This article is about the soft drink. For the homemade alcoholic beverage, see
Moonshine.
Mountain Dew, stylized as Mtn Dew, is a soft drink manufactured and distributed by PepsiCo. Although its formula was invented in Knoxville, Tennessee, it was first marketed in Knoxville and Johnson City, TN through the 1940s. Then by Barney and Ally Hartman, in Fayetteville, North Carolina, and finally across the United States by 1964.[1] Mountain Dew is also owned by JoudCo company in Syria.
As of 2007, behind only Coca-Cola Classic, Pepsi-Cola, and Diet Coke, Mountain Dew was the 4th best selling carbonated soft drink in the United States. Mountain Dew's Diet version ranked 9th in sales.[2]
On October 15, 2008, Mountain Dew's official logo was redesigned to "Mtn Dew", from a PepsiCo rebranding of core products.[3] In which, Mountain Dew also re-launched in the UK. Mountain Dew was originally released in the UK in 1996, then removed in 1998 due to low sales.[4] Two of the alternate flavors of Mountain Dew, "LiveWire" & "Baja Blast", continue to use the original designs. In November 2009, "Voltage" and "Code Red" received the redesign.[citation needed] "Ultra Violet" and "Game Fuel"(2009) both use the current design.
Nutrition Facts | Serving Size 12 fl oz (355 ml) |
| Servings Per Container 1 |
|
| Amount Per Serving |
| Calories 170 | Calories from Fat 0 |
|
| % Daily Value* |
| Total Fat 0 g | 0% |
| Saturated Fat 0 g | 0% |
| Trans Fat 0 g |
| Cholesterol 0 mg | 0% |
| Sodium 65 mg | 3% |
| Potassium 0 mg | 0% |
| Total Carbohydrate 46 g | 15% |
| Dietary Fiber 0 g | 0% |
| Sugars 46 g |
| Protein 0 g |
|
| Vitamin A | 0% | Vitamin C | 0% |
| Calcium | 0% | Iron | 0% |
|
| *Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000-calorie diet. Your Daily Values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs. |
[edit] Ingredients
This sign dates from the 1950s
This long-term logo was used in the 1970s & 1980s and in the early 1990s as a "retro" logo until 1995. Used in 2009 for
Mountain Dew Throwback. 
The logo used from 1999 to 2004. Note that the font used in the succeeding logos looks almost exactly like this one.
The final logo (2005-2008) that completely spells out
Mountain Dew before it would be dropped by the end of 2008, but the flavors "Baja Blast" & "LiveWire" continue to use this design as of September 2009.
Mountain Dew lists its ingredients as:
Diet Mountain Dew: Sugar/HFCS is replaced with:
Mountain Dew Throwback:
Mountain Dew, and its energy drink counterpart AMP, often incurs disapproval from health experts due to its high caffeine content. However, Mountain Dew was marketed in Australia and Canada (see Dew Fuel/Mountain Dew Energy varieties below) – as well as several U.S. states[citation needed] – as having no additional caffeine added. (Health Canada prohibits caffeine in non-cola soft drinks,[5] while Australia has a similar law[6]). Mountain Dew contains tartrazine (“FD&C Yellow No. 5” in the U.S.), which can possibly lead to allergic reactions in some people. Creating an urban legend that the Mountain Dew's Yellow No. 5 could reduce sperm count [7] Mountain Dew, like other citrus flavored drinks, contains citric acid, sodium benzoate, and brominated vegetable oil (in small quantities, as its concentration is regulated by the US, and banned in 100 other countries)
Although the original formulation of Diet Mountain Dew contained only, as a sweetener, aspartame. The reformulated Diet Mountain Dew contains three artificial sweeteners, aspartame, acesulfame potassium, and sucralose, advertised on its packaging as having a "Tuned Up Taste."
