When someone says the phrase "comfort food," this generally brings to mind thoughts of things like macaroni & cheese, pot roast, or spaghetti & meatballs. All hot foods that make you feel good. While lemonade is not hot, this is a comfort beverage that is generally consumed in the heat. There's something comforting about getting out from the hot summer sun and enjoying a long drink of the lightly sugared lemon drink that cools and refreshes the whole body. Finding the perfect glass of lemonade however can be fairly elusive. Too acidic, too much sugar, not enough lemon, too much lemon; it's a fairly difficult balancing act. I'm going to take a look at Simply Lemonade and see if they come anywhere close to a perfect glass of lemonade… or miss the mark entirely.

Simply Lemonade is a brand of the The Simply Orange Juice Company, which is part of The Coca-Cola Company. The first thing you can't help but notice are the many bottle sizes. They start with the 13.5 oz "travel size," work up to the popular 59 oz, and finally cap out with the jug-like 89 oz. The small size is something you can easily fit in a lunch sack and somewhat mocks the larger 59 oz shape. A funny note here on pricing: The small size can generally be found for about $2.50 a bottle, the medium size anywhere from $3-5 dollars and most of the time the "jug" size can be found for about $5-7 dollars — at least as experience from a local sampling of grocery stores in the Houston area. So if you're looking to save money, go for the larger size for sure, but then again, the point of this review is to see if it's worth even buying in general.

All of the bottles let the color of the lemonade show through: it is a vibrant pale yellow that doesn't contain any artificial colors. The labeling has a white background with a picture of a large lemon on it. Lettering is in a black frilly font, spelling "Simply Lemonade" on the front with the phrase "all natural" in yellow across the top. The screw-on top is a nice solid green shade, reminiscent of the color of lemon tree leaves.

Looking at the contents on the back of the bottle solidifies what they say on the front about "all natural." Containing only "pure filtered water, natural sugar, lemon juice, natural flavors," this lemonade is also 11% actual lemon juice. (From my personal experience most lemonades stay in the 7 to 10 percent range). So right from the onset, Simply Lemonade is setting the bar fairly high. They don't hide their product behind colored plastic, they claim all natural ingredients, and you can only find it in the refrigerated sections (thus implying it'll go bad otherwise). An 8 oz. serving contains 120 calories, 15 mg sodium, and 30 g carbs (28 g sugars).

Let's pop the seal and see if it delivers on its promises!

The green cap is held in place with a green sticker that reminds you to "Shake Well," and once the green screw cap is removed there is a foil cap under that that needs to be peeled away. Once that is removed a faint hint of sweet lemon comes from the top. Pouring out the first few glasses provides a nice satisfying "glug" sound due to the concave nature of the neck of the bottle.

Simply Lemonade delivers on its claims: the lemon flavor here is strong, but at the same time (because of the natural sugar?) it isn't followed by a sickeningly sweet aftertaste. Another thing that amazes me is that it's not as acidic as I was expecting for 11% lemon juice. I've had lemonade that is 7% lemon juice that feels like a kick in the mouth. The "tart" flavor is held back very well and in fact it's one of the first times I have actually been able to refer to the more "fruity" nature of a lemon. It has a very clean finish due to the natural sugars and the taste is very smooth overall. This drink is almost the personification of "refreshing" in my book. They seem to have worked hard to perfect a lemonade recipe and it shows.

If you have been gun-shy about poorly made lemonade or it being too tart or acidic, I'd suggest giving Simply Lemonade a try. Its bottles don't hide the goodness they have managed to create and it might change the way you think about lemonade.

About a month ago I showed you an outstanding 5-can set of Disney's Aladdin cans from Fanta Germany released in 1994. This week, I'd like to show you an equally impressive 5-can set from Fanta Germany put out the following year, in 1995, to promote Disney's The Lion King.

The Lion King was Disney's 32nd animated film. It was released nationwide in the United States on June 15, 1994 and made its way over to Germany on November 17, 1994. The story is the tale of a father and son in a lion kingdom in Africa. It is said to have been inspired by stories of Moses and Joseph from the Bible and Hamlet by William Shakespeare. Some voice actors in The Lion King included James Earl Jones, Matthew Broderick, Jeremy Irons, and Jonathan Taylor Thomas. As of 2011, The Lion King is the highest-grossing hand-drawn film in history. It had two sequels, a Broadway adaptation, won two Academy awards for music (thanks to Elton John and Tim Rice), and a Golden Globe award for Best Motion Picture.

