Pepsi Max That Has Gone off / Contaminated?

typhoonadventure on 05/10/2024 - 14:15
Last edited 06/10/2024 - 19:36 by 1 other user

So, lets skip all the "Pepsi sux" "Cokes better" people… just had something weird happen for the second and repeated time in a few months.

Our house drinks a lot of Pepsi Max, I'm very aware that past date and short to date product can lose its taste and leave it just tasting like carbonated water.

A few months back had a really weird episode where a 1.25L bottle tasted off, it's hard to describe it was a weird taste with an even more horrible aftertaste, almost metallic.

Thought maybe my taste was off (had covid a year ago and it took me six months to taste M&M's again, they tasted like coffee afterward, yuck). Next day tried it again and it was foul, tipped it out and looked at the expiry date and it was fresh as can be.

Thought maybe something was up with me went and grabbed another bottle from Coles when they opened, tasted great. Tossed the other bottle thought the servo maybe had stored it wrong?

Well few days ago purchased a bunch of 1.25's from Woolies that were in the fridge and had been going through them and had one left, so last night grabbed 3x more from Coles on the way home to get cold.

One from Woolies tasted amazing, after finishing it cracked the one of the other 3x and it tasted absolutely disgusting. At a point to make my stomach in knots and wanting to throw up just from a mouthful. Horrible aftertaste, it reminded me of the one earlier that was off.

Just went to try the other two….. exact same thing, went to Foodland down the road and got another, completely fine, tastes delicious.

I have no idea what is up with this has anyone else experienced this?

All of the bottles have fresh dates on them, all look fine, never had an issue buying from this Coles before.

In SA if that helps, we used to make and bottle it here but I think it's all imported from Vic now.

Food & Grocery Asahi Beverages Soft Drink

Comments

  • fredz0r on 05/10/2024 - 14:30
    +10

    Most likely been left out in the sun at some stage or refrigerated then left out and refrigerated again.

    • HeWhoKnows on 06/10/2024 - 08:49
      -7

      Cordial (principally sugar and colouring) doesn't go off.

      • 2025 on 06/10/2024 - 12:38

        How is this relevant? DidYouKnow that OP was talking about an artificially sweetened drink, not cordial. It’s well understood how and why artificially sweetened drinks “go off”, and yes, a higher temperature will do it.

  • ozb3n on 05/10/2024 - 14:31
    +2

    Had a similar issue a while back

    https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/736166#comment-12929889

    • typhoonadventure on 05/10/2024 - 14:57

      holy cow. There we go. been thinking for the last 24 hours i was crazy.

      Im still in shock at how much of a number a small amount was able to do on my stomach.

      i'm lucky I had travel calm in the cabinet or I feel it would have been a lot worse.

    • watwatwat on 05/10/2024 - 17:21
      +1

      I contacted Pepsi and they said there were some issues for some Jan/Feb batches but that it should be fixed now.

      Hah wtf. An unusual case where they can get away with selling dodgy stuff and not have to refund 99.999% of people because it's too hard to get a refund.

      • typhoonadventure on 05/10/2024 - 17:32

        Theres gotta be some big violation of food safety standards there if not some consumer law, let alone just bad business practice.

        • HeWhoKnows on 06/10/2024 - 08:52
          -1

          Different taste is not a violation.
          You didnt get food poisonng, right?
          So its an issue with QC

  • ozb3n on 05/10/2024 - 15:21

    The metallic aftertaste was unpleasant but I never had any issues from drinking it. That said, I binned most of the cans after getting a refund through Amazon.

    • typhoonadventure on 05/10/2024 - 15:28

      I'm still puzzled as to that taste… like what the hell is it? what causes it?

      is it something gone bad, is it a contamination?

  • bargaino on 05/10/2024 - 15:35
    +5

    Aspartame degrades in the heat. This is why is cannot be used on tea or coffee, or cooking.
    Pepsi or Coke tastes awful with the sugar/sweetner removed.
    You could add some sweetener to make it palatable.

  • Gdsamp on 05/10/2024 - 16:23
    +1

    Probably heat cycled…

    In SA if that helps, we used to make and bottle it here but I think it's all imported from vic now.

    rules it out as being symptomatic of Adelaide Water

  • djsweet on 05/10/2024 - 16:54

    I’ve had this with Coke Zero when I left a box of it in an outdoor cupboard.