[edit] Promotions
Mountain Dew’s name is a previously existing euphemism for moonshine. Which likely traces back to Ireland (see the Irish folk song “The Rare Auld Mountain Dew”). Mountain Dew has typically been marketed to highlight its potency. It was originally marketed as “zero proof moonshine” with depictions of hillbillies on the bottle until 1973. Bascom Lamar Lunsford’s original recording of “Old Mountain Dew”, an Appalachian old-time song, was used as the first advertising theme for the newly created Mountain Dew soda.
[edit] 2002–2007
Mountain Dew's demographic is 12–30 years old. Promoting extreme sports and video game culture.[8] Mountain Dew is the tour title sponsor of the extreme sports event AST Dew Tour.
In 2007 Green Label Art released a limited edition series of bottles featuring twelve designs from various artists. Originally distributed at promotional events, Green Label Art is looking into distribution for a wider market. In 2008 Green Label Art released a second limited edition series of bottles featuring six new designs. Their promotions for Diet Mountain Dew created the "Diet Dew Surprising Facts" campaign. The campaign focuses on reenacting true absurd facts. With the coordination of RepNation, brought brand representatives on 50 campuses across the US.
[edit] AMP Energy
AMP is an energy drink distributed by PepsiCo under the Mountain Dew brand. Launched in 2001 AMP was originally known as "Mountain Dew AMP". From 2007-2008, several additional flavors of AMP were introduced.
[edit] DEWmocracy & Voltage
DEWmocracy[9], featured actor Forest Whitaker asking people to the decide the next new flavor of Mountain Dew. Online voters would select from three chocies: Supernova, a strawberry-melon flavor, Revolution, a berry flavor, and Voltage, a raspberry-citrus flavor. Each included ginseng. On August 17, Voltage was announced as the winning flavor. It was release on December 29, 2008.[10]
Mountain Dew anounced another DEWmocracy campaign known as "DEW Labs" for 2010. Voting on colors, names, and designs is concluded. The flavors are Mountain Dew Typhoon(pink), which is a tropical punch flavor, Mountain Dew White Out(white), which is a citrus flavor, and Mountain Dew Distortion(green), which is a lime flavor. Now fans will create ads for the new flavors, and the three winners will create the official ads that air next spring. The three new flavors will be released in spring 2010 and last through the summer. After that, the voting on the permanent flavor(which contrary to popular belief, will NOT replace Mountain Dew Voltage) will take place.
[edit] Doritos Quest
In 2008, Doritos debuted a mystery flavor known as "Quest." Featuring a campaign of online puzzles and prizes to identify the Quest flavor. The flavor was later identified as Mountain Dew.[11]
[edit] Mountain Dew Aluminum Bottle Series
Green Label Art currently has 29 aluminum bottles in its collection. There were nine bottles in the 2007 campaign, called "the collection". Volume 1, 2008, featured six bottles. Volume 2, featured six bottles and one special edition bottle, released at "Pushead" a conference in Los Angeles. There were four Nascar bottles. With finally, four "4th of July" bottles, not included in Green Label Art bottles. A bottle was released for Halo 3; which had the Mountain Dew limited edition "Game Fuel" in it.[12]
[edit] Rare Bottle & Circle of 8
On September 9, 2009, Mountain Dew released six bottles for Volume 3. A seventh bottle was randomly inserted in approximately every forty cases of Mountain Dew. This rare bottle features mostly black with a white lightning bolt.
This rare bottle, when held up to a mirror, reads "Sum Principium et Finis." Latin for "I am the beginning and the end." This is intended to promote "Circle of 8," debuting in October, exclusively on MySpace and a mobile partner.
