A lot of die hard Diet Coke fans would agree that not all Diet Coke is created equally. Imagine driving down the road on a hot summer day, searching for something to quench your thirst. You turn into a McDonald’s, order a large Diet Coke and take a sip. You find that your tastebuds explode with that fresh, refreshing taste. Unfortunately, the next day you’re driving down the road once again, you stop by a Wendy’s and order another large Diet Coke. You take a sip but this time, your tastebuds sigh. Senior Katie Soohav, a true McCoke fan, stated this about the phenomenon, “Diet Coke from McDonald’s converted me. I won’t drink Coke from anywhere else. It’s just not the same.” So what is it that makes McDonald’s Coke different than Coke from any other establishments? Or is it all in our heads?

I decided to test this theory. Do diet cokes from McDonalds actually taste better? I went off, bought a diet McCoke and a regular Diet Coke, and disguised them in ordinary cups. Then I asked my family to taste them and let me know which is better, or if they are the same. At first, I honestly thought that this taste difference was all in my head, until my mom, dad, and sister all said that the disguised diet McCoke tasted slightly better than the regular Diet Coke. My mom even described the diet McCoke as, “more fizzy tasting.”

How could a soda from McDonald’s taste any different than the same exact soda from anywhere else? According to research done by The Spoon University, the reason McDonald’s diet Coke game reigns superior to most chains, is all down to the way it’s stored. While most chains use things like plastic bags, McDonald’s strictly uses stainless steel. Another investigation done by Buzzfeed concludes that McDonald’s has a special way of filtering their drinks, and they also freeze their syrup ahead of time, which they can attribute that icy fresh taste to.

In summary, Diet Coke from McDonald’s seems to be winning. They’ve made an effort to preserve that thirst quenching freshness and we can all tell the difference. Let’s hope these other fast food chains step up their game soon, so we can enjoy a good Diet Coke from anywhere we choose.