Dr. Pepper "Berries & Cream"
rating: 
Okayyyyy... Is it just me, or is the whole business of new variations on familiar sodas starting to get just a wee bit out of control?
Actually, I have to hand it to the Dr. Pepper company – this may well be one of the best marketing scams the bottled fizzy-water industry has seen in a while. After tasting this, I am quite convinced that except for the label, and maybe a slight difference in color, this is the exact same formula as the "Cherry-Vanilla Dr. Pepper" they rolled out last year. It tastes just the same, which is to say, it tastes like a slightly more tart version of Dr. Pepper which might, if you close your eyes and imagine really hard, have a hint of something vaguely vanilla-like lurking in the background.
On the other hand, I've seen several reviews on the net comparing it (unfavorably) to cough syrup, so your mileage may vary should you decide to sample it... assuming they haven't already "discontinued" it in favor of... oh, I don't know... Strawberries & Cream? Blueberry-Vanilla? Cranberries & Cream? Vanilla-Gooseberry? Vanilla Ice? (no, wait...)
Or maybe I'm just jaded and bitter about sodas in general ever since the Coca-Cola company took Vanilla Coke and Diet Coke With Lemon away, only to roll out "Black Cherry Vanilla Coke" instead. (Their claim that they took them off the market due to declining sales rings somewhat hollow, considering that TAB is still around after all these years... I mean, come on, do they really expect us to believe TAB sells better than Vanilla Coke?) Yeah, I know they eventually brought Vanilla Coke back again, but man, you just can't rely on anything anymore...