(“Keeping TaB: A Diet Soft Drink Shelf Life,” Journal of American & Comparative Cultures, March 2004– by George Plasketes)
“If there’s a heritage to a brand and the brand has withstood the test of time maybe there’s a story to tell.”
Jeffrey Himmel, CEO, Himmel Group, New York
Since its formulation in 1963, the Coca-Cola Company’s offspring, Tab, has transcended standard diet soft drink status to become a quirky yet enduring cultural icon that invites contradiction, curiosity, and anachronistic quips. Taste tests alone yield divergent responses along the soft drink spectrum. Self-professed Tabaholics pronounce the beverage an “elixir of the gods,” likening a sip to a “crisp Chardonnay” (McKay B1). More cautious, less complimentary cola connoisseurs characterize Tab’s taste as “sassy” (Giges, “Why Coke” 2), “mysterious” (Bryant), or “a good tart coke” (Allen 320), while dissenters dismiss Tab with distasteful descriptions such as “diety,””peppery,””astringent,” and “metallic” (McKay B1). Likewise, Tab’s presence at the grocery check-out lanes invites contrasting glances from bar-code scanning clerks, often defined along generational lines, the older response being, “I didn’t know they still made that stuff,” while the standard younger remark is, “Oh, is this a new drink?” 1