ARCHIVE 2007:
Adam Juresko, "Paper Tigers"
Chris Pastras with Paul Rodriguez, "Pharaohs of Dew"
Dr. Revolt, "Splish Splash"
Jeffstaple, "Staple X"
JT Woodruff with Hawthorne Heights, "Umbrellas"
Mark Nardelli with 5Boro, "Pop Art Pirate"
Mark Nardelli with 5Boro, "Don't Sleep"
Methamphibian, "Tundra"
TWEEQiM, "Dew Lords of the Deep""
Chuck Anderson, "Just Like Snowflakes" (Does not have white rectangle box next to UPC on 2007 release)
Peat Wollaeger, "Bill Hilly" (Does not have white rectangle box next to UPC on 2007 release)
Troy Denning, "Concrete Dragon" (Does not have white rectangle box next to UPC on 2007 release)
VOLUME 1, 2008:
Chuck Anderson, "Just Like Snowflakes"
Dez, "Do the Dew"
Haze, "MD Superstar"
Peat Wollaeger, "Bill Hilly"
Scott Lenhardt & Danny Davis, "Reflections of Dew"
Troy Denning, "Concrete Dragon"
VOLUME 2, 2008:
Billy the Artist, "Open Eyes"
Mark Smith, "Happy Heads"
Mike Sutfin, "Hessian Henchman"
PJ Richardson, "J Church"
Stephan "Maze" Georges, "Dew Celebration"
Troy Denning, "Fearless Fury"
VOLUME 3, 2009:
Pushead, "Scarecrow Genie"
Nathan Cabrera, "The Revolution Will Be Mechanized"
Jeff McMillan, "Beware Mountain"
Stephen Bliss, "Ocean of Mountain Dew"
UPSO, "Wake Up"
Claw Money, "Ups and Downs"
RARE and Hard-to-find:
Pushead Bottle (2008)
Circle of 8 (2009)
Halo 3:
Halo 3 Edition Bottle
Stars and Stripes Edition:
4 Stars and Stripes
Nascar Edition:
4 Nascar
Playboy Bunny Edition
[edit] Flavors and varieties
[edit] Current
- Mountain Dew (1964 - Present) – PepsiCo’s original and signature flavor in the Mountain Dew family.
- Diet Mountain Dew (1984 - Present) – No-calorie Mountain Dew. Diet was formerly known as “Sugar-Free Mountain Dew” until 1986.[13] In 2006 Diet Mountain Dew was reformulated with a new “Tuned Up Taste,” it is now sweetened with a blend of sucralose, aspartame, and acesulfame potassium. The previous formulation only used aspartame. Diet Mountain Dew is currently Pepsico's fastest growing carbonated soft drink.
- Caffeine-Free Mountain Dew (1976 - Present) – Non-caffeinated Mountain Dew. Available in various parts of the United States and Canada. In Canada it is simply labeled as “Mountain Dew” since caffeine isn't allowed in non-cola beverages the exception being specialty products such as the Mountain Dew Fuel line.
- Diet Mountain Dew Fountain (1989 - Present) – A variation of Diet Mountain Dew that uses treated water instead of carbonated water in its formula.[14] Available as a fountain beverage at QuikTrip convenience stores, Quiznos restaurants, and other limited locations.
- Caffeine-Free Diet Mountain Dew (1984 - Present) – No-calorie, non-caffeinated Mountain Dew. Available in limited locations in the United States. In Canada it is simply labeled as “Diet Mountain Dew.”
- Mountain Dew Code Red (2001 - Present) – Cherry Mountain Dew. Code Red is not the same as the original Mountain Dew Red.
- Diet Mountain Dew Code Red (2002 - Present) – A No-calorie No-sugar cherry Mountain Dew. Available in limited areas only.
- Mountain Dew LiveWire (2003 - Present) – Orange Mountain Dew. LiveWire was initially introduced in 2003 as a limited edition flavor for the Summer. In 2005, after seeing two years of limited summer releases, LiveWire became a permanent addition to the Mountain Dew family. Although, availability is limited in some regions, and in some areas is unavailable.
- Mountain Dew Baja Blast (2004 - Present) – Tropical lime and pineapple flavored Mountain Dew. Available exclusively as a fountain drink at Taco Bell restaurants, although the Mountain Dew Game Fuel Alliance Blue (see below) limited edition flavor is very similar to Baja Blast and is sold in stores.
- Dew Iced (2007) – A Mountain Dew flavored smoothie available exclusively at Cold Stone Creamery stores.
