Do Gummy Candy Colas Contain Any Real Soda?

Cola gummies are understandably popular. The white to brown ombré tone and bottle shape explicitly state what candy fans are getting into, and they definitely live up to those cola-flavored expectations. But how do they achieve such accuracy? Is there actual cola in the mix? Impressively, the answer is no. Cola is usually not incorporated into the making of these flavored gummies. In some cases, this is because manufacturers simply can't use your favorite brands; in most circumstances, though, it's more easily achieved via a combination of other ingredients to mimic what your taste buds may recognize as cola.

Scoring that near-perfect cola taste is made possible for those candy makers by the combined effort of several multi-tasking ingredients. When looking at candy cola labels, the specifics aren't always clear, especially since "natural flavors" in food can have such a broad meaning. However, plenty can still be deduced from what's available. Citric acid and sweeteners like dextrose, sugar, and glucose syrup help provide the right tangy, yet sweet flavor, as well as holding the candy's shape without the risk of crystallization. This goes hand in hand with other structural ingredients, like beeswax and vegetable or coconut oils, to prevent stickiness, add a little tint of yellow and off-white to the color, and provide a soft hold and glossy finish to help resemble a classic soda bottle.

It's a mystery why major cola brands like Coca-Cola or Pepsi and a classic candy company like Haribo haven't ever teamed up, but it is known that soda companies tend to keep their signature recipes secret. This is especially true about Coke and its iconic (and controversially ripped off) flavor, because Coca-Cola is the only company based in the United States that can import the coca leaves that it extracts the soda's flavor from.

While mass-producing a major cola brand into a gummy may be difficult, the at-home confectioner has options for trying their hand at it. Of course, the first thought would be to just combine gelatin and the preferred cola, but this gets tricky as you'll want to reduce the cola to cook out the excess sugar. This will prevent the final product from becoming too sticky. There's also the carbonation to get around, but letting soda go flat could take some time. Alternatively, this is where that recognizable team of water, sugar, cola flavoring or extract, and citric acid come in. Either will take between 45 minutes to 12 hours to make, so you may find that it's just easier to stop at a convenience store for a bag instead.