Diet Coke Plus More Like a Negative

By Laura Oppenheimer in Food on Apr 23, 2007 2:00PM

Chicagoist is always interested in finding the newest ways to consume caffeine (one of the major food groups in our current diet). We grabbed a box of the new Diet Coke Plus(DCP) at Jewel this weekend and figured it was worth a try. Diet Coke (the regular kind) is a staple for us, and we figured that the new vitamin- and mineral-infused version could only be an added benefit.

How wrong we were. From what we tried, DCP is destined to be the black sheep of the entire Coke family. Our first thought as we tried a chilled can was that the cola tasted flat, even fresh out of the can. A second sip confirmed our first impression. DCP was also sweeter than regular Diet Coke; the sweetness level was closer to full-calorie Coca Cola. We also found the flavor to be less complex than Diet Coke's flavor.

Finally, we take umbrage with the entire concept of DCP. Soda is bad for you (and us!). We've always known that it (like cigarettes, alcohol and fried foods) isn't healthy. Drinking a screwdriver may give us some vitamin C, but we don't kid ourselves into thinking that those precious vitamins somehow negate the unhealthy effects of the vodka. Chicagoist says "thanks, no thanks" to DCP; from now on we'll take our Diet Coke straight up, with a side of Centrum.