THURSDAY, MARCH 29: FAMOUS SOFT DRINK GOES ON SALE
Profile America — Thursday, March 29th. One of the most successful brand names of all time got its start on this day in 1886. That’s when Atlanta pharmacist John Pemberton brewed up the first batch of Coca-Cola designed as a hangover cure. The product went on sale at Jacob’s Pharmacy a few months later and sold an average of nine servings a day. The drink was billed as a tonic, and until 1905, contained extracts of cocaine as well as the caffeine rich kola nut. Today, the firm sells some 400 brands of soft drinks and other beverages in over 200 countries around the world. Americans drink an average of over 52 gallons of carbonated soft drinks a year, along with 23 gallons of bottled water and 25 gallons of coffee.