What was Coke II all about?

The New Coke saga is a well-known cautionary tale in marketing circles. In 1985, concerned by Pepsi's rise and the success of the "Pepsi Challenge," Coca-Cola revamped its original recipe and introduced a new, sweeter version called "New Coke." They completely phased out the original Coke, but the move was met with widespread outrage, culminating in over 400,000 letters and phone calls sent to the company from angry consumers.

Within just three months of New Coke's release, Coca-Cola decided to bring back the original recipe under the new name "Coca-Cola Classic." Consumers flocked back to their beloved drink, and the swift reversal is now regarded as one of the most successful consumer protests in U.S. history—both a sad and perfectly ironic turn of events.

Some suggest that Coca-Cola staged the New Coke fiasco to stir up public reaction and boost demand for the original product. However, this theory seems unlikely given the company's deep commitment to New Coke. CEO Roberto Goizueta remained dedicated to the beverage, and when announcing the return of the original formula, he made it clear that bottlers could choose how much of each version to produce. Coca-Cola Classic quickly outsold New Coke by a margin of ten to one, and few bottlers ever reordered New Coke concentrate after that.

Despite its failure, the company held onto hope for the new recipe, rebranding it as "Coke II" and reintroducing it in 1992. But why did they insist on sticking with such a widely disliked product? Although not officially confirmed, it was believed that New Coke (and Coke II) was cheaper to produce. According to *The Real Thing: Truth and Power at the Coca-Cola Company*, after New Coke launched in select markets, Pepsi’s chemists analyzed the formula and discovered it contained fewer flavor oils and less vanilla. This reduction was estimated to save Coke around $50 million annually by cutting back on some of its most expensive ingredients.

Changing the name didn’t improve matters, and Coke II was gradually produced by fewer bottlers before being discontinued for good in 2002. Occasionally, unopened bottles may appear on eBay, but don’t bother buying one for a taste test. Coke II tasted almost identical to New Coke: sweet, but flat.