One of the most closely guarded trade secrets in the history of commerce may be a secret no more: NPR's "This American Life" thinks it has found the exact recipe for the world's most popular soft drink in a 1979 newspaper article.
According to the show's host, Ira Glass, the drink's secret flavoring component, which was created by pharmacist John Pemberton in 1886, is something called "Merchandise 7X." The show's staff recently stumbled across the February 8, 1979 edition of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, which published an article on page 28 about a leather-bound notebook that once belonged to Pemberton's best friend, another pharmacist in the Atlanta area named R. R. Evans. The notebook contained a number of pharmacological recipes--but the main entry, for students of commercial history, was what's believed to be the exact recipe for the soft drink: all of the ingredients listed with the exact amounts needed to whip up a batch.
So what's the secret to making Coke? Well, here's what was written in the notebook:
The recipe:
Fluid extract of Coca: 3 drams USP
Citric acid: 3 oz
Caffeine: 1 oz
Sugar: 30 (unclear quantity)
Water: 2.5 gal
Lime juice: 2 pints, 1 quart
Vanilla: 1 oz
Caramel: 1.5 oz or more for color
The secret 7X flavor (use 2 oz of flavor to 5 gals syrup):
Alcohol: 8 oz
Orange oil: 20 drops
Lemon oil: 30 drops
Nutmeg oil: 10 drops
Coriander: 5 drops
Neroli: 10 drops
Cinnamon: 10 drops
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