Coke or Pepsi?

Winter, spring, summer, or autumn, soda is a year-round treat. Nothing sets the taste buds a-quivering like the sound of the top popping on a soda can soon followed by the hiss of carbonated bubbles bouncing off the inside of the aluminum canister. The carbonation is the perfect complement to the sweet flavour of the cola syrup found in Coke or Pepsi.

No matter how many brands of cola hit the market, these two giants are the most compared amongst consumers. Which is better, Coke or Pepsi? More importantly, can anyone tell the difference? I personally live in a house divided. Half of us prefer Coca-Cola products while the other half prefer ones manufactured by Pepsi Cola Company.

Invented by pharmacist John S. Pemberton in Atlanta in the late 1800s, Coca-Cola's flowing script is thanks to Pemberton's bookkeeper, Frank Robinson. Pemberton first marketed the soda as a nerve tonic to help people bounce back from exhaustion. The restorative property was likely thanks to the 9 milligrams of cocaine found in every glass - but only until after the turn of the century.

Today people around the world (except for in Cuba and North Korea) drink nearly 2 billion servings of Coca-Cola every day. The brand's estimated worth tops out at over $80 billion - more than Pepsi and Budweiser combined. (Keep in mind Pepsi also owns Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, KFC, and other restaurant chains.)

In the early 1930s, Coca-Cola's advertisers created the jolly old Saint Nick associated with the Christmas-themed advertisements and in the mid-1980s, Coca-Cola became the first soft drink in space.

Created by Caleb Bradham in his New Bern, NC drugstore in 1893, it was renamed from Brad's Drink to Pepsi after two of its primary ingredients - pepsin, a digestive enzyme that helps break down food in the stomach, and kola nuts, which are a type of fruit that naturally contains caffeine. The original recipe also included sugar to sweeten the concoction and vanilla to help temper that sweetness. As the country entered the Great Depression in the early 1930's, Pepsi adopted a new slogan - Pepsi Cola Hits the Spot - and boy did it ever!

Due to the high price of sugar in the wake of the first World War, the company found itself entering bankruptcy. Pepsi Cola combined generosity, ingenuity, and old-fashioned competitiveness to create an advertising campaign that offered a 12-ounce bottle of Pepsi for the same price as a 6.5-ounce bottle of Coca-Cola. They marketed the new ads to anyone trying to save money. (Honestly, who doesn't want to save money?) Within two years' time the company doubled their profits and resolved their bankruptcy status.

People around the world drink Pepsi in a wide range of flavors. While Americans like me are familiar with Cherry Pepsi, here are some other varieties: mango, mojito, pineapple lemon, spicy ginger, monkey bread, strawberry milk, chestnut, apple, cappuccino ice cream, hot cinnamon and cool mint, vanilla, and caramel.

Now it's your turn to weigh in on the matter. Which do you prefer - Coke or Pepsi? Stake your claim in the poll below.