Coke hopes to excite younger drinkers with new raspberry-flavoured Coca-Cola Spiced

American snacks are becoming spicier, and Coca-Cola is joining the trend. On Wednesday, the beverage company from Atlanta introduced Coca-Cola Spiced, a new addition to its North American range. Coca-Cola Spiced and its zero-sugar variant will be available in the US and Canada from February 19.

Coca-Cola Spiced is not particularly hot. The main flavour is raspberry. Coca-Cola has added spices to the drink, but the company is not revealing what they are. They taste similar to the spices in regular Coca-Cola, but more intense.

Shakir Moin, Coca-Cola's North American marketing chief, said in a recent interview with The Associated Press, "Consumers' taste palettes have evolved. We saw this as an opportunity. Can we enhance something that is already part of our formula and create a taste profile that is interesting, unique, and appeals to the next generation of consumers?"

In 2022, Coca-Cola launched Coca-Cola Creations, a series of eight limited-edition flavours in colourful cans and bottles, as part of its efforts to attract younger drinkers. The company experimented with adding hints of various flavours, including coconut, strawberry, and watermelon.

The latest product, Coca-Cola Happy Tears, has salt and mineral flavours. It will be sold exclusively through TikTok on 17 February in the US and Great Britain.

Moin said customer research for Coca-Cola Creations contributed to the development of Coca-Cola Spiced. It usually takes at least a year for Coca-Cola to develop a new beverage, but Coca-Cola Spiced was developed in just seven weeks. The company hopes to maintain this speed with future products.

Moin said, "Consumers and the market are moving quickly. We need to move faster than the market."

By RSS/AP