How Do I Open This Crazy Thing?

Back in the late 70's, we had to make a big adjustment in how we opened our soft drink cans.  An alternative to the pull top rings had just been discovered and was being rolled out to thirsty consumers.  The stay-on-tab was introduced.

But how would the average consumer know how to use the new-fangled contraption?  By reading the instructions on the can, of course.

I currently have two cans that fall into the "OI" classification, or Opening Instructions.  The first is the Pepsi can above from 1977.  The other is the Coke can below from 1978.

It's been over thirty years now since the stay-on-tab was introduced.  What could the next innovation be?  Or have we reached beverage can perfection? 

Current Excitement: Arabic Cans

I'm close to sealing a deal with a fellow collector who is currently visiting the Middle East.  He put out an offer to send Arabian cans back to the United States.  So I jumped on that offer.

These are some of the soda cans he has.  He also has at least this many non-alcoholic malt beverage cans.  Since those contain no alcohol, they technically fall within the guidelines of cans I collect.  So I told him I'm interested in everything he has.

Barring any jaw-dropping shipping charges, we'll be sealing this deal soon.  I'll be sure to write a follow-up post whether I get the set or not. 

Can Watch: Dr Pepper Ten

Dr Pepper Ten

I heard about this a while back, but I thought I would give it time to make it to my area before I started to look for it.  So now I am watching for Dr Pepper's new product, Dr Pepper Ten.  It is a hybrid drink that's supposed to have low calories (like Diet Dr Pepper) but the same taste as regular Dr Pepper.  Each can has only ten calories.  Get it?

Dr Pepper is marketing it for men, claiming the drink is "not for women."  They hope to get a firm foothold on the middle-age male market for low-calorie sodas. 

For more information, you can read the article Time published about it here.

The above picture is not mine, I found it on the world-wide interwebs.

From my collection

December 28 update - I met up with a friend from high school last night.  We hadn't seen each other for over ten years.  He drove here from Wisconsin.  When I got in his car and we pulled away, I heard a familiar sound rolling around in his back floorboard.  I reached back and pulled up this Dr Pepper Ten can.  I told him about my cans and he graciously donated it to my collection.  Maybe he could box up some other cans from Wisconsin and ship them to me... 

Thanks Joe

O Canada

Canadian cans

I received a shipment of steel Canadian cans in the mail today.  What makes them Canadian?  Let me count thy ways:

     1.  They have cities such as Toronto and Montreal printed on the cans
     2.  The cans have both French and English printing
     3.  They are 10 oz. liq. as opposed to the USA 12 fl. oz. standard
     4.  Some of them have funky opening mechanisms *
     5.  Plus, the guy I bought them from said they were Canadian

* Eleven of the thirteen cans are pull tops.  Two of those eleven are still sealed and have the pull rings attached (they are different than the standard USA pull rings)








* The Carlton Club can is a flat top (this particular can was opened with a churchkey)

* The Crush can has a press button mechanism

Can Watch: 7 Up Mixed Berry Antioxidant

To be discontinued

I just found an article that says 7 Up will be coming out with Mixed Berry Antioxidant this holiday season.  It will replace their holiday Pomegranate Antioxidant flavor (yay, another discontinued can that I have). 

I'm looking forward to my first holiday season of can hunting.  I'm sure the hunt will be on for new cans around Halloween and Christmas. 

For more info on the new 7 Up, read the full article at BevReview.com. 

Is There A Dr (Clone) in the House?

Do an internet search on Dr Pepper clones and you will find there are dozens of them!  Collecting DP clones could easily be a subset of someone's main collection.  Thus far in my collecting adventures, I have accumulated ten clones.

Top row: Dr Pop, Dr Phizz, Dr. Wow, Dr Shasta, Dr. Choice
Bottom row: Dr Thunder, Dr. Chill, Dr Vess, Dr. K, Dr. Topper

Oh, and if you get a headache from the caffeine, I recommend a call to Dr. Brown...

Not For City Boys

Blaze Orange

On my way home from work today, a blaze orange object near the edge of someone's yard caught my eye.  As I passed by I noticed it was in the shape of a can/bottle.  A quick mental inventory of my collection told me I had nothing this color at home and should circle around for a second look.  Was it crazy packaging for an alcoholic drink?  Or was it even a drink at all?

I stopped on the side of the road and darted the 20' or so into the yard to grab the item.  It was a metal bottle.  After I was back in the car and safely away, I examined the bottle to find it was an energy drink called Team Realtree Outdoor Energy.  This particular "flavor" was called Blaze Orange.  I love discovering brands I don't know exist, such as my discovery of Marley's Mellow Mood last month.

The Team Realtree website has a photo section showing hunters with the deer they've bagged and other outdoor activities.  It also claims right up front "Not For City Boys."  There are four flavors available: Low Carb Cream Soda, AP, White Buck and Blaze Orange. 


So while the "country boys" are out hunting their deer and other wild game, I'll be hunting the other three flavors of this manly energy drink.

The Aftertaste Report Podcast

The Aftertaste Report is a new podcast on the Collective Brain Network which features Jason and Nikki reviewing two drinks per episode.

The podcast may eventually become a bi-weekly show with a new episode every two weeks, but for now it is a weekly podcast with a new episode posted every Sunday evening.  

And while you're there, you can check out the flagship podcast called The Collective Brain.  The show is on summer hiatus but season one (episodes 1-20) can still be heard on the site.  Season two will be starting soon.

My 1000th Can!!!

It was almost four months ago that I started collecting cans.  I wanted to try to get 100 different cans.  If I could do that, I would try for 250.  And my ultimate lifetime goal was 500 cans.  And now...

Today I logged the 1000th can in my collection!

Current can count = 1000

And the lucky 1000th can was...

Jones GABA tea-juice

Jones GABA fuji apple tea-juice I purchased at Big Lots in West Virginia for $.50 on July 21.  Click here to browse my entire collection.

A Real Monster

When I visited the Big Lots in Williamson, WV, on July 21, I bought a few cans that I didn't have.  One of those was Monster Heavy Metal.

I've seen some big cans in my time, but this thing is HUGE (compared to a standard 12 oz can above)!  It is 32 oz and Big Lots had it for $1.50.  I don't even drink Monster but I knew that was a great deal!

Upon doing some research on the internets, I discovered that Heavy Metal has been discontinued.  This, along with the discontinued Red Bull Cola that I bought at Big Lots, leads me to believe they are a great place to find remaining inventory of discontinued items.

I will continue to visit Big Lots in hopes of finding more of these interesting beverages.

Summit Energy Drink



Summit Gridlock



As I've stated before, I like finding cans of brands/flavors that I didn't even know existed.  And that was the case this evening when I was handed an empty Gridlock can.

Even though I don't drink energy drinks, I've been aware of the big three (Red Bull, Monster and Rockstar) for a while.  But since I've started collecting cans, that list of brands continues to grow. 

It seems everyone wants their share of the energy drink market.  For example, Coca-Cola has Full Throttle and NOS while Pepsi has AMP.  So, in a way, I wasn't too surprised to see Summit (an ALDI brand) also has their own energy drink. 

What will they think of next?