- Mountain Dew Voltage (2008 - Present) – A blue colored raspberry-citrus and ginseng flavored Dew. This flavor is one of the three “candidate flavor” finalists for DEWmocracy's “People’s Dew” national vote. It was released in stores on May 19 as a limited edition flavor so that people could taste test which flavor they like best before voting. It has been announced on August 17 that Voltage is the final winner; therefore, it became a permanent addition. It was released on December 29, 2008.[10]
- Mountain Dew Cherry Rush (2009 - Present) - A more heavily Cherry flavored Mountain Dew, more so than Code Red. Available exclusively as a fountain drink at Wienerschnitzel restaurants.
- Mountain Dew Distortion (2010) - A "lime blasted" Mountain Dew. Part of the Mountain Dew "DEWmocracy" promotion.
- Mountain Dew White Out (2010) - A "smooth citrus" Mountain Dew. Part of the Mountain Dew "DEWmocracy" promotion.
- Mountain Dew Typhoon (2010) - A "tropical" Mountain Dew. Part of the Mountain Dew "DEWmocracy" promotion.
[edit] Discontinued
- Mountain Dew Red (1988) – Fruit Mountain Dew. Red was the first Mountain Dew flavor variation.
- Diet Mountain Dew Red (1988) – No-calorie fruit Mountain Dew.
- Mountain Dew Sport (1990–1991) – Only test marketed in several states, as a Mountain Dew flavored sports drink.
- Diet Mountain Dew Sport (1990–1991) – Only test marketed in several states, as a no-calorie Mountain Dew flavored sports drink.
- Mountain Dew Blue Shock (2001) – Berry-citrus flavored Mountain Dew.[15] Blue Shock failed to sell in the test market, Chicago, and was later released nationwide only in Slurpee form exclusively at 7-Eleven stores. Brought back briefly for a limited time in March 2007 and in July 2008.[16]
- Dew Fuel (2002–2007) – A caffeinated version of Mountain Dew offered in Canada. Marketed as a natural health product and not as a soft drink due to Health Canada regulations[17] that only allow caffeine in 'dark-colored' varieties of soft drinks such as cola and root beer. Originally called “Mountain Dew Energy” until given its present name in 2006. In early 2007, Pepsi-QTG Canada cited that Dew Fuel is out of production.
- Dew Fuel Sugar-Free (2002 - 2007) – No-calorie Dew Fuel. The caffeinated version of Diet Mountain Dew offered in Canada. Was originally called “Mountain Dew Energy Sugar-Free” until 2006.
- Mountain Dew Pitch Black (2004) – Black grape Mountain Dew. Limited edition flavor for Halloween. Although, it is supposedly still available in a very few select places.
- Darth Dew (2005) – Tangy grape Mountain Dew Slurpee flavor that could be considered as “Pitch Black 1.5”.[18] Was available exclusively at 7-Eleven stores as part of a promotion for the theatrical release of Star Wars Episode III.
- Mountain Dew Pitch Black II (2005) – Sour grape Mountain Dew. Limited edition flavor for Halloween. “Sequel” to the original Pitch Black.
- Mountain Dew Arctic Burst (2006) – A Mountain Dew Slurpee flavor available exclusively at 7-Eleven stores as part of a promotion for the theatrical release of Superman Returns. The Slurpee is blue in color and said to taste like blueberry. While the official name is “Arctic Burst”, as seen on the actual Slurpee machine,[19] it has also been seen mislabeled under the name “Arctic Blast” in some official online advertisements.[20]
- Kryptonite Ice (2006) – A Mountain Dew Slurpee flavor available exclusively at 7-Eleven stores as part of a promotion for the theatrical release of Superman Returns. The Slurpee is green in color and the flavor seems to be tropical, like mango.
- Mountain Dew MDX (2005 - 2007) – A Mountain Dew flavored energy soda. It was named “Mountain Dew X” during its national test marketing phase. Still available in some markets.
- Sugar-Free Mountain Dew MDX (2005 - 2006) – No-calorie Mountain Dew flavored energy soda.
