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I'm doing a Dry Week, so I'm trying three limited edition sodas from Coca-Cola and Pepsi! Coke Starlight is the first limited edition sparkling beverage from Coca-Cola Creations. Nitro Pepsi is a nitrogen-infused draft cola that comes in both classic and vanilla flavors. Will these new products be good enough to replace my go-to afternoon Coke Zero? Listen in to find out! PS: I'll be back to regular whiskey and video game news & reviews next week.
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On today's episode of the Bourbon Bites podcast, it's dry week, so I'm taking a break from the whiskey and trying three limited edition sodas from Pepsi and Coca-Cola
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Hello everyone and welcome to a very special dry week edition of the Bourbon Bites podcast
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if you've been following me on YouTube you know I started a dry week right after I got back from
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my Las Vegas birthday weekend I had an absolute blast it's been a while since I've been to Las
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Vegas and I definitely overindulged on both food and beverage so I thought this would be the perfect
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week to do a dry week sort of a palate reset just make sure everything's in check it's been a
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minute since I've done one I know I did one when I did the death nut challenge on YouTube but that
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was more of just like content wise this time i'm like going all in so have not had a drink since
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monday it's going well so far i think i think the biggest issue with me is i kind of get in the habit
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of like having a cocktail after dinner so i've been kind of like looking for things to reach for
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to kind of drink other than alcohol i've been drinking a lot of hot tea i've been making some
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mocktails with the optimist botanicals who i featured on this week's live stream their three
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non-alcoholic spirits meant to enhance your mocktail game. So if you missed that stream
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definitely check it out. But for now, I wanted to do something for the podcast that's a little
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bit different, but still, you know what? Timely. So there are three limited edition sodas that have
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been taking over social media, and I've really wanted to try them. So of course, if you read
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the title, you know I'm talking about Coca-Cola Starlight Nitro Pepsi and the additional flavor
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of Nitro Pepsi, Nitro Pepsi Vanilla Draft Cola. So we have all three of these sodas here. So this
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episode is going to be an in-depth review of all three. Definitely never done a soda review on the
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podcast. However, for those of you that have been following me for a long time, my YouTube channel
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or at least the one I'm on now, started out as a subscription box review channel. So I used to get
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a lot of like world international snacks and drinks and things like that. So I have done soda
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reviews on my channel, believe it or not. But this time, of course, is for a different format
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for the podcast. But hopefully you guys still enjoy the episode and I know I'm really excited
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to try these. So I'm going to start out with the Coca-Cola Starlight Limited Edition. Now
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the one that I picked up is the zero sugar version. I actually very rarely drink sodas
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with sugar. A few years ago, I made the switch to start out with like diet soda like Diet Coke
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learned that the zero sugar versions taste way better. So now that's pretty much all I drink
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Other than, you know, when I'm out, you know, I'll get like a rum and coke or whatever. Like, that's different. But yeah, at home, I always just drink like zero sugar sodas
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I think there was a documentary I watched a few years ago that talked about how bad the added sugar was in soda for you
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And I know I'm not placing any judgment on anyone that, you know, drinks soda regularly. I used to my whole life up until a couple years ago
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But I knew I wanted to make a change. So I did switch away from regular soda
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My favorite at the moment is Coke Zero Sugar So I figured that's the perfect one to pick up for this
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I actually had a Coke Zero Sugar earlier today So I am going to be very hyped up on soda by the end of the night
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Now of course the Pepsis are not sugar free They are the standard, you know, nitro releases
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But with the Coke I wanted to get something that I'm familiar with Definitely wanted to start with that one as well
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Because I didn't want the sugar to completely like blow my palate Once I moved to the Pepsis
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So let's go ahead and talk about this Coca-Cola Starlight Limited Edition
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So this is actually the first limited edition in a series that they are calling Coca-Cola Creations
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which is supposed to be a platform for new innovations and expressions. Now, this one, they say, tastes like space
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Okay, so it's space-inspired, according to the press release. They say they are going for something that you would want to drink while you are stargazing around a campfire as well as a cooling sensation that evokes the feeling of a cold journey to space Now unfortunately I never been to space so I can really say whether it fits those requirements or tasting notes
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but I can tell you what I think about it. Now, they say this tastes like space candy, so I imagine it's going to be very, very sweet
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I'm not sure how that's going to work with the zero-sugar version, but again, like I said, for me, that's being what I drink primarily
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I wanted to do a direct comparison, but I assume the flavor is going to be pretty similar
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whether it's the regular or the zero sugar version. So let's go ahead and crack this open, shall we
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I will say the fill level on this bottle was a little bit suspicious
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I honestly thought it may have already been opened, so that wasn't the most satisfying
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Coke opening experience I've ever had. I don't know if it's just these bottles at the store or whatever, but yeah, all of them
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kind of had the same low looking fill level but it definitely was a fresh crack it just didn't have
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much carbonation there which that might be the theme tonight all right i will say color wise
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it's definitely a good bit lighter it's almost like a cheer wine color those of you from the
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south know what cheer wine is it's a cherry flavored cola um i grew up drinking that one
