or Coke products, so your choices are limited to the ones they offer. I also thought the Pepsi change from Sierra Mist to Starry made NO sense. If you don't follow this closely, you likely think they are out of stock of Sierra Mist or it has been discontinued and will probably purchase something made by a competitor. They seem to taste the same and their marketing people will have to spend a lot of money letting people know they still make that product. Change the name, but the taste is the same so what was did that accomplish???

 

[nursejackie]

Well Coke is Coke, but if you are talking about fizzy drinks in general then it's pop (in north of England).

 

[nighttowll]

That is SO strange! Why in the world would every soda be referred to as coke- what a ridiculous added step to ordering rather than just saying "I will have a sprite" you have to say I would like a coke and they have to say what kind and then you say "Sprite"- insane LOL. I will never ever understand why this is such a thing.

Yep! Not logical at all, but growing up with it done this way I never questioned it, until I was older. It was just what soda was called "coke", no matter if it was actual Coke or Sprite or Fanta or whatever. Kind of like kleenex can be any brand or maybe that's another regional thing as well? Maybe the south just likes to use name brands?

 

[Praying Colonel]

 

[Praying Colonel]

More on regional variations of what we call things here:

https://www.businessinsider.com/american-english-dialects-maps-2018-1

 

[disney4us2002]

Me either.
Just like I don't understand why Pepsi dropped their lemon lime soda Sierra Mist, and replaced it with a lemon line soda called Starry. A friend was crushed that they dropped Sierra Mist, but after trying Starry she says it seems the same to her.

I liked Sierra Mist and thought it tasted like Sprite. Starry doesn't take like Sprite. I think it's closer to Mt. Dew which is weird and unneccessary since Mt. Dew is already a Pepsi product.

I only drink Coke Products and prefer Diet Coke but I'm amazed at the number of restaurants and bars that only have Pepsi products. Nobody orders a Rum and Pepsi - Booooo!

We say soda for any fizzy drink (Maryland/NC). My mom's family in Indiana & Illinois always said pop.

 

[Debbie Jean]

View attachment 823195

Nope.

Grew up in Boston, family deep New Hampshire roots. Never heard it called anything but tonic.

When I moved to the midwest for grad school, it was quite the crisis!

 

[tvguy]

I liked Sierra Mist and thought it tasted like Sprite. Starry doesn't take like Sprite. I think it's closer to Mt. Dew which is weird and unneccessary since Mt. Dew is already a Pepsi product.

I only drink Coke Products and prefer Diet Coke but I'm amazed at the number of restaurants and bars that only have Pepsi products. Nobody orders a Rum and Pepsi - Booooo!

We say soda for any fizzy drink (Maryland/NC). My mom's family in Indiana & Illinois always said pop.

I love Mountain Dew. It is a citrus based soda like Sprite/Sierra Mist/Starry, but unlike the others, it is orange based not lemon lime based.

 

[tvguy]

Because Sierra Mist was a loser. It had .1% market share.

It had so little market share that many didn't even notice it left the market until months later.

The hope is that Starry will appeal to Gen Z.

https://fortune.com/2023/02/14/pepsi-sierra-mist-starry-sprite/

Only reason I know is my wife's best friend can't drink any soda with any color in it due to a kidney condition. I would got out and buy it when she was coming to visit and all of a sudden it wasn't available. That is when I discovered the change to Starry.

 

[_19disnA]

"Tonic" to me has always meant that fizzy product (tonic water) mostly used in mixed drinks and nothing I would ever drink by itself. Moutain Dew has always had an odd sour taste and tastes nothing like 7up, Sprite, Sierra Mist or Starry. I think if you did a taste test of 7up, Sprite, Sierra Mist or Starry side-by-side, most people probably couldn't tell the difference. Pepsi & Coke always taste different to me with Pepsi apparently having way more sugar and tastes sweeter.

I agree these are regional things. Coke to me has always been a specific brand of soft drink and never used it generically to mean those products, but likely depends on where you live or grew up. The generic term would be 'soft drinks' where I grew up.

Pepsi & Coke make a full line of soft drinks since most restaurants now only want to carry products made by one company.

I can still recall the first time on a business trip to Germany and the waitress asked if we wanted our bottled water with or without 'gas'. It's their term for carbonated water.

 

[Moliphino]

I love Mountain Dew. It is a citrus based soda like Sprite/Sierra Mist/Starry, but unlike the others, it is orange based not lemon lime based.

If you asked me what flavor Mountain Dew was I would have never guessed orange.

 

[jimmymc]

I call it soda, but everyone else around me calls it pop.

 

[Praying Colonel]

I call it soda, but everyone else around me calls it pop.

I grew up in a pop area but moved to a soda area. The first time I heard "soda" I thought of soda water you'd make a mixed drink with.

 

[Lord Manhammer]

I can still recall the first time on a business trip to Germany and the waitress asked if we wanted our bottled water with or without 'gas'. It's their term for carbonated water.

HA! This trips up a lot of people and it's common throughout Europe. In fact the word for carbonated water in Polish is: woda gazowana (gas water) and for still water it's woda nie gazowana (water no gas).

 

[sasywtch]

That is SO strange! Why in the world would every soda be referred to as coke- what a ridiculous added step to ordering rather than just saying "I will have a sprite" you have to say I would like a coke and they have to say what kind and then you say "Sprite"- insane LOL. I will never ever understand why this is such a thing.

Do you say bandaid or Kleenex, xerox, jello, hoover, vaseline? coke with a lower case c is a generic term for soda, same as the other items listed above.