Kofola facts for kids
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| Type | Soft drink |
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| Manufacturer | Kofola ČeskoSlovensko a.s. |
| Country of origin | Czechoslovakia |
| Introduced | 1960 |
| Colour | Caramel |
| Variants | Kofola Originál, Meruňka, Meloun, Malina, Ostružina, Angrešt, Guarana, Bez cukru, Višňová, Citrus |
| Related products | Coca-Cola, Pepsi, Polo Cocta |
Kofola is a popular fizzy drink made by a company in the Czech Republic. It's a big competitor to famous drinks like Coca-Cola and Pepsi in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Kofola is one of the top drink makers in Central and Eastern Europe.
Contents
How Kofola Started
Kofola was first created in 1959 in Prague, which was then part of Czechoslovakia. Scientists were looking for a way to use extra caffeine left over from making coffee. They came up with a dark, sweet-and-sour syrup called Kofo. This syrup became the main ingredient for a new fizzy drink, which was named Kofola and launched in 1960.
During the 1960s and 1970s, Kofola became super popular in communist Czechoslovakia. It did very well against Western cola drinks like Coca-Cola and Pepsi. These Western drinks were available after 1968, but they were expensive and seen as luxury items. Even today, Kofola is a favorite choice in restaurants. You can often get it poured fresh from large containers, just like beer.
Kofola Packaging Over Time
Since 1998, Kofola has been sold in different types of bottles. Besides the classic small glass bottles, you can find it in 0.5-liter and 2-liter plastic bottles. In 2003, smaller 0.25-liter cans were introduced. A year later, in December 2004, 1-liter plastic bottles became available. Kofola is also still very popular when served from large 50-liter containers in many bars and restaurants.
Kofola's Marketing
Since 2002, Kofola has run a very successful advertising campaign. It's aimed at young people and uses the catchy slogan, "If you love her, there is nothing to question." Before 2000, the Kofola logo looked like a coffee bean. Now, it looks more like a coffee flower.
In 2003, a special Christmas TV commercial for Kofola was made. It became one of the most famous and successful Czech TV ads ever. This commercial is still shown on Czech TV channels every year around Christmas time.
The Kofola Company
After the communist government ended in 1989, Kofola faced a lot of competition. Many foreign brands came into the new open market. For a while, Kofola's popularity went down, and there were even legal battles because many companies started making their own "kofola" drinks. The name "kofola" had become a general term for that type of drink.
In 2000, a company called Santa nápoje, owned by the Samaras family, became the only official producer and seller of Kofola in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Other companies making similar drinks had to change their product names.
Company Growth
The Santa nápoje company first made Kofola only at its main factory in Krnov. In 2002, they built a new factory in Rajecká Lesná, Slovakia, to meet the high demand in the Slovak market. In 2003, Santa nápoje changed its name to Kofola, a.s. and later to Kofola ČeskoSlovensko a.s.
Besides Kofola, the company also makes other soft drinks. These include the spring water Rajec, fresh fruit juices called UGO, syrups named Jupí, and children's drinks like Jupík. They also make RC Cola under a special agreement. Since 2008, they have produced the grape drink Vinea. Many of these products are sold in other countries like Poland, Hungary, Slovakia, and Croatia.
In 2008, Kofola announced that it would join with Hoop, a company that makes lemonade in Poland. In 2009, the Polish company Kofola-Hoop S.A. changed its name to Kofola S.A.
In April 2009, Kofola bought Pinelli and started making the energy drink Semtex. In 2010, Kofola opened another new factory in Mnichovo Hradiště. In December 2014, Kofola bought a factory in Slovenia that makes mineral water called Radenska.
In 2018, the company bought all the shares of Leros, a Czech company that makes tea. By the end of 2018, the Kofola Group was operating in many countries, including the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland, Slovenia, Croatia, Russia, Austria, and Hungary.
In November 2023, Kofola announced that it was buying most of the shares in Pivovary CZ Group. This group of breweries makes beers under the brands Holba, Zubr, and Litovel. With this purchase, Kofola entered the beer market in the Czech Republic.
What's in Kofola?
The main ingredient in Kofola is Kofo syrup. This syrup is made from 14 different herbal and fruit ingredients. These include extracts from apple, cherry, currant, and special herbal aromas. It also contains sugar or high fructose corn syrup and caramel.
Compared to Pepsi or Coca-Cola, Kofola has about 30% less sugar. It also has about 56% more caffeine (15 mg per 100ml, while Coca-Cola has 9.6 mg per 100ml). Kofola does not contain phosphoric acid, which is found in many other cola drinks.
Kofola Products
Kofola comes in many different flavors and sizes:
- Kofola Original – This is the classic flavor. It comes in plastic bottles of various sizes (0.5 L, 1 L, 1.5 L, 2 L), small glass bottles (0.25 L and 0.33 L), 0.25 L cans, and also in large containers called kegs.
- Kofola Citrus – This flavor has a hint of lemon. It was first introduced in 2004 and is sold in plastic bottles.
- Kofola Bez Cukru – This is a sugar-free version. It came out in 2008 and is available in plastic bottles.
- Kofola Višňová – This flavor is made with sour cherry. It was introduced in 2008 and can be found in plastic bottles and cans.
- Kofola Vanilka – This is a vanilla-flavored Kofola, launched in 2013. It's available in plastic bottles.
- Kofola Guarana – This is an energy drink that mixes Kofola with guarana flavor. It was introduced in 2013 and comes in plastic bottles and cans.
- Kofola Meruňka – This flavor is made with apricot. It was introduced in 2015 and is sold in plastic bottles.
- Kofola Meloun – This is a watermelon-flavored Kofola, launched in 2016. It's available in plastic bottles.
- Kofola Černý Rybíz – This flavor is blackcurrant. It was introduced in 2017 and comes in plastic bottles and cans.
- Kofola Malina – This is a raspberry-flavored Kofola, launched in 2017. It's available in plastic bottles.
- Kofola Ostružina – This flavor is blackberry. It was introduced in 2018 and is sold in plastic bottles.
- Kofola Ananas – This is a pineapple-flavored Kofola, launched in 2018. It's available in cans.
- Kofola Grep – This flavor is grapefruit. It was introduced in 2018 and comes in cans.
- Kofola Angrešt – This is a gooseberry-flavored Kofola, launched in 2019. It's available in plastic bottles.
Kofola also releases special limited-edition flavors, especially around Christmas. For example, a cinnamon-flavored Kofola was introduced in late 2007. Other limited flavors have included pomegranate, almond, gingerbread, chocolate, coconut, walnut, plum, pear, and mandarin. The 2019 Christmas edition had a hint of apple and cinnamon.
Kofola Cocktails
Kofola is sometimes used to make simple mixed drinks. One popular mix is called Kofrum or Student lemonade. It's a highball drink made with Kofola, Czech Tuzemák (a type of local rum), and lemon juice. Another mix is Kofola with pilsner lager beer, which is sometimes called Kofola 'n' Beer or Diesel.
See also
In Spanish: Kofola para niños
