Before 1959 and the arrival of communist dictator Fidel Castro, Cubans could enjoy a cold and refreshing Coke. Coca-Cola had several bottling plants on the island, with the first one starting production in 1906. But then the socialist revolution liberated them from the imperialist oppression of soft drinks.
Coca-Cola: the best-selling soft drink in Cuba before 1959
In Cuba, before 1959, when someone entered a cantina, a grocery store, or a bar and asked the attendant for a drink, they implicitly understood that they were asking for a Coca-Cola.
Advertising played a substantial role in the demand for Coca-Cola. Many businesses prominently displayed a sign with the establishment’s name, and on every corner, the red circle and white letters spelling out Coca-Cola could be seen.
There were abundant promotions, always simple, containing the basic slogans: “Drink Coca-Cola” and “The pause that refreshes.”
Due to the curvilinear design of the glass bottle containing the drink, many people, when they wanted to refer to a woman with a shapely figure, would say, “She looks like a Coca-Cola.”
Coca-Cola arrived in Cuba during the American military intervention (1898-1902). American soldiers, when mixing it with Bacardí rum, created the Cuba Libre, one of the most popular Cuban cocktails.
The first Coca-Cola bottling plant in Cuba was inaugurated in 1906, on Obrapía Street between Aguiar and Cuba, in Old Havana. But it didn’t stay there for long. The place was allocated for the Havana Stock Exchange, and the bottling plant was relocated to number 6 on Alejandro Ramírez Street, in the El Cerro neighborhood, next to the Quinta de Dependientes (the current Hospital Clínico Quirúrgico Diez de Octubre).
At the end of the 1940s, a modern facility was built in Palatino and Santa Catalina, occupying an area of about 500 square meters, with parking for trucks.
There were two more bottling plants inland, one in Santiago de Cuba, established in 1912, and another in Santa Clara, inaugurated in 1948. This allowed for rapid supply to the entire country and reduced transportation costs for the product.
A Coca-Cola bottle, containing six ounces, cost five cents.
Coca-Cola was the favorite drink of Cubans, but there was another brand that was quite popular, Pepsi-Cola. The Pepsi-Cola factory is still located on Salvador Allende Avenue (formerly Carlos III), but today it produces other beverages.
There were other companies that sold drinks made in Cuba or imported. Some also had plants here. Among others were: Materva, Salutaris, Canada Dry, Jupiña, Orange Crush, Green Sport, Ironber.
The two Coca-Cola bottlers in the capital, which were nationalized in 1960, currently belong to the Beverage and Refreshment Company (EMBER). One was allocated for wine sales, and the other for producing alcoholic beverages and soft drinks. I’m not sure if the ones in the interior of the country still exist or what they are dedicated to.
All Coca-Cola signs and advertisements were removed everywhere in 1960 because the regime considered them “a symbol of Yankee imperialism.”
The distinctive taste of Coca-Cola was attempted to be imitated in Cuba but failed. Che Guevara, upon tasting one of the concoctions created as a substitute, expressed that it “tasted like shit.”
The soft drinks made in Cuba to replace Coca-Cola were first Son and then Tukola, which is hardly seen anymore.
The taste of Coca-Cola is unmatched. The formula of the extract, created by pharmacist John Pemberton and known only to the top two executives of Coca-Cola, remains in a safe deposit box in a bank in Atlanta, Georgia.
A curious fact is that the first foreign executive in the company was the Cuban chemist Roberto Goizueta, who tried to change the taste of Coca-Cola but failed in his endeavor. The complaints of thousands of consumers eventually led him to abandon the idea.
Currently, the Coca-Cola that can be found in Cuba, in cans, is imported from Mexico. It is sold by the state in its stores in foreign currency, and by self-employed individuals in micro-enterprises, at prices ranging from 220 to 300 pesos, making it unaffordable for most of the population.
The bottom line is that there was ZERO need for the “revolution” (meaning the one Cuba actually got, not the one it was promised). At best, Cubans were disastrously foolish, but unfortunately they were worse.
I preferred Pepsi over Coke, but I also liked Royal Crown Cola. While in Cuba, I also liked Materva, Salutaris, Canada Dry, Jupiña, Orange Crush, Ironber and Cawy. With Orange Crush being one of my favorites of the time.