I bought this Tesco 30% Less Sugar Cola a few weeks ago. I spotted it just a few days after first trying, and enjoying, the new Coke Life (see my review here) which is a 30% less sugar drink madee with Stevia. Imagine my surprise when I saw this similar sounding offering from Tesco. It also contains 30% less sugar and is made with a third Stevia. Of course, it's also much (MUCH!) cheaper than the branded version but is free from any arificial colours or flavourings.
I've never actually tried any of the Tesco Cola drinks before but I interested to give this new one a try to see how it would measure up. The actual flavour of the Tesco Cola is very different to regular Coke or Coke Life, but I have to admit I still liked it. It has a more natural taste to it, and by that I mean I can almost taste the malt extracts and the fruit concentrates which are listed in the ingredients. I can imagine that a lot of Coke fans would hate this difference in taste, but for me it was still an enjoyable flavour in it's own right. I also couldn't tell that this Tesco Cola was a 30% less sugar drink at all, in fact it tasted very sweet to me. It's definitely sweeter than Coke Life itself and it doesn't have the same refreshing, and lighter tasting, quality that Coke Life has.
They Tesco Cola drinks were on a multibuy offer so I also picked up a few other interesting varieties; Tesco Xero Cola Vanilla and Tesco Xero Cola Cherry. I haven't had a chance to try these ones yet but I'll update on here when I have.
Grocery Gems Verdict: Tesco Cola 30% Less Sugar
RATING: 7 out of 10.
Buy It again?: Yes.
Nutrition: 80 calories (per 250ml).
Purchased: Tesco.
Price: £0.89p (currently on a buy one get one free offer).
I can't drink cola, because my teeth hurt me then :/
ReplyDeleteVery wise!
DeleteMe too Natalie. Ever since I was a kid I hated cola, especially the regular sugar variety. I felt like it was eroding the enamel on my teeth! I never understood why other people liked it so much.
DeleteI don't really get the point of this product. I would try if it was 100% stevia sweetened and had no added sugar. A natural diet code if you like. But 30% less sugar...its still going to have 70% as much sugar as normal Coke, which is still a huge amount. sorry for the rant, I'm quite a food snob
ReplyDeleteI suspect it's aimed at people who want to/are trying to decrease their sugar intake but do not want to have the artifical sweetners that are in diet products/no sugar products. this is the new 'buzz' as far as i can see. I dont like full sugar drinks (apart from dr pepper as dr pepper zero is useless) as they make my mouth furry, so i drink the diet/pepsi max due to that more than than sugar concerns, but people are concerned about 'fake' sugars.
DeleteThings like this are even more popular in the states where even their 'fat' versions of sodas contain fake sugars as well as real ones - 'contains real cane sugar!' is a selling point there
I can see your point. When I first heard about Coke Life I was wondering who would want a Coke made with stevia that is higher in calories than Diet Coke. However, from the feedback I've received it seems to be quite popular! I think this is because it has a lighter taste than real Coke but without the artificial taste of the diet stuff.
DeleteI'm not sure why they didn't make it 100% (or even 50%) stevia, I can only guess that it didn't taste any good!
Ive tried the tesco's own' cherry pepsi max - it's ok (and much cheaper) but i'd rather than the real stuff on offer, or limit my soda intake..
ReplyDeleteMy brother said the same thing to me when he read this review! He's not keen on the Tesco Zero range. I still haven't tried it yet!
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