What is Coke Zero, anyway?

*WARNING* - RELATIVELY FRIVOLOUS POST. (Translation: If you don't care, you're in good company.)

When you eat out here in Spain, it's not very common to drink just water. You can order a glass from the tap, but even those who do that most often have something else to drink (soda, coffee, wine, or beer). Meggan and I usually drink water when we're out to eat in the U.S. - it's free, calorie-free, and more refreshing than other beverages. So, this has become a case of one of those minor adjustments one makes when crossing cultures.

I could turn this into a conversation about how great Spanish coffee is, or about my enjoyment of La Casera (a Spanish brand of sugar-free soda), but let's turn to something that translates back to all of you reading from the U.S.: Diet Coke (here it's "Coke Light") and Coke Zero. When we're hoping to hang on to the calorie-free beverage scheme, these are two viable options. This brings up a reasonable question - why two caffeinated, zero-calorie, aspartame-sweetened colas from the same company? Why, Atlanta?

(Clearly I have a theory, or I wouldn't have brought it up.) The answer must have something to do with marketing. Here's a thought - the next generation is starting to count its calories, so their consumption of regular Coke is dropping, but they won't drink Diet Coke because "it's for old people," or "it's what my parents drink" (that's for you, Dad). Enter the Coke Zero brand. Slick marketing campaign, clearly aimed at a younger generation. And for that reason, I thought, "Rubbish. I officially reject the junk as Diet Coke 2.0 and not worth my time."

Then I tasted the stuff, and the marketing is actually somewhat accurate - it tastes a lot more like regular Coke than Diet Coke/Coke Light ever has. It's definitely not the same as the sugary stuff, but it's a decent alternative. It seems they know the palate of their target market; we youngsters want to have our Coke and eat it, too (?). Of course, even if this is a better taste than Diet/Light, they know they can't touch that brand, because it has its own following. So, Atlanta wins again.

Other things that may interest no one but me...
--It's fun to be in Europe for the Euro Cup. What an ending to Croatia/Turkey last night! Go Spain. I hope to catch at least one game in a pub with crazy Spaniards. Pray for my survival.
--Meggan and I are movie people, and we've seen some good ones (and bad ones) at people's homes this summer. The best - "El Abuelo" ("The Grandfather"), a beautiful Spanish film about family, loyalty, and the changing of the guard in Spanish society; the worst - "Never Say Never Again," perhaps the worst James Bond movie ever made (what made Sean Connery think that was the script he should come back for in his return to the role?).

*COKE ZERO UPDATE*
August 10 - Meggan and I were watching the Olympics last night, and a Diet Coke ad came on featuring a very young and hip-looking cast. Meggan pointed out that this means they're marketing Diet Coke to our generation (or at least to people who want to feel young - but that's another story). Anyhow, this is certainly pertinent information which may require that I modify my theory...