6 Sodas Boomers Miss Drinking

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If you've currently got a can of Coca-Cola chilling in your fridge right now, you're far from alone. The beverage is, unsurprisingly, the most popular soda in the country. And it's been that way for some time. The drink first hit the market in the late 1880s, and to be frank, people haven't stopped drinking it (and its successors, like Diet Coke and Cherry Coke) since. But not every soda brand can be Coca-Cola.

Many sodas have been and gone over the years. In the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s, for example, when many Boomers were children, teens, or young adults, the choice of soda available looked pretty different in many ways. Sure, Coca-Cola was around, but there were also several now-discontinued brands of root beer, diet soda, and orange sodas that people loved. We scanned social media to find the sodas that Boomers really miss from their youth, and you can find the results of our investigation below.

Today, root beer is everywhere. Globally, the industry was valued at more than $728 million in 2021, and by 2030, it could exceed $1 billion (per Grand View Research). But while it might feel like it's been around forever, root beer as we know it today wasn't actually invented until the late 1800s. Long story short: Philadelphian pharmacist Charles Elmer Hires decided to create his own recipe based on traditional root beer )and ingredients that have been used in Indigenous communities since pre-colonial times), carbonate it, bottle it, and sell it commercially. His version of the drink, called Hires Root Beer, was a huge success, and became a big hit throughout the 20th century.

In fact, Hires Root Beer was still being sold when Boomers were children, teens, and young adults in the 1960s and 1970s. It's since been discontinued, but many Boomers wish they could have it back. "I try not to drink a lot of soda, but I have a sweet spot in my heart for Hires Root Beer," wrote one Facebook in a group devoted to memories of the 1960s. "I love the stuff." In another Facebook group dedicated to pretending it's still the 1970s, many reminisced on the original root beer, and some even said they try to follow Hires' recipe when they make their own today. Hires root beer disappeared sometime around 2008, when Keurig Dr Pepper acquired the brand and phased it out.

Before Diet Coke (or, as Gen Z calls it, "fridge cigarettes"), those who wanted a low-calorie, low-sugar soda reached for Tab. Also made by Coca-Cola, the diet cola drink first hit the market in the 1960s, amid growing demand for low-sugar drink options. It was a hit for decades, and was still one of the best-selling diet soft drinks on the market by the early 1980s. 

Despite this, Coca-Cola decided to launch Diet Coke in 1982. Of course, it ended up being the bigger success story in the end. Tab's popularity dwindled, and by 2020, Coca-Cola decided it was time to say goodbye, discontinuing the beverage for good.

But many still miss Tab (some even responded to the news that it was being discontinued by stockpiling cans). Many Boomers who grew up in the 1960s say the drink became an integral part of their lives. Their siblings, parents, aunts, and grandparents all loved it, and while some couldn't stand it, others couldn't get enough. "Loved a good cold Tab," one Facebooker said in a group for Boomer memories.

In between Tab hitting the market in the 1960s and Diet Coke launching in the 1980s, another beverage attempted to corner the diet soda market. This time, though, it wasn't produced by Coca-Cola, but by its biggest rival: PepsiCo. Yep, in 1975, Pepsi decided it wanted a piece of the no-sugar pie, so it launched a new beverage called Pepsi Light. The drink, which tasted like cola and lemon, was artificially flavored (of course) and contained zero calories.

According to those who tried it at the time, the overarching flavor of the drink really was lemon, which helped to make it ultra-refreshing. "In the '70s ... I'd wake up in the middle of the night and make a mad dash to the refrigerator, grab a can and chug-a-lug the whole thing," commented one YouTuber under a clip of Pepsi Light commercial from 1976. They added that they loved it so much, they still add lemon to their Pepsi today.

Sadly for fans, like many Pepsi flavors, it didn't last, and the real thing was discontinued in the 1990s. Many Boomers wish Pepsi would bring the drink back, but the brand is yet to indicate this will happen. Until then, there's always Pepsi Zero Sugar, we suppose (or maybe for the traitors, Coke Zero).

Many Boomers (and even members of the Silent Generation) have fond memories of drinking soda produced by a brand called Mission of California. In fact, some say that this particular brand, which apparently came in flavors like orange, lemon and lime, pineapple, and cream soda, is still the best soda they've ever tasted.

"Green Grocers used to have large ice chests outside the front or their stores filled [with] ice and that's where the Mission sodas were," recalls a Facebook user, who grew up in Long Island in the 1950s. "So cold and so delicious." Others remember buying them for two cents a bottle in the 1960s, and many say they provided a welcome alternative to cola-flavored drinks.

The history of Mission soda is a little hazy, but it seems that the brand started in the 1920s as the California Crushed Fruit Corporation, before rebranding to Mission of California a few decades later. Interestingly, while many American Boomers miss Mission's drinks (it was discontinued around the 1970s), the brand still lives on in Iraq, where it was introduced in the 1950s.

Before Pepsi Light, there was Teem. This drink was a little different, though, because it wasn't cola-flavored, and it wasn't sugar-free. No, Teem was actually developed by PepsiCo to compete with 7-Up, which, of course, was (and is) lemon and lime flavored. Teem hit the market in the late 1950s, and old print advertisements from the 1960s focus on promoting the clearness of the soda (yes, really, that was a selling point), as well as its zesty lemon and lime flavor, its bright green bottle, and its light, refreshing taste.

The commercials clearly worked, because many Boomers have fond memories of drinking Teem. According to those who tried it at the time, it tasted like Sprite, Sierra Mist, and, of course, 7-Up. 

"Teem was a special treat when my old man bought it for us boys," said one Redditor. "But we got the smaller bottle at the time during the mid to late 70's. Always refreshing served ice cold." Sadly for fans, Teem didn't last. It hung around for a few decades, but was discontinued in the mid-1980s due to declining sales.

Nesbitt's of California was another popular choice for many Boomers. The brand was launched in the 1920s for soda fountains, but then in the late 1930s, it started selling its orange soda by the bottle. In the decades that followed, Nesbitt's was a firm favorite for many; it was even promoted by Marilyn Monroe in the 1940s, although, granted, she wasn't a major movie star just yet. And according to some reports, it was the only orange soda sold at Disneyland for a decade after it opened in 1955.

According to many Boomers, while the brand started with orange soda, it expanded into other flavors, and many remember enjoying Nesbitt's cream soda in the 1970s, for example. "Nesbitt's cream soda was the best," declared one Facebook user in a group for La Puente's Baby Boomers. "So good." 

Nesbitt's soda's popularity faded, but it hasn't completely disappeared; it still seems to be available from vintage soda stores, like Orca Beverage, for example, but it's not widely available at mainstream retailers. That said, if you're feeling nostalgic, you will find plenty of vintage Nesbitt's merchandise on eBay.