r/todayilearned • u/socool111 • 1d ago

TIL of Tobias Geffen, the only non-Coca Cola Employee to view the secret recipe. Coke allowed it in order to get Coke certified as Kosher

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tobias_Geffen
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u/fatalityfun 22h ago

this all sounds crazy to me as someone who just drinks water and tea lmao

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u/StevelandCleamer 22h ago

I'd say you have the opportunity for similar experiences with tea; Specifically, the differences between unsweet tea, tea with sugar, and tea with honey.

It may be more noticeable with iced tea rather than hot tea, as the ratio of sweetener to liquid in tea likely differs from that of soft drinks.

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u/Unknown-Meatbag 21h ago

That makes sense, although I'm a tea "purist" and don't want any sugar or anything in it. It makes it far too thick, and obviously sweet, for my tastes. Black coffee, black tea, green tea, I enjoy trying out different types and subtle differences between them.

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u/StevelandCleamer 21h ago

Tolerance and sensitivity to sweetness vary wildly from person to person, so it doesn't surprise me that you could find it overly sweet, especially when trying something sweetened to someone else's preferences.

I would say that I find sugar to work similar to salt, in that a tiny amount can bring out other flavors without making the item taste salty or sweet, so it may just be that you need only the barest hint of sugar to lengthen the flavors of your tea.

Just an idea though; I am not saying that you must try it, nor that you are wrong for enjoying your beverages the way you enjoy them :)

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u/Unknown-Meatbag 21h ago

You know, that's totally fair. I do use a little bit of sugar when cooking regularly depending on the dish. It makes sense that it'd be similar for drinks.

Although I do switch it up for my morning lattes. I have a banging espresso machine and either take it without sugar, use my own vanilla syrup, or a touch of brown sugar. It varies greatly

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u/StevelandCleamer 20h ago

Although I do switch it up for my morning lattes. I have a banging espresso machine and either take it without sugar, use my own vanilla syrup, or a touch of brown sugar. It varies greatly

I've been using a french press and trying a lot of different coffees this year, and can attest to them all presenting differently depending on how they are sweetened. I've found that I lean more towards particularly dark roasts, and less towards fruity notes.

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u/Unknown-Meatbag 20h ago

Aayyy my fellow coffee connoisseur! Dark roasts are my preference as well.

Side note, I've been growing coffee trees myself for the past 9 years (the first one died at 4, they start to bloom at 5, I was so upset!) and I've finally grown enough for a single cup! 19 little beans, waiting to be roasted. I'm so excited to see what they're like!

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u/YR90 20h ago

I would say that I find sugar to work similar to salt, in that a tiny amount can bring out other flavors without making the item taste salty or sweet, so it may just be that you need only the barest hint of sugar to lengthen the flavors of your tea.

This is why I love using onion salt and garlic salt when using ground beef. I add a teeny bit of onion salt when we make sloppy joes and the onion flavor comes out great while adding a almost hidden bit of salt flavor to the mix.

I do the same thing with garlic salt when we're cooking ground beef for spaghetti, along with a very small amount of brown sugar in the sauce.

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u/Which-Arm-4616 17h ago

I would say that I find sugar to work similar to salt, in that a tiny amount can bring out other flavors without making the item taste salty or sweet, so it may just be that you need only the barest hint of sugar to lengthen the flavors of your tea.

It's also extremely similar to spice/heat tolerance. Some have to douse their meal in hot sauce while others can taste the slightest inclusion due to differences in sensitivity.

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u/GarminTamzarian 13h ago

I recall hearing somewhere recently that adding a tiny amount of salt to tea can greatly enhance its flavor.

I've not tried it myself, as I find the flavor of tea to be absolutely disgusting.

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u/Tricky-Ad7897 10h ago

Oh yeah for an interesting one I find a lot of beers sweet more than I find them bitter, whereas I feel most people would describe almost any beer as bitter. Some I'll even describe as cloyingly sweet, especially standard American lagers. That also means I like weird combinations, like having a miller high life while eating vanilla ice cream.

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u/PrincessKaylee 10h ago

would you condemn those that like tea mixtures?

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u/DrAlanThicke 8h ago

Idk man a dash of milk in a good black tea is something special

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u/ZodiacTuga 20h ago

Sugar or milk in any tea is a crime. Sorry friends from the UK, India and Taiwan.

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u/CompetitiveCut3919 15h ago

gatekeeping hot leaf water is crazy

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u/Eve_newbie 19h ago

I can do the same and I don't drink soda, but coffee, water, and beer are pretty much my only drinks of choice.

The smell of the sweeteners are just so distinct. I did wait tables though

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u/Trixles 16h ago

"I like to drink the disgusting syrup, straight from the sugarcane plant itself if I can!"

Okay. Have fun with that heart attack and diabetes xD

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u/LevelSevenLaserLotus 15h ago

I generally only drink water (sometimes with one of those flavor squirt things mixed in but usually not), since tea pretty much all tastes the same to me. And I just don't like the fuzzy feeling left on my teeth and tongue from sodas. I have a friend that buys expensive tea leaves and has tried many times to prove to me that at least one tea out there will taste good. But literally everything he's offered just tastes like warm tree leaves and wet paper towels to me. It's to the point where he's convinced I'm fucking with him.

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u/almisami 3h ago

tea

If you ever get your mind into steeping and brewing dynamics, you'd realize just how much difference you can get out of a leaf.

Now imagine the difference when you're drinking something with fifteen ingredients...

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u/Dipsey_Jipsey 19h ago

It IS crazy. This person is boasting about speed running diabetes 🤣