Weird Food Oddities! Review #1: Pepsi Ice Cucumber

Pop culture has obviously been a major favorite of mine, but then there is "pop" culture (that of carbonated soda). Multiple corporations ranging from PepsiCo to The Coca-Cola Company have been filling their money pools with the sales of Pepsi and Coke, but sometimes there comes a point where they have enough money to start onto a new product line. In this case, they start selling modifications of their own product instead where there is a change of flavor or color. Such changes have been created like Crystal Pepsi (a failure due to people preferring to see a murky dirty brown drink instead of a see-through "Sprite-like" drink) and Coke Lime (still seen sometimes nowadays). However, some of the flavors that the companies create are so out-of-this-world that they choose to sell them in specific countries. One particular country is Japan, known for their own potpourri of bizarre foods, which is where this flavored drink flavor comes. I am talking of the vegan-friendly(?) Pepsi Ice Cucumber.

The first time I had heard of this product, I wondered to myself, "Wait, I don't even drink the fluids from a pickle jar. Why in the world does PepsiCo even consider to make this for people who prefer the crunchiness of a cucumber?" It still piqued my interest, however, so I ordered online at one of the multiple crazy Japanese import stores (trust me, if you google-search it, you're going to find at least one store that sells a bottle). It took two weeks until I finally received the somewhat oddly-shaped bottle. To say that I was shocked that I was holding one of the most bizarre flavors of Pepsi is an understatement. What gripped me was me the taste.

Honestly, what was I expecting? It was a cucumber, for goodness' sake, a sugary one at that! I cannot read what the ingredients are (because they are in Japanese, after all), but it sure tasted a little sweeter than a usual cucumber. That would mean there had to have been sometime of syrup mixed into it. What's confusing the most is that this was made by PepsiCo, but there's no Pepsi taste whatsoever. It seems more like the brand name was slapped onto another wacky product in Japan so that people would be able to think, "Hey, I like Pepsi, maybe that drink's for me!" Also, because it is a cucumber, I can't help but question if this is really the best thing to make for a Vegan-ish drink (even though it is an artificial cucumber flavor...sorry, did I forget to mention that?).

There must be some kind of reason as to why Pepsi Ice Cucumber was made, but as far as I know, it's a little out there for me not to think of it as a novelty item. I don't think the cucumber taste was even all that refreshing. To speak the truth, after I finished it up, I went and got an actual Pepsi (Diet, mind you) in order to wash the taste out of my mouth. I really can't recommend it to anyone who thinks it's a great health drink. Personally, I'd rather eat tofu (don't you get any more ideas from THAT, PepsiCo!).