The taste test was done in a household that loves the leading brand of Coca-Cola, but mum Zoe Chamberlain was keen to find a cheaper alternative.
In Zoe Chamberlain’s household, her husband and eldest son are die-hard fans of the original Coca-Cola.
However, Zoe’s youngest lad and herself aren’t particularly fussed, as it’s not their first choice of beverage.
Given that the original Coca-Cola is significantly pricier than supermarket own brands, Zoe was keen to see if she could find a more affordable alternative that tasted just as good.
Zoe purchased bottles of cola from Asda, Tesco, Aldi, Lidl, and Morrisons and compared them based on price, taste, ingredients and sugar content.
Interestingly, they all contained slightly different ingredients. One had no artificial sweeteners but considerably more sugar than the others, and another included aspartame, she reported to Birmingham Live.
The results
Coca-Cola
A 1.75 litre bottle of Coca-Cola costs £2.55 from Morrisons, which equates to 15p per 100ml.
The iconic beverage was initially concocted in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1886 as a “cure-all for most common ailments”.
Zoe said: “The bottle stood out from the rest as it was made with just five ingredients – carbonated water, sugar, colour (caramel E150d), acid (phosphoric acid) and natural flavourings including caffeine – compared to eight ingredients in most others.
“It was also the only one that didn’t contain any artificial sweeteners. However, each glass packed a hefty 27g of sugar – that’s nearly seven teaspoons in a single 250ml serving!”
NHS guidelines recommend adults limit their daily sugar intake to 30g – just over a single glass of Coca-Cola.
She added: “It also clocked in at 105 calories, more than double most other brands. In terms of taste, we all agreed it was refreshing with that distinctive Coca-Cola flavour. However, we docked a star for the sky-high sugar content, giving it four out of five stars.”
Aldi’s Vive Cola
Aldi’s Vive Cola is priced at 49p for a two-litre bottle, which equates to 2p per 100ml is a “massive saving” on original Coca-Cola.
It’s made from carbonated water, sugar, colour (sulphite ammonia caramel), acid (phosphoric acid), flavourings (contain caffeine), sweeteners (acesulfame K, aspartame) and the preservative potassium sorbate.
This was the only bottle to contain the artificial sweetener aspartame. Each 250ml glass contains 50 calories and 12.3g of sugar.
Zoe explained: “Aldi is usually spot-on at recreating products to taste just like the original brands. Not so with coke.
“This tasted more like cola bottle sweets than original Coca-Cola. In fact, it had an unpleasant aftertaste.
“Interestingly, this is one of the few branded items that Aldi regularly stocks alongside its own version as it’s clear that lots of people prefer the ‘real thing’. We gave it a disappointing one out of five stars.”
Morrisons’ Cola
Morrisons’ two-litre bottle costs 80p, equating to 4p per 100ml. The ingredients include carbonated water, sugar, barley malt extract, colour (plain caramel), acid (phosphoric acid), flavourings (contains caffeine), preservative (potassium sorbate), and sweeteners (acesulfame K, sucralose).
Each 250ml serving contains 50 calories and 12g of sugar – less than half the amount found in original Coca-Cola.
She said: “The taste was quite good, not overly sweet and similar to the real thing. My son noted a difference in taste but still enjoyed it. We rated it four out of five stars.”
Lidl’s Freeway Cola
This cost 49p for a two-litre bottle, which works out to 2p per 100ml – making it price-matched with Aldi.
It’s made from carbonated water, sugar, colour (sulphite ammonia caramel), acid (phosphoric acid), flavourings (contain caffeine), sweeteners (sucralose and acesulfame K) and natural flavourings.
Each 250ml serving contains 45 calories and 11.3g of sugar – less than the Aldi version.
Zoe observed: “This drink was fairly pleasant. It didn’t taste like original Coca-Cola but it was refreshing enough. We gave it a rating of 3.5 out of five stars.”
Tesco’s Classic Cola
Tesco’s offering costs 80p for a two-litre bottle, which works out to 4p per 100ml. One 250ml serving contains 44 calories and 11g of sugar – less than all the other brands.
Tesco’s drinks experts, who have been crafting colas and fizzy beverages in the UK for over 25 years, have concocted this one using a “specially developed recipe for a classic taste”.
The ingredients include carbonated water, sugar, colour (sulphite ammonia caramel), flavourings (contain caffeine), acid (phosphoric acid), sweeteners (acesulfame K, sucralose), and the preservative potassium sorbate.
Zoe said: “In my opinion, this tasted the most like original Coca-Cola but my family thought it had more of a Pepsi flavour.
“They’re not fans of Pepsi so it wasn’t a hit but, either way, it seemed the most authentic to one of the original brands. We gave it four out of five stars.”
Asda’s Classic Cola
Asda’s Classic Cola is priced at 60p for a two-litre bottle, which works out to 3p per 100ml.
Each 250ml glass contains 47 calories and 11g of sugar – “same amount of sugar as Tesco’s but still more calories”.
It’s made from carbonated water, sugar, colour (sulphite ammonia caramel), phosphoric acid, flavourings (contains caffeine), acidity regulator (sodium citrates) and sweeteners (acesulfame K and sucralose).
She added: “This was really lacking in flavour, more like drinking brown fizzy water. It wasn’t refreshing or thirst quenching so we gave it one out of 5 stars.”
Overall verdict:
Zoe said: “We conducted a blind taste test and could clearly distinguish between the original brand and the imitations. None of them quite achieved that distinctive Coca-Cola flavour.
“However, we were taken aback by the significantly higher sugar and calorie content in Coca-Cola compared to other brands.
“We concurred that Tesco’s Classic Cola was the most invigorating of all supermarket own brands, making it a superior alternative to the ‘real thing’ – and with considerably less sugar.
“Priced at 80p per bottle, as opposed to £2.55, it’s £1.75 cheaper. If purchased weekly, this could result in an annual saving of £91, which is a substantial amount.”
