Coke Fans in a Fizz Over New Formula

Patricia Kenyon, a Coke drinker for more than 40 years, was bubbling with anger.

“It’s like tearing down the Statue of Liberty!” said the distraught Anaheim woman. She was reacting to the news that the giant Coca-Cola Co. is dumping its 99-year-old formula for a sweeter-tasting drink.

“As far as I’m concerned, Coke is an American institution, and I don’t like our institutions being tampered with.”

Kenyon made it clear that she is not alone, adding, “My cleaning lady also objects.”

So does Joann Erickson, a Santa Ana homemaker with three decades of loyalty to Coca-Cola under her belt.

“I can’t stand for them to change my Coke,” Erickson confided, shaking her head as she pondered a future without her favorite soft drink. “I don’t know what I’ll do.” Then, with a firm grip on her shopping cart, she said, “I’ll stock up on the old Coke as much as I can . . . as long as it’s on sale.”

Orange County residents can expect to see the new Coke in restaurants and stores as early as this weekend, but both the old and the new formulas will remain locked in a vault.

During four years of research, the Atlanta-based company surveyed more than 190,000 consumers in 25 cities. A blind taste test found that people preferred the new, slightly sweeter and less fizzy Coke by 55% to 45%. When they knew it was Coke they were sampling, 61% of the tasters chose the new one.

Many people believed the new formula was a signal that Coke --still the No. 1-selling soft drink in the world--is nervous about Pepsi Cola’s rising popularity. Not the Nelsons of Orange, however.

“I don’t think they’re running scared from Pepsi,” said Nelson, 41, who, with his wife, Melinda, founded the Orange County chapter of the Cola Clan--a group of almost 3,000 Coke aficionados around the world. The Nelsons hold one share in the company “to know what’s going on” and have made a business of selling old soda pop advertising from their store in Orange.

‘A Little Prejudice

“Of course, I have a little prejudice toward Coke,” said Melinda Nelson. She was wearing a striped Coke shirt that was once worn by a Pennsylvania delivery truck driver. “I think people will like the new Coke just as much.”

Company officials acknowledged that there will be some initial resistance to the change from a few loyal customers. But they are confident that the customers will be won over to the new Coke--even if there are 10 more calories in a 12-ounce can.

However, some of the faithful, like Patricia Kenyon, may never be convinced.

“It’ll never replace a martini,” Kenyon said, trying to cheer herself with a more philosophical approach to the subject of soft drinks.

“But when you want a Coke, you want a Coke.”