Coca-Cola Discontinues 'Permanent' New Flavor After Just Months

Coca-Cola has pulled the plug on its latest "permanent" flavor, Coca-Cola Spiced, not six months after launching the variation. The spiced flavor was introduced in North America back in February, marking the first time the company had debuted a new flavor permanently in more than three years, since Coca-Cola Cherry Vanilla was added to the lineup in early 2020.

The drink was marketed as having the "classic taste of Coca-Cola with refreshing bursts of raspberry and a curated blend of warm spiced flavors," in an effort to attract younger consumers with more adventurous palates. However, critics of the flavor, which came in both regular and Zero Sugar, argued that the "spice" was minimal and that the artificial raspberry flavor was overwhelming.

In a statement, Coca-Cola said that it was "always looking at what our customers like and adjusting" its flavors accordingly. In fact, Coca-Cola Spiced was introduced as a permanent addition after research found that an “increase in consumer willingness to try a spiced beverage" and that raspberry had been selected more than five million times on Freestyle drink machines in 2022. The company often uses its touch screen soda fountains to gauge new flavors.

“As part of this strategy, we’re planning to phase out Coca-Cola Spiced to introduce an exciting new flavor in 2025,” said a company spokesperson, via CNN.

Sue Lynne Cha, Coca-Cola's vice president of marketing for North America, previously noted that consumers were "looking for more bold flavors and more complex flavor profiles." She added: "That’s a trend we started to see in food but also in beverage, and we thought that was a unique space for us to play in."

In the meantime, for those looking to get their quirky Coca-Cola fix before the new flavor debuts next year, the company currently still offers a number of limited edition options such as the new Oreo collaboration that debuted last month, as well as Y3000, Dreamworld, and K-Wave.