Drinks without alcohol. No matter what you call them, we’re a nation of soda lovers (Midwesterners call it “pop”), whether it’s Pepsi, Mountain Dew, Fanta Orange, A&W Root Beer, Dr Pepper, or any of dozens of other offers to which it arrives. because Americans consume a whopping 650 eight-ounce servings a year per person, even though the 2016 figure is the lowest in almost 30 years. No question, the addition of designer coffee and energy drinks has made a dent in the soft drink industry, but the US has sugary drinks. (Dentists love you!)
This time, exploring Marco Polo can’t take credit. Of course, the Chinese had been drinking tea for centuries, but mineral springs in Europe apparently inspired early Parisians to add honey and lemon to naturally sparkling spring water and began selling the delicious drink to the French. This delicious alternative to hot tea and coffee appeared in the mid-17th century and was called “lemonade.” Chemists were later able to double the carbonation and add it to still water, achieving the same effect. An instant success, it was probably the precursor to Perrier.
In 1810, two enterprising men from Charleston, South Carolina named Simon and Rundell took out the first US patent on their invention that gave pure water its sparkling quality. But it wasn’t until twenty years later that inventor John Mathews came up with his own design that added carbonation, and began marketing the fizzy stuff in soda fountains. At first, sarsaparilla and fruit extracts were added to water, and Americans flocked to drugstores in search of these new fizzy drinks. Many of the drugstore owners promoted their flavored bubbly drinks as beneficial to health. The origins of cola, for example, are attributed to an Atlanta pharmacist, Dr. John S. Pemberton, in 1886. He invented the original formula and sold it at his pharmacy fountain as a medicine. No wonder it caught on as much as the gang members: it contained cocaine. Oh!
Creating new flavors for his sparkling water was a lot more fun than handing out lozenges and cough syrup, so once again another pharmacist named Charles Alderton created Dr Pepper in 1885, in Waco, Texas. It is reported to have contained 23 different flavors to create its unique taste, and Alderton may have alluded to Dr Pepper’s “digestive benefits” as a selling point. (At least, he burped you.) In 1904, at the St. Louis World’s Fair, as hot dogs and ice cream cones were making their debut, Dr Pepper and a variety of soft drinks became all the rage, and America’s thirst was unquenchable. .
More companies rushed to capitalize on the growing popularity and sell their products in grocery stores, but the main challenge was maintaining carbonation in the drink after bottling. It wasn’t until 1892 that a successful cap was invented by a Baltimore machinist named William Painter, who patented his invention and successfully prevented bubbles from escaping. Of course, this opened the door for glass manufacturers, and the Libby Glass Company, among others, sprang into action.
During the 1920s, the first six-packs with the convenient cardboard case arrived and vending machines soon followed. Soft drinks are here to stay. With
In addition to cans, larger and larger packs of soft drinks appeared on supermarket shelves, allowing shoppers to stock up on their favorites.
Although consumption has declined in recent years, especially among “diet” drinks that contain artificial sweeteners, there’s no question that Americans love their drinks. And that will never fade.
