Rumor has it that soda fountains at a handful of fuel stations and comfort shops throughout the Midwest are serving a thicker, extra syrupy variant—with additional sweetness.
Aptly dubbed “heavy soda,” the drink choice will be traced again to a singular put up on the subreddit r/Soda and some TikTok videos. “You realize when the fuel station fountains have this selection, you’re in God’s nation,” creator Kate Boyer wrote within the caption of a post earlier this 12 months. The video has since gained virtually 7 million views. The drink has lately been reported on by plenty of news organizations.
To not be confused with the current dirty soda or protein soda tendencies, heavy soda is all about dialing up sweetness and taste (additionally rumored to be the secret recipe behind McDonald’s fountain Coke superiority to all different kinds of Coke).
The soda fountain supposedly dispenses an additional blast of syrup, leading to a sweeter, extra concentrated model of standard sodas like Pepsi, Mountain Dew, and Dr Pepper. Taking it a step additional, one TikToker, an worker at a movie show, even claimed that coworkers skipped the water altogether and drank straight from the Mountain Dew syrup fountain.
Some commenters have taken this as a chance to dunk on America’s candy tooth tradition. “Heavy soda is essentially the most American tradition,” one wrote. “God’s nation is the explanation we will’t have free healthcare,” one other wrote.
Many, nevertheless, protested their innocence, claiming they’ve by no means seen the heavy choice out within the wild. “I’ve lived in and been all around the South most of my life, and I’ve by no means heard of or seen this wherever,” one Reddit consumer responded. “This should be some very backwoods rural space place.”
It appears many of the confirmed sightings have been in Missouri. “For everybody asking, Heavy Pepsi is a Missouri factor,” one wrote. One other responded: “I’ve seen it in Missouri fuel stations south of St. Louis. I attempted the ‘heavy’ Mountain Dew. It’s manner higher than it must be.”
One other defined that the fountain choice is good for many who want their Huge Gulp to final all day, with the ice diluting the heavy soda over time to the right ratio, thereby avoiding a watered-down drink by the tip of the day.
Viral soda recipes?
Whereas heavy soda might not have caught on in different elements of the U.S. simply but, firms like McDonald’s and Crumbl Cookies are trialing their very own variations of viral soda recipes to capitalize on the social media-fueled frenzy for ultra-customized and made-to-order drinks.
Drinks have been one of many hottest development companies for U.S. eating places, The Wall Avenue Journal reported, with gross sales up 9.6% in 2024, the largest annual improve of any restaurant class. At Starbucks, one-quarter of the chain’s customized drinks offered within the U.S. have greater than three buyer modifications—like an additional shot or pump of flavored syrup, an organization spokeswoman lately instructed The New York Times.
In an period of personalization and “little deal with” tradition, an off-the-shelf soda now not hits the identical.
