Top 10 Bad Beverage Ideas

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New Coke

Depending on who you ask, it was one of the greatest marketing blunders in history (as most would say) or an unlikely stroke of corporate genius (as a diehard few still maintain). Either way, April 23, 1985, stands as one of the most significant dates in business history — the date the 99-year-old Coca-Cola company announced it was scrapping its original soda formula for a newer, sweeter version. In blind taste tests, consumers generally preferred "new Coke" over the original drink and competitor Pepsi, but the company severely underestimated the nation's sentimental attachment to the iconic American brand — especially in the South, where Dr. John Pemberton first concocted the fizzy drink in 1886. After being flooded with phone calls, 40,000 letters and reams of bad press, the company backtracked three months later, announcing the return of Coca-Cola "classic" — news that TV anchor Peter Jennings interrupted General Hospital to bring to the nation. Sales for the original Coca-Cola surged, restoring it as the dominant leader in the nation's competitive soda market. The reviled replacement drink stuck around and was later rebranded "Coke II" before eventually fading away.

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Coors Rocky Mountain Sparkling Water

According to its promotional materials, Coors has brewed its iconic American lager with Rocky Mountain spring water since 1873. A hundred and seventeen years later, the company decided to skip a few steps. Tapping into the booming bottled-water market, the beer conglomerate introduced Rocky Mountain Sparkling Water — but unwisely kept the Coors logo front and center on the label, making it impossible not to worry about driving home after a heavy dose of H2O. Sales for the water, which came in original, lemon-lime and cherry flavors, did poorly. The beverage was eventually discontinued, but it did have at least one fan. A Woman's Day reader responded to an article in April 2009 about dud products by saying, "That Coors Sparkling Water was the best sparkling water I ever bought. It was very wet, and thirt [sic] quenching. When we heard it was being discontinued, we bought up every case we could in town, but alas, quickly drank through them. Almost 20yr [sic] later, and I still miss it."

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Cocaine

A drink called Cocaine, marketed as a "legal alternative" to the drug? Add in 350% more caffeine than a can of Red Bull and a throat-numbing ingredient to simulate the effects of the drug, and it sounds like you've got a recipe for a real beverage winner. The FDA disagreed, and in 2007 briefly mandated that the drink could no longer be marketed under the Cocaine name. Its name was changed to Censored and eventually Insert Name Here (no doubt inviting customers to come up with their own, less flattering name), but it was pulled from shelves altogether later that year. Like its namesake, though, the drink may have proved a hard habit to quit: it is apparently being sold again under its original name.

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