The New New Coke: Milk?!
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The New New Coke: Milk?!

In a container that looks like the love child of Milk of Magnesia and something you'd put in your car engine to help it run smoothly, Coke has a new drink they like to call milk.

It's not. It's a milk drink. That's what the massive Coca-Cola Co. does. They mix and fiddle and bottle and brand like crazy. At times they do it quite well. In this case, they seem to be trading on the sort of alchemy and emotional bond many Americans have with the milk of a big, black and white, happy cow, and some modern version of nutrient focus that may well change as more is discovered or understood.

But alchemy ought to taste better.

Packed with what has been gathered to bring added value and so double the price, Fairlife has 50 percent more protein and 30 percent more calcium. It's ultra pasteurized which means that, though I bought it on February 10, it's marked "Best if used before March 30th". Hard to call it a fresh dairy product.

Full disclosure; I like Coke -- from time to time -- preferably from a small glass bottle in the familiar shape. It makes me smile even before I sip. It settles my stomach when I have jet lag or when I've eaten something a bit too exotic for my insides. Not often. Maybe a few times a year.

And I almost never drink milk. But I remember loving it, ice cold on a hot day, with freshly baked cookies just out of the oven. Or warmed for a chilly night and cozy deep sleep. Or with chocolate sauce mixed in...

But this is not even vestigially that milk. It tastes bland, cooked and feels thicker -- not in a nice way -- than it ought to be. I love cheese of all sorts, but this isn't milk on its way to something greater. It's milk with the joy removed.

Will it sell? It depends. People use non dairy creamer, which is beyond my comprehension. But every single time I tell folks that there's a new product from Coke and it's a sort of "enhanced or improved milk" they all make the very same "eeeeewwww" face.

You know the one. When something just seems like a bad idea.

Many things might go better with Coke. Milk isn't one of them.

Clark Wolf has more than thirty years of experience in the food industry and is founder and president of Clark Wolf Company, a New York-based food and restaurant consulting firm.

Read more: Why Coke expects its new milk to "rain money"

I buy it. I prefer the taste to regular cow's milk. I used to buy chocolate soy milk, but I like Fairlife much better. So I now enjoy my chocolately goodness from Fairlife instead of Silk. As far as the white milk goes, we use it so rarely, I like having the longer expiration date.

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Cathy Hirsch

School Library Media Specialist

8y

This is the best milk I've ever tasted, plain and simple. The fact that it stays (and tastes) fresh in my refrigerator for longer is a great thing. This is a foolish article written my someone who clearly discredits the product simply because it is a product of Coca Cola.

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Warren Long

Senior account representative at Expert Mri

9y

I drink this before and after every workout. It doesn't taste bad to me.

Don Schindler

Senior Vice President, Digital Innovation (Marketing Strategy, Communication Executive, Professional Speaker, Trainer)

9y

Granted I work for the dairy industry but I can tell you that this is true milk and it's got a great taste. Everyone that I've introduced it to loves the taste especially the chocolate milk.

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