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as well again being from south carolina technically it's a north carolina product but i'm very very
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familiar with cheer wine i don't know if this is going to taste like cheer wine it just says space flavored. So let's go ahead and give it a nose. Oh yeah, definitely candy. Wow. That's like
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cotton candy on the nose. You know, I kind of had a feeling it was going to be when I read space
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candy, it was going to be kind of like a astronaut ice cream that you can buy in some museums
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which is, you know, it's kind of like cotton candy. So that's kind of what I'm getting on the
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nose. Maybe that's kind of what they're going for. Astronaut ice cream with this one. Very
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very sweet on the nose. Now I'm looking at the ingredients here. They do say that they use fruit
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and vegetable juice for color. So I guess that's how we're getting that red color there
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maybe kind of like a cranberry or something. I did look at the ingredients of regular Coke Zero
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and that is not to be found. So that definitely is the explanation behind the color
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Now, not sure about the nose, but again, super, super sweet. Definitely the pink cotton candy
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I don't know if there's a difference, but I swear the pink is always like a sweeter, kind of like cherry kind of note
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Oh man, I have no idea what this is going to taste like. So let's go ahead and give it a try
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Cheers. Oh, okay. better than it smelled. I was really worried this was going to be super, super sweet. It's about the
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same level of sweetness as like a standard Coke Zero, although I do think it like hits at the
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front of the palate. This feels so weird talking about soda, but the sweetness is very upfront with
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this versus like, you know, lingering. It does kind of have the familiar Coca-Cola, like, you know
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like cinnamon spice or whatever it is that makes Coke stand out against Pepsi. By the way, spoiler
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alert, I didn't want to say this upfront, but I am a Coke guy. I always drank Coke growing up. I think
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to me the biggest difference is coke has like a crispness like a like a spice i don't want to say
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spice but it has like a i don't know has a little bit of a kick to it um maybe it's the cocaine
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that's still left in there i'm just kidding please please don't mark this as explicit but uh
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no seriously it has like a crispness to it that i feel like pepsi doesn't have pepsi on the other
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hand has like a sweetness now i'm talking about standard pepsi um i have had the pepsi zero i
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think it's called um which is a huge improvement over diet pepsi i hate diet pepsi so much i'm not
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even a fan of diet coke i think the artificial sweetener they're using for both of those is just
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like not my jam. I think the Zero products uses a different sweetener. I think this uses
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astrotame as opposed to something else that the other ones may be using. I'm not sure
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Again, I don't know the details of it. I just know I wanted to get away from sugar. Not
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that these are that much better for me in terms of, you know, the fact that they're chemicals and they could maybe cause cancer. I don't know. But I just knew for my diet
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I wanted to cut out the added sugar. So I gotta go in for a second taste of this one
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Yeah, it's a little, I guess, vanilla. I think it's definitely more subtle than like vanilla
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Coke. I'm a little hesitant with vanilla as a flavor, which is kind of why I'm not looking
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forward to this second Pepsi. I just think vanilla comes across as pretty fakey in sodas
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I love vanilla ice cream. I love vanilla flavor, and I love getting vanilla notes in a bourbon
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But this has just a hint of it but I don think it attempting to be like a realistic vanilla It paired with that candy sweetness and I think it actually works pretty nice so I think uh the Starlight Lemon Edition Coca is a winner um yeah I definitely gonna enjoy this a bit later I can
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you know drink all three of these right now so I'm gonna put that back in the fridge but yeah I really enjoy that one all right so now on to um I was gonna say the main event but I was just as
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excited about that one so anyways we're moving on to the Nitro Pepsi um if you've seen these they
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come in these really sleek looking cans. I really like the look of these. They kind of look like a
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mix between a craft beer and a energy drink. So they say smooth, creamy, easy to drink, pour hard
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and drink easy. So yeah, this is exactly as it sounds. This is a nitrogen infused draft cola
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It says smaller bubbles and smoother taste. So, you know, whether you've had a nitro cold brew at
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Starbucks or a, you know, nitro beer at a bar, you kind of know what to expect with this. Now
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With a soda, I'm a little bit worried because I really do like the carbonation, especially when, like, you know, like I said, Coca-Cola, it gives it that kick, that uniqueness
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Pepsi, really, I don't really know what to expect. Hopefully it's not too sweet
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So we're going to start with the standard flavor and then save the vanilla for last
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Now, this is the very first nitrogen-infused cola, so I'm not exactly sure how to pour this
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I've seen a couple people say you really have to pour it hard. like you can't just pour it like you normally pour soda where you kind of run it down the side of the glass
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no you're supposed to like pop this top and like just go completely upside down with the can so
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I know this is a podcast format so you're not going to be able to see this so if it goes horribly
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you guys won't know but I only have one can of each so I'm going to hopefully give you some ASMR
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type content here with this with this experience and you can just kind of imagine what's about to
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go down so let's go get this cracked and poured hard as they say wow that was intense all right
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here we go we're pouring hard pouring hard how do you like that wow this really does look like a draft beer i am very impressed with the
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head on this. It has a nice creamy foam up top. This looks delicious. I'm going to take a quick
