The Rise And Fall Of This Old-School Soda Proves The '90s Was The Golden Age Of Gimmicky Beverages

Crystal Pepsi. Ecto Cooler. Fruitopia. Surge. The '90s had no shortage of weird, off-the-wall beverages, but one stands out as just a bit more out-there than the rest: Orbitz. The drink's clear, fruity liquid alone would have made for a pretty average, unmemorable item. However, the star of the show was the small, colorful, edible (drinkable?) bead-like objects made of gelatin in the bottle (that tasted similar to the tapioca pearls found in boba tea today).

The visual of Orbitz was really the selling point: When the drink was still, the beads would float in the liquid, almost creating a lava lamp-like effect. It was strange, but it was also captivating. The flavor offerings — including Pineapple Banana Cherry Coconut, all in one bottle — were also very odd. At one point, a Charlie Brown Chocolate flavor was introduced. Orbitz couldn't quite make up its mind on what it wanted to be when it came to flavor or texture, which left consumers curious and confused.

The drink was distributed by The Clearly Food and Beverage Company, which was also behind Clearly Canadian sparkling water, another flash in the pan in the '90s beverage world. The Orbitz marketing team advertised the drinks as a "texturally enhanced alternative beverage." No one quite figured out what exactly Orbitz was an alternative to, or why it was better than any of the other unique drinks on the market. Soon, it suffered the fate of many gimmicky '90s sodas and was discontinued after only one year.

Those who remember drinking Orbitz don't exactly have fond memories of the beverage. In a discussion about the discontinued drink on Reddit, some of the commenters' opinions include, "I hated these. It was like drinking syrup," and "I don't really miss these. The feeling of tapioca 'orbs' never felt quite right going down."

It's tough to figure out what exactly the driving factor in Orbitz's downfall was. The odd flavors and syrupy consistency of the liquid itself likely played a role. Some were bothered by being unable to decide whether they were supposed to drink or chew the floating gelatin. The odd-looking novelty of the suspended beads was enough to get many to buy a bottle out of curiosity, but the taste wasn't enough to keep them coming back for more.

The '90s were also a turning point for the way society viewed sugar-loaded beverages, despite clever marketing. While the mid-'90s health craze was all about eliminating fat (remember the synthetic fat Olestra, which is now banned in Europe?), lowering sugar consumption became the name of the game as the century drew to a close. The aforementioned Surge, Fruitopia, and Ecto Cooler soon met a similar fate. But, if you're a committed Orbitz fan to this day, you can still find your favorite flavors on eBay.