Common questions about Coca-Cola

Short answers, pulled from the story.

Who created Coca-Cola and when was it first sold?

John Stith Pemberton created Coca-Cola and it was first sold on the 8th of May 1886 at Jacob's Pharmacy in Atlanta, Georgia. Pemberton was a Confederate colonel who developed the drink as a substitute for morphine addiction.

When was the Coca-Cola contour bottle patented and who designed it?

Earl R. Dean designed the contour bottle and it was patented on the 25th of December 1923. The design was chosen during the 1916 bottler's convention and became the standard for the Coca-Cola Company by 1920.

What ingredients were originally in Coca-Cola and when were they changed?

Coca-Cola originally contained cocaine derived from coca leaves and caffeine from kola nuts. Fresh coca leaves were removed from the formula in 1903 and the drink became cocaine-free by 1929.

When did Coca-Cola change its formula to New Coke and when was it discontinued?

Coca-Cola changed its formula to New Coke in 1985 and returned to the old formula as Coca-Cola Classic on the 10th of July 1985. New Coke was renamed Coke II in 1992 and was discontinued in 2002.

In which countries is Coca-Cola officially unavailable and when did it stop being sold there?

Coca-Cola is officially unavailable in Cuba and North Korea. It stopped being officially available in Cuba in 1960 and operations were suspended in Russia after the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.

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