Barton Springs Soda Company - Zilker Park Cola

The last time a bottle of Barton Springs Soda ended up in front of me I was left with a rather disappointing orange soda.  Today the BSSC finds and audience with me once again, this time in the form of Zilker Park Cola.  Since the company is based in Austin their soda titles involve areas of Austin.  Zilker Park is listed as “Austin’s most-loved park”.  It’s a 351 acre park that, judging by the picture, does look pretty nifty.  Now the park looking nifty doesn’t mean the soda will be.  Sure it’s sweetened with cane sugar, but the ingredients also include artificial flavors and sodium benzoate.  I haven’t brought up sodium benzoate in a while, but it seemed as good a time as any to do so.  On the plus side, there’s something about the name “Zilker Park Cola” that immediately makes my brain think this will be above average in taste.

An oddly sweet cola aroma wafts from the bottle.  I was honestly expecting a bit more punch to my nostrils, but sweet can work too if crafted correctly.  I guess one way to figure out if it’s crafted well is to drink it.  Twist my arm.

That is super bizarre.  BSSC-ZPC (Seriously people make shorter names for your soda and I won’t have to do that) has a very unique take on the cola flavor.  The traditional cola flavor is there, but there’s a root beer sensation, a cream soda sensation, and a host of other “touches of flavors”.  This seems like an all beverage.  Seriously, there’s something for everyone in each sip of Barton Springs Soda Company – Zilker Park Cola.  See what happens when you prove yourself?  You get me to type out your entire ridiculously long name. 

The carbonation also plays a keen role in the enjoyment factor.  Bubbles attack my tongue once their lives feel threatened by my throat muscles trying to begin the consuming process.  These very bubbles create a very fun atmosphere for my mouth and help push me to quickly take another sip.  In other news; after the taste builds upon itself a little while I do get a bit of cough syrup flavor staring to coat my tongue.  It’s not all that off putting, but just throwing it out there. 

Overall Zilker Park Cola has a flavor that is deservedly named after a park.  It’s fun, it’s tasty, it reminds me of something I’d primarily consume in the warmer months of Texas… which is 10 of them.  I’m quite pleased to see a Texas soda company make something with this quality of taste and remove any doubt created by their aggressively average orange soda.  The ingredients aren’t the greatest, but the flavor stands tall and recognizable.  Barton Springs Soda Company –Zilker Park Cola is one you should buy multiple bottles of.

~A

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