Has an
ancient soft-drink mystery finally been solved?
Has the closely guarded Coca Cola recipe gone public?
"Personal
computers and Internet technology have empowered man.
Having emerged from the age of 'I believe' into the age of 'I
know',
man has advanced into an age of transparency and full disclosure."
From
an article by Torie Bosch at AOL's Surge Desk.
February 15 -- Public radio show, "This American Life,"
has sent Coke fiends into a tizzy by announcing that it has uncovered
the cola's top-secret ingredient, "Merchandise 7X."
Merchandise 7X may not sound terribly appetizing, but it's long been
known to be the secret ingredient. What we didn't know was what exactly
Merchandise 7X is.
But "TAL" producers claim they found a smoking gun -- and
they shared it on the Feb. 13 episode "Original Recipe."
According to "TAL," in 1979 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
published a little-noticed article on the history of Coca-Cola and
-- this is the important part -- included a photograph. That photo
allegedly showed a handwritten copy of the Coca-Cola recipe invented
by John Pemberton -- including the exact contents of Merchandise 7X,
"the cartoonishly super-secret, cloak-and-dagger name" of
the key ingredient, host Ira Glass said.
The recipe was apparently written down in a Pemberton friend's journal
of remedies and ointments, which makes sense since Coca-Cola was originally
sold as a tonic.
"TAL" staffers were apparently the first to examine the
photo closely enough to realize what it actually showed. Here's the
recipe, according to the program:
Fluid extract of Coca: 3 drams USP
Citric acid: 3 oz.
Caffeine: 1 oz.
Sugar: 30 (unclear quantity)
Water: 2.5 gallons
Lime juice: 2 pints, 1 quart
Vanilla: 1 oz.
Caramel: 1.5 oz. or more for color
The secret 7X flavor (use 2 oz. of flavor to 5 gallons syrup):
"TAL" whipped up the recipe. The first batch had a "medicinal"
taste, which led the "TAL" team to realize that perhaps
today's essential oils are stronger than the ones used in the past.
They tried again, with weakened ingredients, and got closer, even
fooling one expert in a blind taste test. But a Coca-Cola company
historian says he doesn't think it's the right formulation.
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*Consultation
with a health care professional should occur before applying
adjustments or treatments to the body, consuming medications
or nutritional supplements and before dieting, fasting or exercising.
None of these activities are herein presented as substitutes
for competent medical treatment.