- Mountain Dew Game Fuel (2007) – A limited edition citrus cherry Mountain Dew flavor released in August 2007 to promote the release of Halo 3, an Xbox 360 game. The taste of Game Fuel has been compared to the energy drink Amp Overdrive, a drink sold under the Mountain Dew brand name. However, this drink has recently been made available again, now sold under the name "Mountain Dew Game Fuel Horde Red", marketing the game World of Warcraft instead of Halo.
The first DEWmocracy trio
- Mountain Dew Revolution (2008) – A sky blue-colored, wild berry fruit and ginseng flavored Dew. One of the three “candidate flavor” finalists for DEWmocracy's “People’s Dew” national vote, it lost to Mountain Dew Voltage.
- Mountain Dew Supernova (2008) – A purple colored strawberry, melon and ginseng flavored Dew. One of the three “candidate flavor” finalists for DEWmocracy's “People’s Dew” national vote, it lost to Mountain Dew Voltage.[21]
- Mountain Dew Throwback (2009) - Mountain Dew made with natural sugar (instead of HFCS) and without orange juice. Packaging uses a retro 70s/80s logo for the label. Mountain Dew and Pepsi Throwback will return for eight weeks starting December 28, 2009.[22]
- Mountain Dew Game Fuel Horde Red (2009) - limited edition of the original cherry-citrus flavor to be released as a promotion with World of Warcraft.
- Mountain Dew Game Fuel Alliance Blue (2009) - limited edition Wild Berry flavored released as a promotion with World of Warcraft.[23] Although the Alliance Blue flavor has been reported to be very similar to the Taco Bell exclusive flavor Baja Blast, the packaging clearly states that it is a wild fruit-infused flavor of Mountain Dew, which makes it almost identical in taste to the discontinued flavor Mountain Dew Revolution, and also similar to current flavor Ultraviolet.
- Diet Mountain Dew Ultraviolet (2009) - a purple-colored, mixed berry-flavored version of Diet Mountain Dew available for three months in 2009; branded as zero calorie Dew. It was released on August 3 at a first taste party in Brooklyn, New York.[24] It has a taste similar to Mountain Dew Revolution, but is a new formula.
[edit] Non-Pepsi bottlers in U.S.
There are only three non-Pepsi franchises in the United States that make Mountain Dew. When Mountain Dew was acquired by Pepsi, there were 56 franchise agreements, 16 of which were not held by a Pepsi bottler. The three remaining agreements are permanent, but the size of their territories are small enough to make them insignificant to Pepsi.[25]
- West Jefferson Dr Pepper (WJDP) of West Jefferson, NC. The company does not ship outside its contracted territory, however, several Web sites and several Pepsi bottlers (in the midwest) sell the product at a premium price. A premium price is charged because WJDP is the last bottler in the U.S. to produce Mountain Dew with cane sugar[26] (instead of High Fructose Corn Syrup, or HFCS). WJDP is noted for producing all their non-diet products with cane sugar, most of which are Dr Pepper Snapple Group (formerly Cadbury Schweppes and Dr Pepper/Seven Up) products.
- RC Cola Bottling of Winchester, Winchester, VA. The company produces Mountain Dew, but uses High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) like all Pepsi bottlers. This bottler markets caffeine-free Mountain Dew and caffeine-free Diet Mountain Dew, and the products are sold at groceries in the northern Shenandoah Valley of Virginia and in nearby West Virginia.
- Dr Pepper of Staunton, Staunton, VA. This company does not make Mountain Dew, but instead buys it from regional Pepsi bottling plants. Their territory extends from south of the RC Winchester territory to south of Staunton. The Pepsi bottler in the area carries Sun Drop instead of Mountain Dew.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
[edit] External links
| Brands of citrus soda | | | Citrus soda lines | | | | Citrus sodas | | | | Lemon-lime sodas | | | | Orange sodas | | | | Grapefruit sodas | | | | Tangerine sodas | | |
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