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What does Market Basket’s Chelmsford soda taste like?
The sweet drink has a rich caramel color, a hint of cream soda in the aftertaste, and an effervescence that one taste tester said would go well with pizza.
There’s a bit of local nostalgia tucked away in Market Basket’s soft drinks aisle, hidden in plain sight among the root beer and fluorescent orange soda.
Named for the Massachusetts town where it was initially manufactured more than a century ago, the drink recently gained some new fans following a viral tweet earlier this week.
“What’s wrong babe? you’ve barely touched your Chelmsford flavored soda,” Twitter user @SteveMerkle9 wrote, accompanied by a photo of the soda’s telltale yellow logo, which splashes “Chelmsford” across a map of New England.
So, what does Chelmsford taste like?
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The eponymous drink expertly walks the line between sweet and too sweet, with a rich caramel color, a hint of cream soda in the aftertaste, and an effervescence that one Boston.com taste tester said would go well with pizza.
“Golden” refers to a style of ginger ale, characterized by a more intense ginger flavor and sweetness than its “dry” counterpart, which tends to be paler and milder, according to Tasting Table.
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For those in the know, the Chelmsford name and flavor harken back to a time when the town was a ginger ale destination. That legacy began in 1901 with the Chelmsford Spring Company, later the Chelmsford Ginger Ale Company.
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“At one time, Chelmsford Ginger Ale was equal to Coca-Cola,’’ former Chelmsford Historical Society president Bernie Ready told Boston.com in 2014. “They covered all of New England. They had billboards everywhere.’’
Canada Dry bought out Chelmsford Ginger Ale in 1931 and kept the town’s bottling plant open until 1959, when it shifted operations over to its plant in Waltham, according to Chelmsford Historical Society records.
Using the original recipe, Canada Dry continued making Chelmsford Golden Ginger Ale up until 2003, when it discontinued the drink, Boston.com previously reported.
Enter, Market Basket.
Noticing that customers were sad to see the brand go, the regional-favorite grocery chain worked with Polar Beverages to continue offering Chelmsford ginger ale, according to Joe Schmidt, supervisor of Market Basket operations.
“They were successful in the venture and customers enjoyed it,” Schmidt recently told Boston.com via email. “It is not a high-volume seller but is very appreciated by some. It is definitely gratifying that customers appreciate our efforts to do our best to meet their needs and wants.”
He said the ginger ale is sold in most Market Basket locations, where a taste of Chelmsford will set you back a cool 99 cents.
Wickedpedia: Your unserious questions, seriously answered. Have a question about Greater Boston or New England you’ve always wondered about but never thought to ask? Boston.com’s new Wickedpedia series aims to track down the answers to these long-burning (often random) reader questions — the more obscure the better. Submit your question below or email it to [email protected], and if it’s selected, we’ll put a reporter on the case.
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