new York
CNN
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Coca-Cola is stopping production of its new spicy flavor just six months after the soda went on sale, marking the end of a disappointing attempt to attract young drinkers.
The company said in a statement that Coca-Cola is “always studying what our customers like and adjusting” its flavors. “As part of this strategy, we plan to phase out Coca-Cola Spiced and introduce an exciting new flavor in 2025,” a spokesperson said.
Spiced’s short life is surprising, as the company promoted it as a permanent flavor. Coca-Cola did not provide a specific reason for discontinuing Spiced, although lack of awareness of the new offering and confusion over the flavor (it wasn’t actually spicy) likely contributed to the poor sales.
Coca-Cola launched Spiced in February with a spectacular advertising campaign. The drink combines the traditional flavor of Coca-Cola with notes of raspberry.
Spiced was created to appeal to Gen Z drinkers, who crave punchier flavors, and soda giants have ceded some of their flavor innovation to braver newcomers like Olipop and Poppi.
For several years, Coca-Cola has been regularly updating its lineup with limited-time offerings, such as a new Oreo-flavored soda. The company has also released limited-time, ambiguous-flavored Cokes, including “Dreamworld,” “Starlight,” and “Byte” flavored Cokes. The company also teamed up with DJ Marshmello to create a flavor that doesn’t taste like marshmallow.
The drinks were part of the company’s experimental Creations line, which was aimed at attracting younger drinkers. Duane Sanford, editor-in-chief of Beverage Digest, told CNN that Spiced “may have been lost in the shuffle” of these limited-time offerings.
But Coca-Cola intended for Spiced to become a permanent addition to its lineup, as its research found an “increase in consumer willingness to try a spicy beverage” and raspberry was selected more than 5 million times on its Freestyle beverage machines in 2022, which the company “often uses as inspiration” for new flavors, according to Sue Lynne Cha, the company’s vice president of marketing for North America.
“Consumers are looking for bolder flavors and more complex flavor profiles,” Cha told CNN. “That’s a trend we started to see in food, but also in beverage, and we thought it was a unique space that we could engage in.”
Coca-Cola does not release sales for each flavor of Coca-Cola, and the drink was not mentioned on Coca-Cola’s most recent earnings call. Coca-Cola’s second-quarter net sales rose 2.9%, but the company’s sales volumes in North America, where the Spiced brand was sold, fell 1%.
The spicy flavor isn’t the only one being phased out: On social media, the company confirmed it was ending production of Cherry Vanilla, which launched in 2020, and Diet Coke with Splenda. The move is part of a broader reduction in its beverage portfolio that began four years ago and has meant the end of 200 drinks, including Tab, AHA Sparkling Water and Odwalla
Consumers are increasingly moving away from sugary sodas to sparkling waters and hydrating beverages. In response, the company is expanding its Topo Chico water line and expanding its BodyArmor brand.