  • simplystu on 05/10/2024 - 17:17
    +1

    1.) left out in sun/heat … (ESP if don't live in a major city) - can be transported in non-temp controlled environment +++ (exploding cans/bottles - but story for another day).

    2.) slightly different mixture (when making) - NO BATCH is ever 100% the same. in terms of coke have found some batches are sweeter than others.

    3.) what you have eaten in previous hours - also affects your taste buds … Some foods/drinks can appear "off" when infact it is due to what you ate/drank prior … Science has also proved this to be true too.

    • typhoonadventure on 05/10/2024 - 17:34

      Same stuff as the rest of the family who don't drink it.

      Mrs is a coke drinker, can't stand the taste of anything without full sugar in it.

      She can drink it and will tolerate it with bourbon or rum.

      She told me it even smells metal-ish.

      • simplystu on 05/10/2024 - 18:20

        @typhonadventure … "She told me it even smells metal-ish."

        the "science part of me" - thinks due to iron, copper, lead, manganese, zinc - even in minute small parts.
        I have had similar previous years in regards to drinking "bottled water" (tasting metallic) … and with me specifically - it was 100% due to other things I had eaten prior.

        Refer to my item #3 I posted above.

  • watwatwat on 05/10/2024 - 17:17

    I had similar confusion a few years ago. I bought a 2L pepsi max from reject shop. I never usually shop there but gave it a try. Tasted completely bad despite the use-by date being far in advance. And then later on I bought a second bottle and had the same experience, but only with Reject Shop stock specifically.

    So.. I never returned there and I've never had this problem with Pepsi Max from coles/woolies/amazon.

  • typhoonadventure on 05/10/2024 - 17:37

    So bit of a weird update. Went to the same coles… all their 1.25L bottles are gone off the shelf.

    may be as it's on special this week and theres a holiday monday but they're all gone.

    Had a chat with the staff and they aren't aware of any specific issue but have apparantly had people return bottles (and only bottles?) of Pepsi max, Coke no sugar for this exact issue every other week or so, like not in a huge amount but it's not unknown to them over the last few months.

    Grabbed a can out of the fridge by checkout, tasted delicious.

    Ended up buying two boxes of can's, chilled them and they're all fine.

    • simplystu on 05/10/2024 - 18:22

      Alrighty.

      As I did allude to in my first post … do you live rural / or near a major city ???

      With rural … pallets are often transported unrefrigerated +++ coming into summer, 40+degrees … cans/bottles often end up exploded at other end (before it even gets into the store) - or onto the actual shelf.

    • samcro on 06/10/2024 - 13:22

      It is on special this week for $1.80 so that might explain the empty shelves. I alternate between coke zero and Pepsi max as they are on alternate week specials. I can't say I've noticed any off tasting so far.

  • joshash on 05/10/2024 - 20:17
    +1

    I was under the impression that apart from losing carbonation, Pepsi Max could be dug up and consumed safely in 1000 years.

    • povertytrap on 06/10/2024 - 14:36

      Should be 100 years.

  • boomramada on 05/10/2024 - 23:53

    Why not contact https://www.pepsimax.com.au/contact and ask for explanation?

  • iamgeoffyboy on 06/10/2024 - 08:49
    +1

    I've had this with a slab of cans once. Interesting to know that I was not going mad. Everyone else who had a can didn't notice. But I do a little bit of it..so can taste when something isn't right.

  • 2025 on 06/10/2024 - 12:35

    It’s well known that diet soft drinks are sensitive to temperature.

    https://foodscienceinstitute.com/2022/01/31/why-does-my-diet…

    https://www.acsh.org/news/2019/07/29/when-artificially-sweet…

    TLDR: the sweetener breaks down

    It was probably left out in the sun for a bit too long at a delivery dock somewhere along the way to you or stored in a warm warehouse.

    • typhoonadventure on 06/10/2024 - 22:26

      Would imagine this would spike like anything in summer than.

  • 2esc on 06/10/2024 - 22:48

    You never know how its been stored pallets stored outside in sun for a few hours while a storeroom reorganised. Or sitting on a semi trailer for a couple days in the sun before a truck going in the right direction hooks up.

    Could even be a batch had the tiniest thing go wrong change the whole taste. Next time maybe contact Pepsi. I personally drink way way too much Pepsi max and never had a problem. Im in eastern Victoria.

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