Tim Murtaugh

For some reason, I am able to distinguish every diet soda from every other, so, to me, the vast Coke line-up makes sense. Try to serve me Diet Pepsi and I’ll spit it out. Rapidly.

However, for those who aren’t diet soda prodigies, Leslie Harpold has provided a nice list of descriptions for each product.

» Demystifying Diet Coke(s) (via)

For those living in a cave, Coke now has 5 low-calorie options:

1. Diet Coke (the classic — turns out it’s the New Coke formula, ha!)
2. Diet Coke with Splenda (I’m normally a Splenda fan, especially in ice cream, but I can’t stand it in Diet Coke)
3. C2 (the half-sugar cola)
4. Coca Cola Zero (the sugar-free version of the Classic formula)
5. Coke Light (the Euro version)

I don’t think it’s worth discussing the flavor variants (and neither did Leslie, apparently), like Lime and Lemon. They aren’t brands unto themselves, just supplements.

Historically I’ve been a Diet Coke man, well, unless I’m at a restaurant with a fountain, whereupon I order regular Coke because I prefer the fountain formula for regular Coke (especially from McDonald’s — I don’t know why, I think it’s the really fat straws) to the fountain formula of Diet Coke, which I don’t care for at all. Recently I have made the jump to Coke Zero — it has less of the sweetener tang, to my mind.

And that’s all that really needs to be said on that subject for a few years, I’d guess.