Coca Cola flavour, a blend of vanilla, cassia, Lemon, Lime, nutmeg and extracts from cola nut and cocoa leaves.

Once again I m amazed of how much of its formula is published on the web, is there no secrets?

Coca cola formula

Background

So there I was....walking through the Carousel Bar at Tales of the Cocktail 2009 when I happened upon Chris McMillian. I stopped and had a brief chat with him. During the conversation he asked me about using phosphoric acid or "acid phosphates" in cocktails, like they used to use at the old soda fountains. The term "phosphates" usually means the salts of phosphoric acid, and not pure phosphoric acid. I said I'd look into it for him.

Well I have, Chris doesn't know it yet, and that question led me to rediscover a lost part of American history, that is so very closely intertwined with bartending and cocktails.

I was originally going to write a few posts about it here, but there was so much information I just kept writing and it turned into a book, titled "Fix the Pumps". Hence by sporadic posting of late. Right now there are 160 pages of information and recipes, not including the cover, indexes and table of contents.

The goal is to have it completed sometime in October. I'm planning on following Gary Regans' lead and self-publishing since I couldn't be bother to deal with publishers at this point. Not that I'm against them, but this way I get the story out that I want. That's good for those of you who read Art of Drink regularly, maybe not so good for overall sales, but we'll see.

If anyone calls it "vanity publishing" I'll have to remind them I'm a "blogger", which means I don't write for money. The three digit revenue stream barely covers my Internet and hosting, and it sure the hell doesn't cover my annual liquor costs. I write because I like to share information, but the attention is a nice perk. Anyway, I'll have more info on the book shortly.

Aromatic Spirits of Ammonia

Aromatic Spirit of Ammonia is a combination of ammonium carbonate and ammonia, as a 10% solution of ammonium hydroxide, mixed with water, alcohol and the essential oils of lemon, nutmeg and lavender. After diluting with the water and alcohol, the free ammonia concentration is around 1%. Once mixed in an 8 ounce drink it is very diluted, around 0.02%. Just enough to be noticeable.

It was often used as an antacid, for America's communal case of dyspepsia  in the 1800's. The mixture has a basic pH, so it neutralized stomach acid very effectively. Besides the stomach soothing application, it was used for a variety of other conditions, like nervousness, hysteria, mild drunkenness and hangovers.

Yep, it was used, in the 1800's, to help people who got a bit tipsy at the saloon and needed a little clarity to get home. Most of the documents state that it did nothing for truly intoxicated persons, but those who were just a bit buzzed could benefit. It was also helpful to remove the hangover mind fog and invigorate the senses.

For the nervous and easily overwhelmed, Aromatic Spirit of Ammonia was the Xanax of the Victorian era. If a person was hysterical or fainted, a dose of aromatics was given STAT! If you were taking your first trip in a dirigible, a splash in some sweetened soda water might steel the nerves and obviate nausea. Basically, the whole class of ammonia compounds were thought to ease anxiety.

But there's more! Aside from all of those wondrous properties, Aromatic Spirit of Ammonia was also used as a mild, short term, energizer. If you were feeling pooped and a little in the dumps, a full dose would help get your groove back.

I haven't done a first hand experiment to verify the veracity of Aromatic Spirit of Ammonia's powers, but the next bender I go on, I'll try to remember to test for hangover improvement.

As for the energizing properties, I'm drinking an Ammonia Coke now, and I am writing this post; therefore it must work, it's a miracle! Actually, I was feeling a little tired when I came home today, and the thought of flopping on the chesterfield, watching TV, and gorging on junk food did cross my mind. Then I remembered I cancelled cable last year so I could be more productive. That's probably why I'm writing.

I could also be energized by the mere act of playing with chemicals and then drinking them. Don't try this at home kids, I'm an invincible super-being.....ahhh, ok, maybe I'm just a little off my rocker, but I did a lot of research on this and feel comfortable with the resulting product. My recommendation for everyone else is to go buy Aromatic Spirit of Ammonia at the pharmacy or on the Internet.

So what does an Ammonia Coke taste like? Well, it's actually pretty decent. I used a part dose of 20 drops (1ml) to test it out first. The full dose is 3 scruples; 3.75ml; or about ¾ of a teaspoon, in a glass of Coke. The neutralizing properties are evident as the acidity of the Coca-Cola is reduced, not in a bad way though. The ammonia is perceptible, and might be a little more obvious when using a larger measure. There is potential for wider use, but more experimentation is needed. The most important part is that it does knock out the acidity of drinks.

And about the magical properties? Sorry no purple dragons and I haven't cleaned up my desk. I am feeling mellow, but I suspect the late nights and early mornings are probably making me groggy.

