Fizz.

I wrote last April about Coca-Cola's weird Starlight Coke, which was like cotton candy cola. Now I have an equally bizarre item from the competition, Pepsi. I give you Nitro Pepsi. 

Available in vanilla (shown) and
non-vanilla

I thought that this was another product with amped-up caffeine, like Coca-Cola Energy or Diet Coke XTRA (they leave off the E for Energy!). But no, nitro is referring to actual nitrogen, or as the label says, it is "nitrogen-infused cola." So I thought I'd see what it was about.

I should have read the back of the label. I didn't know there were instructions!

You see, there's a second lid beneath the lid of this soda, and popping it open seems to nitrogenate the soda, making for a thick head of tiny bubbles. You pour it into a glass, and you get a very rich, foamy consistency in your otherwise typical Pepsi. Or, like me, you drink out of the can and get a mouthful of bubbles and wonder what the cryin' hell this is supposed to be, because you didn't look at the can for instructions. I'd never seen a can of soda with instructions, but I have now. 

It should have been obvious to me, though, because I believe these are the same cans that Guinness used when they started selling their famous stout in cans. They'd invented of means of simulating that rich stout foam from the tap in your very home, and it was abundantly clever. It looks like Pepsi is in on the game. 

So my review: If you like the taste of Pepsi, you may find this an enjoyable experience. But I don't suppose there will be a Diet Pepsi Nitro; I think you need the sugars in order to help generate the foam. Nitro Pepsi actually has more calories and it does have more caffeine than a regular 12-ounce can of Pepsi -- a 12-oz can of Pepsi has 150 calories and 38 mg of caffeine; a 13.65-oz can of Nitro Pepsi has 230 calories and 73 mg of caffeine. Budget accordingly.