My mother and I were in Publix today and we were strolling the cola aisle when I saw the infamous yellow caps on the Coke bottles.
To get the Business Insider perspective (explanation), please see the following links:
- "Here's why Coca-Cola bottles have yellow caps right now"
- "Kosher for Passover Coca-Cola bottles have a yellow cap" (video)
The Kitchn dives into an explanation as well: "Why Some Coca-Cola Bottles Have Yellow Caps Right Now"
Marketwatch also showed up in the search: "Why this kosher-for-Passover Coke with the yellow cap is going viral"
Essentially, the yellow cap on Coca-Cola bottles is meant to signify that the product is certified Kosher for Passover.
Meaning, those who are following Jewish law and customs (or those who don't want high fructose corn syrup in their cola), a sucrose / cane sugar version is available for purchase.
There's one stipulation: it's only in stock during Passover (whenever that falls, much like Easter every year), so it's truly a yearly "limited edition" product.
It's so weird to say "yearly limited edition" because this specific cola comes out every year. Even though high fructose corn syrup in Coke is an all day, every day option for people around the world, sucrose or cane sugar Coke is a seven day option. It is only available during the holiday that celebrates the 13th Century BCE Israelite exodus from slavery in Egypt.
Due to the way the evacuation happened (as well as what some kashrut [dietary laws] tells us), Jews aren't allowed to eat anything made with "chametz" (leavened bread or any food product derived from wheat, barley, rye, oats, or spelt that has been allowed to ferment and rise) during this time frame. They also can't eat "kitniyot" (rice, beans, peanuts, corn) and need to stay away from drinks that include the aforementioned corn syrup.
To add insult to injury, all of this is providing you're of Ashkenazi descent because it's a definite "no-no" to imbibe in any of that badly good stuff during the week. If you're Sephardic, then you can enjoy it until your heart's content because the rules are different for you (yes, there's a difference in the levels of types of Jews).
Upon more research, in case anyone wants to try the variation of the sugar content, Amazon does not carry Kosher Coke right now, as again, it's not a common a once a year thing. I mean, the A → Z store is listing it, but it's from a third party vendor and selling for $22.90.
That high price is for one two liter bottle, folks. Not a multipack.
I'm not linking to it because it's not worth it. If you really want to find it, go search the search bar for "Kosher Coke" and you'll find it. It'll be the first hit. At least it is at this moment.
Try looking to see if your local supermarket mistakenly has it on their shelves as well. If I'm finding it locally still, maybe it really is an oops with a distributor.
I do have to admit, I'm just surprised Publix still has plenty of bottles in stock, as Passover was April 12, 2025 to April 20, 2025. Today is May 8, 2025. So either the store is in no rush to get rid of the drink, or someone from the local Coke facility hasn't come to pick it up, providing they realize it's still on the shelf. Either way, it's a solid 3 weeks since the start (and end) of the holiday and there seemed to be plenty of bottles for sale on that shelf way above my head. The pictures I've posted in the beginning of this crazy rambling show about 14 bottles, but there were plenty more to the right of the photo. Maybe there was a total of 25? 30? I'm not sure, but it seemed like a lot.
Honestly, I know it wasn't an immense amount by any means, but there was enough to question why they're still hanging out and aren't being sold.
Are people not looking up at that shelf because it's the absolute top shelf (and generally no one raises their head that high [there's been research saying people don't look higher or lower than they need to])? Does the average person not want it? Do they even know about it and why the cap is not normal?
I did fail to look at the "expiry / best by date" because all Coke products are "Buy 2 get 1 free" and we haven't been buying two regular Cokes to get one free when this sale is on (although we drink diet or "Zero" in our house, so it was still part of the B2G1 sale).
What I did end up with was the "Buy 1 Get 1" of A&W / Dr. Pepper branded products instead of the buy 2 get 1 Coke product (we got one Diet RC and one Diet Cranberry Canada Dry.. only because there was no Diet Vernors and I haven't had an RC Cola in for ever).
It's comical because you'd think the way my mother goes on about Diet Cherry Coke, we'd have bought it today. The only problem is, there's no 20 ounce bottle version of diet cherry. It only comes in regular cherry (in 2 liter form) or in a can. It's hard to find the "single" serving version. So we don't get it, even though my mother raves about it.
Then again, because Coke is generally a more popular brand for kosher households, we tend to gravitate towards the brand anyway. I know I've mentioned this is previous posts. We do drink other soft drinks as well, but everyone has their preference and their "go to", I imagine. It just happens to be this particular brand isn't always on the right type of sale when we're looking for colas, which is why we usually end up with something else. We don't discriminate, or try not to discriminate, but when "money talks", sales end up in our shopping cart over general preference. It is nice to occasionally have what you're used to, but when you've got to worry about pricing and supply, well, things happen that you don't always anticipate.
Much like seeing the yellow cap this morning. I didn't anticipate seeing more than a dozen big plastic containers of Kosher for Passover Coke, much like I didn't anticipate buying RC Cola. I remember seeing the logo around "in my youth" but I don't remember ever drinking it, if at any type of frequency at all. I can't say "just how I remember", if it's not registering in my pea brain at the moment.
Que sera, sera; whatever will be, will be.
It's strange. There are times I can't think of that song without thinking of the 2010 stop motion animated movie Mary and Max. There's a scene in the movie where the group Pink Martini sings the famous Doris Day song. I'm not going to go into much detail, because the movie has some sad parts in it. Overall, it's a rather touching display of a pen pal friendship and what we can learn about people and their lives. If you're in to tragicomedies, stop motion, foreign films, and a stellar cast, I suggest watching this. Hopefully you'll thank me.
Until stores clean up their shelves, go get sugar highed and then run off the extended calories.
Cheers;
See also:
"What is a Sephardic Jew?"
- Per Britannica: "Sephardi"
- Per My Jewish Learning: "Who Are Sephardic Jews?"
- Per Chabad,org: "Who Are Sephardic Jews?"
- Per Magen David Sephardic Congregation: "Sephardic Customs" (this has food listed).
- They also have a page about "Traditions"
Just for an additional add in, Judaism 101 has an article about "Ashkenazic and Sephardic Jews".
"What is an Ashkenazi Jew?"
- Per Britannica: "Ashkenazi"
- Per My Jewish Learning: "Who Are Ashkenazi Jews?"
- Per Aish.com: "Who Are Ashkenazi Jews?"
- Per Chabad.org: "Ashkenazi Jewish People and Culture"
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Thanks for sharing!