The morning menu: three cups of coffee, a Corpse Reviver and an Ammonia Coke. If that doesn't get you going, nothin' will!

 

 

From DDWillianson's web site

 

Carbonated Soft Drinks

Caramel Color in Carbonated Soft Drinks

Caramel color is the most widely-used colorant in the food industry. The flavor and beverage sector represents the largest user of caramel color.

Selecting the appropriate Caramel Color Caramel color first and foremost delivers color and provides “eye appeal”. Caramel provides that color which looks refreshing and entices customers to purchase the beverage. The first choice for soft drink formulators is one of the Class IV caramels. They are negatively-charged with a wide range of color intensities and shades - from red to black. The shade is determined by the caramel manufacturing formulation and measured as Hue Index. The higher the Hue Index value (Class IV caramels range from 4.2 to 5.9), the redder the product. Within any one class of caramel color, there exists an inverse relationship between color intensity (darkness) and hue (redness).

Caramel in aqueous solutions like soft drinks must be chemically-tailored to be compatible with other ingredients. Soft drinks normally carry negatively-charged particles because of tannins derived from plant material, root, bark, etc. Therefore, a negatively-charged caramel should be selected. An important parameter is the isoelectric point or the pH at which the colloidal charge is electrically neutral. Soft drinks need a caramel with an isoelectric point below the pH of the beverage to avoid flocculation/precipitation. A Class IV caramel has an Isoelectric Point between pH 0.5 and 2.0.

Malta, a soft drink common in Latin America, represents one of the exceptions as it requires a Class III caramel (such as DDW # 300 or DDW # 304). The Isoelectric Point of a Class III caramel is between pH 5.0 and 7.0. Malta, a positively-charged product, has a pH around 4.0. So, to avoid flocculation/precipitation one needs a higher isoelectric point to keep the charge positive.

Some beverage designers choose one of the Class I caramels (such as DDW # 525 or DDW # 528) for higher hue - more red to yellow tones. The Class I caramels, which have slightly-negative charge and low color intensity, are stable in non-colas if the beverage is above pH 3.5.

Caramel in Soft Drink Concentrates

In addition to the obvious function of delivering color, caramel helps to protect flavors from light deterioration. Caramel color also acts as an emulsifying agent in the preparation of soft drink concentrates to reduce the need for gums. A water-insoluble flavoring agent may be added to caramel or vice versa. Sufficient caramel solids must be present to emulsify flavor. A flavor which contains a high percentage of terpenes (e.g., orange oil) is more difficult to emulsify and will require a greater proportion of caramel solids than an agent containing a small amount of terpenes (e.g., distilled lime oil). Generally all the water - necessary to serve as the aqueous phase for the emulsification of the flavor -is present in the volume of caramel used. However, one can add more water to adjust the viscosity of the mixture. Most commonly, a homogenizer accomplishes the emulsification. During the emulsification the water-insoluble flavors break into very small particles with diameters ranging from as high as 10 microns to below 1 micron. For a carbonated soft drink application, the average diameter of these particles should be less than 1 micron to achieve a stable emulsion.

Emulsion breakdowns are usually caused by the flavor oils. Flavor emulsion breakdowns of large particles will precipitate to the bottom of the beverage container. Breakdowns of small particles could cause a “plug” or “ring” in the neck of the beverage bottle.

Most Class IV powders (such as DDW # 602 or DDW # 610) are stable in phosphoric acid and citric acid. Formulators select powdered caramel color in some beverage systems. The majority prefers liquid caramel for its economy.

Concentrates for soft drinks can be either one-part or two-part systems with caramel color in one or both parts.

Cola product developers usually select double-strength (such as DDW # 050 or DDW #055) caramel for its high color intensity and economy. Some believe single-strength’s (such as DDW # 105 or DDW # 108) higher specific gravity contributes “body” to the mouth feel of the cola beverage. Double-strength caramel meets the low caloric value requirements of “diet” or “light” cola formualtions.

Caramel Dosage Rates in Finished Soft Drinks

Although the task of caramel color in the finished beverage is primarily color, its impact on taste can be significant. Because of the high cost of concentrate ingredients and possible negative interactions if the caramel is not of consistent quality, it does not make economic sense to sacrifice quality for cost. Problems can cost many times the cost of the caramel color.

Cola Flavor Concentrate

A one-part, cola flavor concentrate contains the following typical ingredients:

• 20 to 60% Water
• 30 to 70% Caramel Color Class IV (normally contains 53% to 66% solids)
• 5 to 10% of the following: Phosphoric acid, Kola nut extract, Caffeine, Gum arabic or other gum
• One or more of:  Lemon oil, Lime oil, Orange oil
• One or more of: Casia oil, Cinnamon oil, Clove oil, Coriander oil, Neroli oil, Nutmeg oil