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picture because I think I'm going to post this on Instagram. This looks really good
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All right, so let's go ahead and dive into this because like I said, this is nitro
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so I imagine the bubbles are going to go away pretty quickly. Let's give it a nose
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Just smells like Pepsi, honestly. There's not much difference on the nose compared to what I'm used
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to do with Pepsi. It does smell nice though. It's definitely a change of pace from the Coke. Let's
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want to give it a taste before we lose all this head. Well, not sure what I expected. It does
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taste smooth. There's definitely a little bit more creaminess there, almost like a Pepsi float
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But the carbonation tingles that I really love about soda really aren't there. What the heck
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this is so different. I almost want to say the first impression was like it kind of tastes like a flat soda, but there is creaminess there that I think kind of helps counteract that. Like I said
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it's more of like a, if you've ever had like a, like a root beer float or like a Coke float
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or in this case a Pepsi float, it kind of is that same experience. Yeah, you don't really feel the
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bubbles in your mouth once you take a sip of it. It's, it's definitely light and, I mean, they do
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say smooth, so I, I give them that. It is a smoother taste. Now, do I prefer that? Debatable. Honestly
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I will say I do enjoy this quite a bit more than standard Pepsi. It's still sweet. You know
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like I said, like to me, Pepsi is normally too sweet for me. And I do think that maybe this
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you know, nitrogen infusion really does highlight how sweet it is. But I think that texture
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that creaminess kind of counteracts it a bit and it doesn't make it as prominent. So do you enjoy
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it better than standard Pepsi Is it still a bit too sweet for me Yeah I think so And I do enjoy the you know the feeling of you know CO2 carbonation but definitely different definitely unique And honestly it a cool experiment I think Would I buy it again though
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No, I don't think so. But let's go ahead and try the vanilla flavored version of this
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Now, it's the exact same process. It is a Nitro Pepsi Vanilla Draft Cola
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It does say artificial flavor here. The other one said natural flavor, by the way. By the way, for those of you curious, this is 230 calories per can
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Total carbohydrates at 23%, total sugars at 63 grams, and then 63 grams of added sugar
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So that's 125% of your daily value of added sugar per can
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So you'll see why I kind of got away from sodas. But, you know, every once in a while, I don't think it's going to hurt you
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I drink a lot of sodas. I drink probably one Coke Zero a day at work
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So I think, for me, I'd like to make it zero calorie and zero sugar
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But let's go ahead and crack open this vanilla nitro Pepsi. Oh shoot
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Oh, that one spilled. I made a mess with that one. That one definitely exploded more so than the other one
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Alright. BRB, you need some napkins real quick. Fortunately, no electronics were harmed in that spillage
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So warning for you guys out there if you pick these up. Even if you just take them right out of the fridge and do not shake them one bit
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as soon as you pop the top of them, they just start spewing
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So if you aren't really quick, it's going to go everywhere like mine just did. But don't worry, I got it poured shortly after that
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It just caught me by surprise. All right. Now that the chaos is out of the way, let's go ahead and give this one a nose
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Oh, okay. You know what? It's really nice vanilla. It doesn't smell too sweet
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But again, this is just the nose on it. And like I said, to me, the fake vanilla is not really my jam with sodas
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I'd much rather have a cherry-flavored soda or even some of the crazy ones, like the lime and the citrus ones
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But let's go ahead and give this a taste to see if it changes my mind. Cheers
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Oh, man, that... Talk about sweet. Holy crap, that's so sweet. It's in the fakey kind of vanilla territory that I feared
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If you are a fan of other vanilla-flavored sodas, this isn't going to bother you. I just am not a fan of them
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So to me, this is definitely a bit too sweet. I mean, not even a bit too sweet
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This is very, very sweet. But with that creaminess, I will say it does kind of help balance that sweetness out
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I mean, again, it kind of reminds me of a float. So, you know, vanilla ice cream, Pepsi, I kind of get the flavor there
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To me, I definitely would prefer to drink the standard one. To me, it's more that traditional cola flavor
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Even though I'm a Coke guy, I can drink a Pepsi if that's all that's available. but yeah the vanilla just doesn't do it for me it's too artificial too sweet and I prefer my
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vanilla notes to be natural rather than artificial just saying so I'm really curious if you guys have
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tried any of these products let me know what you think definitely we'll be buying more of the
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coca-cola starlight it's really unique it's interesting and I'm actually really curious
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how it'll taste in a rum and coke but of course it's dry week and I can't do that quite yet but
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I just want to say thank you guys for listening I know this is a short episode but I wanted to
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put something out this week rather than just skip it because it's dry week so hopefully you had fun
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let me know if you guys want me to review other random things outside of whiskey i'm happy to
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review snacks or other weird drinks i heard there's like some flaming hot mountain dew out there
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somewhere gotta get my hands on that i don't know we'll see but no matter what thank you guys for
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listening if you want to hear more of my regularly scheduled whiskey and video game reviews and news
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make sure to like me and follow on whatever podcast platform you use until next time this
15:54
has been bourbon bites soda reviews with the gaming twist cheers and i'll talk to you next episode
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