Sprite’s Insane New Flavor Was Chosen By You (And You Didn’t Even Know It)

Take a look at the soda aisle at your local supermarket and you’re sure to see the usual suspects (Coke, Pepsi, Sprite,etc) as well as the strange flavor combinations that seem to come out of nowhere. You might be wondering who picks these flavors? Well, actually you do. Yes, you might not realize it, but you picked the new soda flavors.

At least that’s the case with Sprite’s newest flavor combination. You picked Sprite Cherry and you probably didn’t even realize it. You’re probably wondering how this could be. You didn’t fill out a survey and you didn’t write a letter pleading for this flavor. Well, you picked it by using the Coke Freestyle machine located at your favorite local restaurant. You know, that machine that lets you personalize your favorite Coca-Cola products with all the flavors under the sun. I bet you didn’t realize that while you were adding vanilla, cherry and lime to your favorite soda, Coke was paying close attention.

Those choose-your-own-adventure-esque machines have been around for years and Coca-Cola has just been mining data about what people want to drink. What they realized is that consumers really want a combination of cherry and lime. Because of that, the world now has Sprite Cherry and twitter seems to be pretty pleased.

“There’s proven data that people actually love it,” Bobby Oliver, the director of Sprite & Citrus Brands for Coca-Cola North America told Buzzfeed. “It’s not just a survey where people say yes or no.”

This is the first time Coca-Cola has actually used data from the Freestyle machine to create a product. On top of Sprite Cherry, they’re also launching Sprite Cherry Zero ( and you can also get Sprite Cranberry for a limited time). It makes use wonder what magical combinations are coming next. But, it’s also a little concerning. Big Brother is watching and he brings sugary, effervescent sodas.