Coke doesn’t just want to be your fizzy drink of choice – they want to be your night-out drink of choice as well. While at first it might seem like a Four Loko-esque bad idea, sure to end up with teenagers in the hospital wasted with through-the-roof heart rates, it’s not going to be simply what it sounds like, i.e. caffeinated beverage + alcohol in a can.
Or, wait. Sorry. That’s actually exactly what it’s going to be.
The drink will be sold exclusively in Japan, and, while the launch date is still unknown, we do know that “Chu-Hi” will be shōchū (a spirit made usually from rice, and extremely popular in Japan) mixed with flavor and carbonated water.
Booze and cola in a can (or bottle).
Though, important to note, the flavors won’t be limited to just the classic coke – Chu-Hi’s will be available in kiwi, grape, and cream soda as well.
Much more interesting, presumably, than your standard rum and coke.
But, we probably won’t be seeing in the United States, let alone Minnesota, any time soon. As Jorge Garduño, the current president of Coca-Cola Japan, said in a statement, Chu-Hi is, for now, only “a modest experiment for a specific slice of our market.”
I.e., Japan. And only Japan. Fine, Jorge.
Though, as Americans drink far more than average coke products every year (like 4x as much), it certainly would find a fairly enthusiastic market here.
We’ll keep it in mind on our next trip to the Far East.
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