Trader Joe's Vintage Cola

Did cola 40 years ago taste bad? Because if this is vintage cola, I'll stick with the modern recipe. This is made with can sugar, yet has the bite and aftertaste of HFCS. Usually cane sugar cola's taste much better than the normal 99 cents per 2 liter store brand stuff, but this one tastes just like them, if not worse. This is my 2nd bottle of Trader Joe's "vintage" sodas. The only one I haven't tried yet is Orange Cream, and I don't know if I want to see how bad they messed up one of the best soda flavors. I'm going to try it though for the sake of Thirsty Dudes, so check back soon to see how that goes