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| Some classic Pic-a-Pop bottles. Source: https://www.varagesale.com/i/fd6nqtu9-pic-a-pop-bottles (May be subject to copyright) |
Which were you – Coke or Pepsi?
Growing up in Southern Alberta, I look back and think now, as I did in the ‘80s, why choose?
Plus, the world was a lot different and there was more to pop than just Coke or Pepsi.
Pic-a-Pop
Growing up on the farm, my family went to Lethbridge once a week for groceries, every Thursday. They really liked pop, especially the 7-Up flavour. My Dad also really liked orange.
Growing up on the farm, my family went to Lethbridge once a week for groceries, every Thursday. They really liked pop, especially the 7-Up flavour. My Dad also really liked orange.
However, the name brands were pretty pricey so they started buying the equivalent of no name pop. There was a cinder block building in Lethbridge called Pic-a-Pop. You walked into a big room that had that kind of Costco look before Costco, and there were just cases upon cases of pop located all around. You could buy cases of 12 two-litre bottles and choose whatever flavour you liked. The cases were this orange colour with black lettering. The flavours were generic because they could not call them Coke or 7-Up. Instead the “Coke” was called Cola, while the “7-Up” was called “Pop Up”. They also had flavours like orange, cream soda, grape, and lesser known lime and lemon. Then, when you were done, you would bring your case of empties back and get more. In that way, they were kind of like milk bottles.
The most interesting part for me was that you could hear behind a wall the pop being bottled. It was happening right there in the store. That was so cool.
Initially, my parents bought an entire case of 7-Up. That is 12 two-litre bottles of 7-Up. Slowly, I began to convince them to buy one then two, and finally up to four bottles of Cola.
Pic-a-Pop was located on the north side of Lethbridge, right across the street from the Centre Village or Simpson-Sears Mall. Now, that is where the Canadian Tire, and Save-on Foods are.
Seeing the doctor
One summer in particular, probably 1982 or 1983, we really drank a lot of another brand – Dr. Pepper. By then I had bought my first video game system, an Intellivision, and spent a lot of my time playing two shoot’em up games including one called “Astrosmash”. It was similar to Atari’s “Space Invaders” but instead of rows of aliens relentlessly moving down towards the gun you operate, it was asteroids that broke into smaller pieces when you shot them. There were also bombs, called spinners, that killed you if they landed, while asteroids did not; homing satellites that came after you; and spaceships that just floated across the top of the screen but shot at you.
One summer in particular, probably 1982 or 1983, we really drank a lot of another brand – Dr. Pepper. By then I had bought my first video game system, an Intellivision, and spent a lot of my time playing two shoot’em up games including one called “Astrosmash”. It was similar to Atari’s “Space Invaders” but instead of rows of aliens relentlessly moving down towards the gun you operate, it was asteroids that broke into smaller pieces when you shot them. There were also bombs, called spinners, that killed you if they landed, while asteroids did not; homing satellites that came after you; and spaceships that just floated across the top of the screen but shot at you.
That summer, Dr. Pepper, which I already liked because of its cherry-cola taste, was running a promotion. Printed on the inside of bottle cap liners of Dr. Pepper, and at the bottom of cans, were different “Astrosmash” characters – asteroids, satellites, spinners, spaceships, and the gun the player operated.
By then, my cousins Chris and Henry from Brooks had begun to come out to our farm to stay a week, and I in turn would stay in Brooks a week or two. It became our mission to collect all the different “Astrosmash” characters, so we drank a lot of Dr. Pepper, getting a bottle or can every time we went to town.
We got all the characters but one – the gun. Back then we did not know there was a very small number of one of the characters, in this case the gun, but we suspected as much. There was a lot of every other character so you got the sense you were so close to completing the task and winning the prize, that you kept buying more pop – which was the whole point.
We had game cards filled out, and even worked out the skill-testing question, but we never got the missing piece.
Later, after the contest was over, I did know someone who got an “Astrosmash” gun – so at least I knew they existed.
Even if we didn’t win the contest, it was still a great summer with my cousins.
