Review: Pepsi Holiday Spice

[Tannerman]

Back in August I learned that Pepsi would be rolling out a limited edition beverage for the Christmas season. They seem to be doing a lot of short-term ideas as of late, including Mountain Dew Pitch Black (Fall 2004) and Mountain Dew LiveWire (originally Summer 2003, now available full-time). What really puzzled me, however, was the name of this new beverage. I mean, who calls a pop Pepsi Holiday Spice?

Just the idea of combining cola and spices seemed extremely disgusting. One wondered if you could emulate the taste of Holiday Spice by taking a spoonful of cinnamon, a spoonful of ginger, and swig of Pepsi... and shoving all of it into your mouth at once (not recommended). It just seemed like a crazy idea to combine seasonal flavoring to a tried-and-true beverage. Nevertheless, I couldn't wait to give it a try, as I really liked the nostalgic design of the packaging, which depicted Pepsi's old bottling plant along the East River in Queens, New York.

The other day I found this beverage at my local Walgreen's so it was time to give it the Official Tannerman Review! Overall, I was pretty happy with it. The packaging provides this overview:

Celebrate the season with family, friends and new Pepsi Holiday Spice. It's a festive blend of holiday spices and great tasting Pepsi. But it's only around through the season, so this is one gift you'll want to open early. And often!

Pepsi is going out of their way to portray a warm, nostalgic feel to this beverage. They are also using an animated gingerbread man on the Web and in advertising to get the word out about this new taste.

Mr. Gingerbread loves Holiday Spice!

The color of the drink is reddish in tone, similar to what you'd find in Dr. Pepper Red Fusion. I'm not exactly sure what "holiday spices" were used in flavoring this product, but the resulting palatability is actually very good! It mostly tastes like regular Pepsi, but with a different finish and aftertaste. Slightly bitter, it's a refreshing take on Pepsi without being too overpowering. The approach is similar to the infusion of lemon in Pepsi Twist.

I would imagine that this beverage would make a good mixer drink in bars and at holiday parties. The novelty also seems to be aimed at taking on Coke's traditional move of packaging their flagship product in glass Santa bottles every Christmas. It's an innovative move for Pepsi, who seems to be having quite a fun time coming up with new "limited" ideas as of late. This marketing approach seems to be working pretty well for them, so who's to argue?

I recommend this drink. If you want something different as your get ready to hang the Christmas lights, listen to holiday music, or gather with your family, give Pepsi Holiday Spice a try. I think you'll like it!

[Tannerman]

Just when you thought you've seen everything... someone has come up with the Pepsi Spice Project

Q: What is this experiment?

A: I will drink Pepsi Holiday Spice for 45 days, and nothing else.. no water, milk, nothing... but Pepsi Holiday Spice.

Q: Who are you, and why?

A: My name is Brian, im a fashion designer from California.. My friend Stacy bet me $1000 that I wouldn't do it.. I told him, you got yourself a deal.. Me and Stacy are always betting on things, last month he bet me that I couldn't design sensible pants with silk.. he won that one, I made some nice pants, but I dont think they were very sensible.

Q: Are you sure this is healthy?

A: Its only pepsi... its not like its McDonalds!

More info at PepsiSpice.com

[Wally]

Stacy is a guy??? I bet Jr High wasn't fun for him.

[Tannerman]

An update on my thoughts about Pepsi Holiday Spice. We recently picked up a 12-pack of cans of the drink, and you know what? It tastes better than it does in the bottle... you can taste the spice flavoring in a more pronouced way. I'm not sure why. Just an observation.

[Childs]

Seems like dehydration and some insomnia may be in the future for Brian. Sounds like stupid bet to me!

[Dan Beach]

A time when smileys say it all...


I'll take "classic" Pepsi...

[Folkerts]

I actually was introduced to this stuff by my brother-in-law a few weekends ago and found that it wasn't that bad, allthough I still haven't picked any up for myself.