There was indeed cocaine, at the base, in Coca-Cola! in fact, Pemberton only copied a French drink, “Vin Mariani”, invented by a Corsican pharmacist based in Paris, Ange Mariani. He had been selling them in his shop on Boulevard Haussmann since 1863.
In each half-liter bottle, there were 60 grams of coca leaves macerated in alcohol, Bordeaux wine and sugar.
Queen Victoria, the Tsar, Sarah Bernhardt, Zola, Jules Verne, and even Pope Leo XIII were fans of “Vin Tonic Mariani à la Coca du Pérou”.
Right after Pemberton marketed his American version, Atlanta County banned alcohol, forcing him to invent a new blend. He had replaced the wine with sweet sparkling water, and added cola nuts: the Coca-Cola was…
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