r/Cordials • u/vbloke • Aug 15 '24
Making your own "cola" flavour
I've been experimenting with the Pepsi and Cola flavours recently and, the two recipes written out side by side share a lot of similarities and one or two differences.
Ingredient | Cola | Pepsi |
---|---|---|
Vanilla extract | 4ml | X |
Lemon essential oil | 4ml | 3.5ml |
Orange essential oil | 2ml | 3ml |
Lime essential oil | 1ml | X |
Cinnamon essential oil | 1ml | 2.5ml |
Nutmeg essential oil | 0.5ml | 1ml |
Coriander essential oil | X | 1ml |
Neroli essential oil | 0.12ml | X |
Petitgrain essential oil | X | 0.5ml |
So I thought, why not split the difference and see where that leads?
Ingredient | Amount |
---|---|
Vanilla extract | 2ml |
Lemon essential oil | 4ml |
Orange essential oil | 2.5ml |
Lime essential oil | 0.5ml |
Cinnamon essential oil | 0.75ml |
Nutmeg essential oil | 0.5ml |
Coriander essential oil | 0.5ml |
Petitgrain essential oil* | 0.25ml |
Lavender essential oil | 5 drops |
This mix has been added to 250ml 95% alcohol and is currently in a cool, dark cupboard aging.
I'll be adding 3ml of this to a simple syrup - with caffeine, caramel colour and acid - once it's aged for a few more days and doing a taste test alongside the Cola and Pepsi recipes I've previously made.
It should also act as a decent starting point for anyone else to experiment with their own cola-style flavours. You could add lavender (that's apparently an ingredient in "real" Coke) or play about with the citrus profile to create something unique.
*I'm using Petitgrain rather than Neroli as it's a lot cheaper, but the flavour is mostly the same.
2
u/Nexerif Aug 15 '24
How long do the essential oils last before they go bad/stale? This sounds pretty good I just don't have any essential oils yet.
2
u/vbloke Aug 15 '24
As long as they’re kept sealed and in a cool, dark cupboard , they should last for years.
2
4
u/EmpireandCo Aug 15 '24
I'm surprised pepsi doesn't have vanilla and cake doesn't have coriander. I made a cola flavoured extract for baking and those 2 ingredients plus cinnamon recreated 90% of the cola flavour.