You’re probably familiar with the concept of “nitro” beverages. When the carbonation concept spread from beer to cold brew, it officially became the cool drink order of choice. How many times have you heard someone ask their barista, “Um, do you have that in [?] nitro?” Pretty soon, you’ll also be able to ask for nitro soda.
Yep, Pepsi is introducing the first-ever nitrogen-infused soft drink, aptly named Nitro Pepsi.
A quick science lesson: Nitro bubbles are smaller than the usual carbon dioxide bubbles you find in soda. That means a few things: For starters, they lend a creamier mouthfeel to beverages than that of CO2. And unlike carbon dioxide (which is slightly acidic), nitrogen actually makes drinks seem sweeter, because it reduces the perception of bitterness. Without any palate-scrubbing CO2, we have to wonder if Nitro Pepsi will lack the refreshing guzzle-ability of a standard soda.
What all of this ~science~ means for Nitro Pepsi, we’re not entirely sure. We’ll admit, we’re not really in the market for a sweeter-tasting Pepsi. (The original is sweet enough, thank you very much.) But according to one taste-tester at Food & Wine, the prototype looks like a Guinness and tastes kind of like an ice cream float, sans any actual dairy. Now you’re talking.
While the beverage is still very much in development stages, BevNet reports that it will eventually be available in both classic and vanilla flavors—and Pepsi has confirmed that samples will be available at this weekend’s Super Bowl in Atlanta (aka Coca-Cola country).
