Clever people who enjoy something different – devilishly different and delicious – will welcome this exciting Winter Warmer…. Hot Dr. Pepper!

So sayeth the advertisement on the post below, circa 1960.

And, because I am the highly suggestible type, I decided to give it a try. I bought a bottle of Dr. Pepper on my way home from work, pulled the small saucepan out of the cupboard, and grabbed a lemon from the fridge. I measured out a mug of fizzy pop, set it on the stove, and waited for it to boil.

S’s eyebrows arched. Then he left the kitchen, saying nothing. He was shaking his head slightly; it’s an expression I’ve grown accustomed to, over our twelve years together.

I followed the instructions with great care. I am an awful cook, and I’ve learnt that it’s best for everyone concerned if I do NOT improvise. (Kim’s Creative Impulse + Kitchen = Nausea, Heartburn, Indigestion.) So, very carefully, I poured the steaming Dr. Pepper over a lemon slice in my mug, let it sit for a moment, and then, with great trepidation, I took a sip.

It was like… like…

Well, it was like a prune and a lemon made sweet sweet love and then exploded into their basic molecular components.

I’ve never tasted anything quite like it. A hot carbonated beverage fizzles and foams when it hits your tongue and turns into a mousse-like consistency. The first sip was tooth-achingly sweet, followed closely by lemony tart, then the entire mouthful vaporized into a starburst of bubbles. It’s really, really weird. I’d say it was an acquired taste, but I think it moves beyond ‘acquired’, and into ‘kooky’ with just a hint of ‘kitsch’.

For the second serving, I heated it in the microwave. (Yes, there was a second serving. In the name of science, I felt it would be prudent of me to test different methods. And it was a big bottle of pop, and no one else around here will drink it, so I had to use it up.) The microwaved beverage didn’t taste the same. It tasted duller. Less fizzy, more prune-ish, less lemony. In my opinion, heating on the stove was the preferred method.

I can see why this Winter Warmer never caught on. It really is an odd flavor sensation. But I think it might just be odd enough for me to crave it on long February nights, when tea is too boring and hot chocolate is too heavy. Hot Dr. Pepper is curiously tasty… with all the emphasis placed on ‘curiously’.