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Information About

Mountain Dew




  type Citrus Soft Drink
  manufacturer PepsiCo, Inc
  origin Knoxville, Tennessee USA
  introduced 1964
  related Sierra Mist , Sprite , Vault , Surge
  variants Code Red, Diet Mountain Dew, Diet Code Red, Live Wire, Pitch Black, Pitch Black 2, Baja Blast, Mountain Dew MDX , Mountain Dew AMP , Mountain Dew LiveWire


Mountain Dew is a Caffeinated sweet Citrus -flavored Soft Drink produced by PepsiCo, Inc . It was first marketed in Knoxville, Tennessee in 1948, and across the United States in 1964. When removed from its characteristic green bottle, Mountain Dew is bright green yellow and cloudy. Unlike lemon-lime soft drinks such as Sprite , 7 Up , or Sierra Mist , Mountain Dew contains concentrated Orange Juice .

Mountain Dew often incurs the disapproval of health experts due to its relatively high Caffeine content for a soft drink (however, typical brewed coffee has a much higher caffeine dosage for equal volume). However, Mountain Dew marketed in Australia and Canada ''(see Dew Fuel/Mountain Dew Energy varieties below)'' — as well as several U.S. State s — has no caffeine added at all. Nevertheless, Mountain Dew contains Tartrazine (“ FD&C Yellow No. 5” in the US), which could lead to Allergic Reactions in some people. This has also led to an Urban Legend that the Yellow No. 5 in Mountain Dew reduces the Sperm Count of male drinkers. This is, however, false. Diet Mountain Dew contains Aspartame . Mountain Dew's Brominated Vegetable Oil (BVO) is another source of contention. More than 100 countries ban BVO for its adverse health effects. However, the exact quantity of Bromine put into fat cells from BVO is questioned.

In Europe , Mountain Dew is available in the following countries:

A version of the drink was marketed for three years in the UK during the late 1990s.
Many believe the Urban Legend that Mountain Dew is illegal (in its American formulation) to sell in the UK due to its high caffeine content and excessive artificial ingredients. However, the version sold in the UK was a lurid green color and contained far more Caffeine , synthetic sugars, and artificial colorings than the American version. It even discolored the teeth and tongue of its drinkers for several hours after consumption.

Mountain Dew was originally marketed as " Zero Proof Moonshine " and had pictures of Hillbillies on the bottle until 1973. Today's marketing target is radically different. The drink is mainly marketed to people in the 20-30 year old Demographic group, and Mountain Dew advertising creates a connection between the drink and Extreme Sports . The name Mountain Dew was first trademarked by two brothers, Barney and Ally Hartman, who ran a bottling plant in Knoxville, Tennessee .

Mountain Dew syrups are also used as Slurpee flavors.


VARIETIES




Other Mountain Dew flavors

  • Red (1988) — Fruit Mountain Dew. Red was the first Mountain Dew flavor variation. No longer available.

  • --- Diet Red (1988) — No-calorie fruit Mountain Dew.


  • Blue Shock (2001) — Berry-citrus flavored Mountain Dew. Blue Shock failed to sell in the test market, Chicago , and was later released nationwide only in Slurpee form exclusively at 7-Eleven stores. It was there that Blue Shock made one of the most successful Slurpee flavor launches ever. The recipe has since been reported as being sold to Faygo and marketed as "Moon Mist."


  • Code Red (2001) — Cherry Mountain Dew. Not the same as the original Mountain Dew Red.

  • --- Diet Code Red (2002) — No-calorie Cherry Mountain Dew. Available in limited areas only.


  • LiveWire (2003) — Orange Mountain Dew. Introduced as a limited-time product, it is now a permanent addition to the Mountain Dew family. Limited in some areas.


  • Pitch Black (2004) — Grape Mountain Dew. Limited edition flavor for Halloween .


  • Baja Blast (2005) — Tropical- Lime flavored Mountain Dew. Available exclusively at Taco Bell restaurants.


  • Darth Dew (2005) — ''.


  • Pitch Black II (2005-Aug) — Sour grape Mountain Dew. Limited edition flavor. “ Sequel ” to the original Pitch Black.



Brand Portfolio


  • Dew Fuel (2005) — originally branded as Mountain Dew Energy, and given its present name in 2006 , a caffeinated version of Canadian Mountain Dew (which is not caffeinated in Canada due to Health Canada regulations that only allow caffeine in cola varieties of soft drinks), and is branded as a natural health product. Mainly replacing (Caffeine-Free) Mountain Dew on store shelves, although many places still sell both drinks.


  • --- Dew Fuel Sugar-Free (2005) - originally called Mountain Dew Energy Sugar-Free until 2006


  • .

  • --- Sugar-Free Mountain Dew MDX (2005)


  • Mountain Dew Sport (1990–1991) — only test marketed in several states, as a sports drink.

  • --- Diet Mountain Dew Sport (1990–1991)



HISTORICAL MEANINGS


Mountain Dew was originally southern and Irish slang for Homemade Whiskey , or ''poitín'' as it is called in Ireland .

An 1882 song from Ireland “The Rare Old Mountain Dew” (words by Edward Harrigan and music by Dave Braham ) begins:

:Let grasses grow and waters flow
:In a free and easy way,
:But give me enough of the rare ould stuff,
:That’s made near Galway Bay,
:Come gougers all from Donegal, Sligo and Leitrim too,
:And we’ll give them the slip and we'll take a sip,
:Of the rare ould mountain dew.

A 1947 version by Grandpa Jones (1913-1998) may be better-known to Americans:

:There’s a big holler tree down the road here from me
:where you lay down a doller er two.
:When you come round the bend and when you come back again
:there’s a jug full of good old mountain dew
:Oh they call it that old mountain dew and them that refuse it are few.
:I’ll shut up my mug if you fill up my jug with some good old mountain dew.

(Grandpa Jones's 1947 record of the song also included the additional verses printed below under the entry for Flatt And Scruggs )

And one more from Bluegrass group Flatt And Scruggs :

:There’s a big hollow tree down the road here from me
:Where you lay down a dollar or two
:You stroll ’round the bend and you come back again
:There’s a jug full of good old mountain dew

:They call it that mountain dew
:And them that refuse it are few
:I’ll hush up my mug if you fill up my jug
:With that good old mountain dew

:My uncle Mort, he’s sawed off and short
:He measures about four foot two
:But he thinks he’s a giant when you give him a pint
:Of that good old mountain dew

:Well, my old aunt June bought some brand new perfume
:If had such a sweet smelling pew
:But to her surprise when she had it analyzed
:It was nothing but good old mountain dew

:Well, my brother Bill’s got a still on the hill
:Where he runs off a gallon or two
:The buzzards in the sky get so drunk they can’t fly
:From smelling that good old mountain dew


MOUNTAIN DEW IN GAMER CULTURE

In recent years Mountain Dew has been synonymous with gaming culture, in particular with Counter-Strike . Large quantities of Mountain Dew are often shown to be consumed by gamers while or before they play. This is probably due to its large caffeine content and the players' hope of increasing their reaction times.

It is also commonly seen in Dungeons And Dragons Skits, such as Grabnar The Wanderer from X-play and 8-bit Dungeons And Dragons from Cyber Moon Studios .


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