Coca-Cola Turns To Alcoholic Drinks In Japan, As Nonalcoholic Segment Stagnates

Coca-Cola Japan this summer will launch Lemon-Dō, an alcoholic beverage that emulates the classic Japanese beverage chu-hai, also called "the lemon sour." The move to alcoholic beverages is based n the company’s reckoning that Japan’s soft drink and nonalcoholic market offers no growth potential. Three varieties Lemon-Dō to be sold include: Teiban Lemon (five percent alcohol/10 percent fruit-juice), Salty Lemon (seven percent alcohol/7 percent fruit juice), and the lightweight, Honey Lemon, only three percent alcohol and sweetened with honey and sugar. All will be sold in 350 ml cans, with retro-styled labels, at $1,50 each. According to the company, the chu-hai and low-alcohol beverage market is valued at more than a billion dollars.