14 Cola Brands, Ranked Worst To Best

As far as soft drinks go, it's hard to dispute that cola sits atop the throne. With a flavor base that starts with the kola nut — hence the name — this particularly popular pop drink got its start via a pharmacist in Atlanta, Georgia in the late 1800s. John S. Pemberton saw the potential of combining the kola nut's flavor and caffeinated qualities with a certain stimulant. That stimulant happened to be cocaine, which was removed from the product in 1905, but it also serves to explain the moniker of Coca-Cola. The result was an appealing tonic that has been consumed in parts of three centuries and has had many copycats attempt to replicate or top the classic formula. But, despite the two behemoths that have the market cornered on cola — Coca-Cola and Pepsi — many brands have stood the test of time over the past century and have loyal followings within their local regions. And, many still have national distribution.

Beyond the requisite kola nut, it's up to the cola brewer to decide which aromatics and spices to throw into the blend to make it unique. Traces of cinnamon, coriander, nutmeg, and citrus oils could make appearances. And while there are plenty of diet varieties and colas that add syrups for an extra layer of flavor, we preferred to stick to a taste test that ranks straightforward, no frills cola. After careful scrutiny, here is how we would rank the ones we tried.

Boylan traces its roots back to 1891 in Paterson, New Jersey, where William Boylan began hawking a birch beer elixir to the locals. These days, the birch beer remains and various seltzers, tonics, ginger beer, creme soda, and cola have joined its ranks. 

There were plenty of fireworks when we poured Boylan Cane Cola. It had an impressive amount of noisy, foamy head at the top of the glass, and below that was a rich, almost opaque mahogany color. But, that big burst of fizz died down almost immediately, and after only a minute, we found the cane sugar cola from Boylan to be rather flat. 

Flavor-wise, without checking the ingredients, we picked up on licorice — but after consulting the label, it contains oils from orange, lemon, and lime, as well as a gentle amount of nutmeg, coriander, and surprisingly, lavender. Its spice forward notes could have fooled us into thinking we were drinking root beer if we didn't know better, so we would rank it a bit lower because it had some unfamiliar qualities we wouldn't necessarily associate with cola. We also found it to be rather cloyingly sweet courtesy of the sugar cane. There's a slight tang there, but overall it wasn't as evenly balanced as some of the other colas we tried. The finish of the sip also didn't end on a particularly high note and we found the mouthfeel to be rather watery.

If we had a scale to measure carbonation levels, we think the cola from Fever-Tree would be off the charts. This is not your standard cola, and it's mostly due to its intense fizziness. There were immediately tons of bubbles and crackling sizzle upon the pour. And then, when we took a sip, there were fireworks on the tongue — it reminded us of the experience of eating Pop Rocks.

Fever-Tree's cola was a lighter shade of brown compared to other colas that we tried — it was more of a burnt caramel tone rather than a dark amber or fiery red. Considering that this cola was designed to complement alcohol — specifically whiskey and bourbon — it makes sense that the recipe wouldn't deviate too far from the accepted standard cola ingredients and instead put its focus on being bubbly and fun. And we would say that the mission was accomplished.

We'll place it a bit lower in the rankings because while it serves a specific purpose, at a price point of around $6 for a four pack at the time of publication, we wouldn't say that it's worth a purchase — money doesn't grow on trees, or Fever-Trees. Unless you are over 21 years old and extra fanatical about the blend of liquor and cola, you might want to save your cash.

Primarily known for its root beer and cream soda, the Milwaukee, Wisconsin based Sprecher Brewing Co. also offers up their unique spin on cola, which they've dubbed Puma Kola. In addition to glucose syrup, what makes this cola distinct from the competition is the inclusion of local Wisconsin honey to provide a kick of sweetness — and it also gives this craft soda extra authenticity if you're going with the craft description. But, we wouldn't rank it quite as high as some of the other colas we tried — the honey element was a bit off putting.

Visually, it has a dark amber hue — almost a burgundy red. There's a strong nose to the drink before you take the first sip, and it has plenty of fizz. In terms of mouthfeel, it's slightly dry, though not necessarily in a bad way — true to the ferocious puma featured on the label, it does have a bit of bite. While it's not labeled as being cherry flavored, it does take us to that place. It tasted a bit like liquefied Red Vines with a slight pucker in the finish, and upon checking the label, that's due to the presence of citric acid.

All due respect to Pepsi for going toe to toe with Coca-Cola for so many years. While the latter brand literally created the cola soda pop industry, Pepsi has continually refused to back down and play second fiddle and has come up with all sorts of ways to remain competitive. The Cola Wars of the 1980s was the focus of a documentary series. Any '90s kids out there remember Crystal Pepsi? Who can forget the ad campaigns fronted by the likes of Michael Jackson, Cindy Crawford, and Britney Spears? Cut to 2023 and you'll find Nitro Pepsi for those who just can't get enough foam.

But in a taste test, how does Pepsi cola compare to its rival or to other mass market colas? Or how does it compare to the craft and artisan colas? Stacked up against the others, we found it to be sharply and pungently flavored with tons of fizzle. We picked up on some orange and slightly bitter notes, but not enough to be offensive. In general, it felt safe and familiar but not intriguing, and we would put it in the middle of our rankings for those reasons.

Fentimans got its start in 1905 when Thomas Fentiman acquired a recipe for ginger beer from a fellow who owed him payment on a loan — that deal turned out to be a bargain because more than 100 years later, the brand is still standing with a line of beverages beyond ginger beer, which also happens to include a delicious cola.

And, we think it's appropriate that the company's logo features a tough looking dog — Thomas Fentiman's dog named Fearless — because this cola has some bite. Beyond that, Curiosity Cola is an apt moniker because this cola contains a lot of interesting components. When you take a sip and then glance at the label only to see that this botanical-based recipe features herbal extracts, the immediate reaction is, "Yep, that makes sense." In general, there's a lot to unpack here because this cola takes you on a ride. There is a hefty amount of spice. Cinnamon and ginger both come through rather prominently. We would rank this cola higher on the list because it stays true to the formula, but is assertive with its flavor without being overly aggressive.

"Drink it for vim & vigor!" doth sayeth the label emblazoned on Triple Cola from Orca Beverage, Inc. And, we would agree. Though this slogan goes all the way back to 1921, we found that it holds true to this day. It certainly gave us a strong caffeine boost and put some major pep in our step, and that's why it's sitting higher at the top of our rankings.

Triple Cola gives you a jolt to the senses, and it's not just courtesy of the caffeine. We found that it has an especially jubilant burst of the expected cola flavors, but also hints of cinnamon, mint, and other herbs and spices. It's quite a potent blend that has enough going on with flavor and sugar that a single 12-ounce bottle might be worth splitting. Like a good whiskey, bourbon, scotch, or rum, it wouldn't hurt to add a cube of chilly ice to mellow out the intensity of the flavor in this particular beverage.

Royal Crown Cola is a beverage we had not had in a very long time. We held no bad or good memories of it in particular, but it just isn't quite as frequently found at the soda fountain as Coca-Cola or Pepsi. However, when we stacked it up against those Goliath competitors, we found it to be just as good, and perhaps better. 

We were particularly impressed at how much carbonation remained after leaving the two-liter bottle we purchased aside for about an hour and then giving the drink a revisit. It still remained vibrant and sparkly and we didn't find that to be true with many of the other colas we tried. It had a pleasant flavor — it didn't err with being too sweet, and had just the right amount of zesty spice and citrus notes. Perhaps when you've been at it since 1905, you know a thing or two about your craft and we would say RC deserves to wear a Royal Crown.