Pepsi Throwback Review

With all the overwrought, anti-High Fructose Corn Syrup propaganda coming from the "Food Police", I'm not surprised some companies are at least trying to "fix" the problem. There are still old-fashioned sugar-sweetened soft drinks out there, but they're hard to find and they cost more than the "bad" kind. I have found and tried Jones Soda (who use 100% cane sugar), and found it to be good, but costly.

When I first heard about Pepsi Throwback, I thought "oh, no -- Pepsi's pulling a "new Coke".by trying to re-invent something that's just fine the way it is.  I've been a Pepsi drinker from so far back, I used to buy it by the 8-pack in returnable glass bottles. I don't drink diet anything. I usually go through a 12-pack a week. I prefer it as cold as possible, and even drink it out of one of those frosty-freezer-mugs that turn it into a slushy if it's just right.

To be honest, I don't recall the exact time Pepsi did go from using sugar to HFCS -- but I can honestly say I barely noticed the difference. So, just to see if I could tell the difference, I decided to give Pepsi Throwback a go.

I treated it just like I do "regular" Pepsi -- getting it as cold as possible, by putting the can into the freezer for a few minutes, without freezing it solid, then pouring it into my frosty-mug. Right off the bat, I could see a difference in the amount of carbonation it seemed to have. Regular Pepsi gets more of a foamy "head" on it almost as soon as I pour it into the mug. Throwback had very little. 

Taste-wise, it actually seemed a little dull. Not flat -- just not very tingly to my tastebuds. Again, I think it was because the carbonation wasn't as strong. As for sweetness, it wasn't as sweet as I was afraid it would be. In fact, I could barely tell the difference in sweetness compared to my preferred regular Pepsi.

For some reason, Pepsi Throwback is about 20 cents more expensive per 12-pack than regular Pepsi. I do not think it's worth the extra 20 cents just to indulge the guilt-trip being applied by the anti-HFCS Food Police.

I'm sticking with my regular Pepsi.