TAB in the movies
I first saw TAB when I was little. It was the first sugar-free cola that I encountered, but they never used the word “diet” at the time. That came later.
I first saw TAB when I was little. It was the first sugar-free cola that I encountered, but they never used the word “diet” at the time. That came later.
I also didn’t know it was actually manufactured by Coca-Cola, even after it came out with Diet Coke, which catered to the same market. I also discovered TAB was made right up until December of 2020 when Coca-Cola finally stopped production.
However, my outstanding memory of TAB goes back to 1985 when I went to see the movie “Back to the Future”. Marty Mcfly, played by Michael J. Fox, is propelled back in time and finds himself at a lunch counter. He has to order something so he orders a TAB.
“I can’t give you a tab unless you order something,” the clerk says.
“Okay, give me a Pepsi Free,” Marty replies.
“You wanna Pepsi pal, you’re gonna pay for it,” the clerk snaps back.
It was pretty funny, and clever.
Pop Shoppe
One other pop that we never bought, but still drank periodically came from the Pop Shoppe. If I recall, it was similar to Pick a Pop in the way it sold cases in refillable bottles. There was a store in Lethbridge, but it was on Mayor Magrath Drive which, for my parents, was out of the way. Pick a Pop was right across from stores we shopped at.
One other pop that we never bought, but still drank periodically came from the Pop Shoppe. If I recall, it was similar to Pick a Pop in the way it sold cases in refillable bottles. There was a store in Lethbridge, but it was on Mayor Magrath Drive which, for my parents, was out of the way. Pick a Pop was right across from stores we shopped at.
However, my relatives in Brooks bought their beverages at the Pop Shoppe franchise in their town. We used to go to these big family gatherings on the farm, and there would always be a case from the Pop Shoppe for the kids. One time, one of my cousins was sporting his brand new t-shirt. Unbeknownst to all of us, the case had been thrown around and the pop shaken up. So when my cousin opened his first cream soda, the pop exploded all over his new shirt. He was crushed because it was ruined. However, we were visiting a couple months later and he was wearing that same yellow t-shirt. I asked about the cream soda and my cousin just grinned. His mom had worked her magic and got out all the stains.
Pop life
There were other pops around back then we would drink as well. There was Fanta, which was really more fruity with orange, which my Dad really liked; grape; and probably the best cream soda. It had a distinctive logo with three dots in a triangle.
There were other pops around back then we would drink as well. There was Fanta, which was really more fruity with orange, which my Dad really liked; grape; and probably the best cream soda. It had a distinctive logo with three dots in a triangle.
There was also RC Cola, short for Royal Crown Cola, which I remember most for its logo with a dominant “RC”.
I knew all about these pops because I collected bottle caps, so I was always on the look out for different ones. I am not ashamed to say I picked up a lot off the sidewalks in Lethbridge and Coaldale when we were in town shopping, especially if I had never seen that brand before.
By the time I left home, I had a whole apple box full of bottle caps.
Much to my mother’s chagrine.
Parting thoughts
Don’t get me wrong, Coke and Pepsi were still everywhere back then. Not only were the beverages in every store, but their logos were on the fronts of every local grocery and convenience store around. They still were everywhere and always in the public mind with the taste test, and all the ad campaigns from “Coke is it” to “Pepsi, choice of a new generation”. It was a Pepsi commercial where Michael Jackson’s hair caught on fire and a Coke commercial where a boy offers Pittsburgh Steeler “Mean” Joe Greene his pop.
Don’t get me wrong, Coke and Pepsi were still everywhere back then. Not only were the beverages in every store, but their logos were on the fronts of every local grocery and convenience store around. They still were everywhere and always in the public mind with the taste test, and all the ad campaigns from “Coke is it” to “Pepsi, choice of a new generation”. It was a Pepsi commercial where Michael Jackson’s hair caught on fire and a Coke commercial where a boy offers Pittsburgh Steeler “Mean” Joe Greene his pop.
Yet, amid all that, there were other soft drinks, and I liked them all.
I still don’t see why you have to choose.
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