Cheerwine facts for kids
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| Type | Soft drink |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Carolina Beverage Corporation |
| Distributor | Local bottlers and distributors |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Introduced | 1917 |
| Color | Burgundy |
| Flavor | Black cherry |
| Variants |
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Cheerwine is a super popular cherry-flavored soft drink! It's made by the Carolina Beverage Corporation in Salisbury, North Carolina. This fizzy drink has been around since 1917. It's special because it claims to be the "oldest continuing soft drink company still operated by the same family." That means the same family has been making Cheerwine for over 100 years!
Contents
Discovering Cheerwine's History
How Cheerwine Began
Back in 1917, a company called Maysville Syrup Company had some money troubles. L.D. Peeler and other smart business people decided to move the company to North Carolina. They changed its name to Carolina Syrup Company. That same year, L.D. Peeler and his partners bought a secret recipe for a cherry soda from a salesman. This recipe became the delicious Cheerwine we know today!
Cheerwine has been around since 1917, but it officially became a registered trademark in 1926. This means its name and logo were protected by law.
A Family Business
The family of L.D. Peeler has been in charge of the Cheerwine company since it started. His great-grandson, Charles Clifford “Cliff” Ritchie, became the CEO and president in 1992. It's pretty cool that the same family has kept the tradition going for so long!
What Makes Cheerwine Special?
Cheerwine has a sweet taste with strong cherry flavors, especially black cherry. It's a beautiful burgundy-red color. It also has lots of bubbles, more than many other sodas! The company says they named it "Cheerwine" because it's a "burgundy-red, bubbly, cherry concoction" that brings cheer.
The "Retro Cheerwine" version is sold in glass bottles. It's made with real cane sugar instead of high fructose corn syrup. Even though it has "wine" in its name, Cheerwine is not actually wine and has no alcohol.
More Than Just a Drink
Cheerwine isn't just a soda! The company also sells Cheerwine-flavored ice cream, sherbet, and cream bars. You can often find these tasty treats in Food Lion stores, which are based in Salisbury, North Carolina. In 2008, a special Cheerwine cake, based on an old Southern recipe, also became available.
New Look for a Classic Drink
In 2009, Cheerwine decided to update its look. They wanted to make the drink more appealing to younger people. This included new packaging with a cool, retro-style logo. It was inspired by an older Cheerwine logo.
Fun Partnerships
In 2010, Cheerwine teamed up with Krispy Kreme, a famous doughnut company from North Carolina. They released a special Cheerwine-flavored doughnut! It was only sold for a short time in July. It was so popular that it came back again in July 2011. Later, they even made "Cheerwine Kreme," a soda that tasted like both Cheerwine and Krispy Kreme!
Some restaurants also started offering Cheerwine. In 2010, Old Carolina Barbecue in Ohio became the first restaurant chain there to sell Cheerwine as a fountain drink. By 2014, they were even selling Cheerwine slushies, cakes, and floats!
Where Can You Find Cheerwine?
Availability Across the U.S.
Cheerwine is easiest to find in the southeastern United States. This includes states from West Virginia down to Florida. It's especially well-known in the Carolinas.
You can also find Cheerwine in many "specialty soda" stores across the country. Places like WinCo Foods in Washington state, Cracker Barrel restaurants, Cook Out restaurants, and Sheetz convenience stores in Ohio and Pennsylvania also sell it. Believe it or not, you can even find it overseas in Oslo, Norway! It's usually sold in single bottles or in packs of four.
In 2005, Cheerwine started being bottled in other parts of the U.S., often through Pepsi distributors.
Growing Popularity
In 2011, The New York Times newspaper wrote about "The Expanding Cult of Cheerwine." This showed how popular the drink was becoming!
On April 5, 2011, the company announced big plans. They wanted Cheerwine to be available all across the country by 2017, which was the product's 100th anniversary. At that time, Cheerwine was only available in about 12% of the country. They also launched a new advertising campaign with the slogan, "Born in the South. Raised in a glass."
In April 2011, Cheerwine looked for a young woman to be "Miss Cheerwine." She would help share the Cheerwine story and get the drink to fans. On June 3, 2011, Spencer Cummings became the first Miss Cheerwine.
Later in 2011, Cheerwine partnered with Pepsi Beverages Co. in places like Atlanta, Florida, and Memphis, Tennessee. They also started selling the "Original 1917 Formula" in glass bottles, made with sugar, and introduced 12-pack cans.
In 2014, Buffalo Rock Co. in Birmingham, Alabama started distributing Cheerwine. This brought the drink to Alabama, western Georgia, and the Florida Panhandle, reaching many new customers!
Cheerwine's Cool Sponsorships
Cheerwine likes to team up with different groups and events!
In 2005, Cheerwine drinks were shown in a TV show called Palmetto Pointe. The show was filmed in Charleston, South Carolina.
Cheerwine has also sponsored the North Carolina band the Avett Brothers on their music tours.
They also sponsor the Carolina Hurricanes hockey team! This means Cheerwine ads are shown on LED signs at the arena, on the team's bus, and you can buy Cheerwine at all sorts of events held at PNC Arena.