Fanta's Lion King cans are all made from steel like the Aladdin cans. All of the cans in this set are in full color on a white background and only on the Fanta Orangenlimonade (translated: Orangeade or Orange Soda) flavor. Each can has text that reads, "Film-Sammelmotiv" (translated: Film-motif collection) followed by the number of the can in the set. The artwork on each can looks like it could have been taken from a scene in the movie.

Unlike the Aladdin cans, however, none of The Lion King cans have a unique title for each scene. All scene borders are the same in size and shape but differ in color scheme. Above the top of the scene border we see silhouettes of the characters from the film in front of an orange sky and a setting sun. Just below them at the top of the border is a logo the reads, "Disney's DER KÖNIG DER LÖWEN" (Translated: Disney's The Lion King). Lastly, all scenes, unfortunately, have a distracting white rectangle lying on top of them near the lower right side with the printing, "Großes Fanta Gewinnspiel! Rufen Sie an: 01805 / 331616" (translated: Large Fanta contest! Call: 01805 / 331 606).

On the first can we see Simba, a small, newborn lion cub, being held by Sarabi, his mother, while Rafiki, a shaman-like mandril, is about to apply juice from a fruit to Simba's brow as a ceremonial crown. This scene takes place during the song "The Circle of Life" and is just before Rafiki holds Simba up in the air on Pride Rock for the entire kingdom of animals to see. The border has an orange background on the top and bottom and a blue background on the sides with green symbols.

The second can shows Simba, now a few months older, playing in the mane of his father, Mufasa. They are in the grasslands under a starry night sky. However, strangely the sky is white and the stars are blue. The border has a red background on the top and bottom and a blue background on the sides with orange and yellow symbols.

The third can's scene shows Scar, Mufasa's brother and antagonist in the story with the hyenas. One of them has apparently fallen into some thorns and is now airborne in agony as the others look on in laughter. The border has an orange background on the top and bottom and a blue background on the sides with green symbols just like can #1.

Can four shows a scene in which Simba (still as a cub), meets up with Timon, an outcast meerkat, and Pumba, a warthog. Here they are all in the water as they sing, "Hakuna Matata" (No worries). The border has a red background on the top and bottom and a blue background on the sides with orange and yellow symbols like on can #2.

The last can jumps to the second half of the story with a grown-up Simba snuggling up to his love-interest, Nala. This is a scene from the song, "Can You Feel the Love Tonight". The border has a red background on the top and bottom and a blue background on the sides with orange and yellow symbols like on can #2.

Overall, the 1995 Fanta Disney's The Lion King Cans are a great set. I really like all of the designs as they capture key scenes during memorable songs from this animated classic. My only pet peeve is the ad for the "Large Fanta Contest" covering a portion of each piece of artwork.

Let's once again take a look at the glass bottled beverage offerings of Old 52 General Store. Today we pop the cap off Kickapoo Joy Juice!

Kickapoo Joy Juice derives its name from the Li'l Abner cartoon that dates back to the 1930's. The Monarch Beverage Company began in 1965 with Kickapoo as its only beverage, but proceeded to acquire a number of drinks over the years, adding to its eclectic portfolio of beverages. Right away, you have to like the prospects of a drink that derived from a fictional world from the glory years of comic strips/books.

The bottle is a fairly standard green glass configuration. The cap is red as well as the highlights on the label. One interesting note is that this bottle's configuration is not found on the drink's website itself, which I am guessing is due to the licensing out of the product for this particular glass bottling. The label has what looks like a Li'l Abner cartoon with the catch phrase "The Original Dogpatch Recipe," which from what I can tell through some web searches, derives from the Li'l Abner strip itself (the website mentions the characters as Lonesome Polecat and Hairless Joe). Li'l Abner is a little before my time, so although I am familiar with it in name, I am learning too. I'm sure some readers feel very old right now, while others never even heard of the strip. I find myself in the liminal space between.

Also notable is that in dot-matrix-looking print on the side of the bottle there is printed (in really small lettering): "KICKAPOO IS GOOD 4 U." Now it is my turn to feel old as I'm sure some of you have never heard the term "dot matrix."

The ingredient list reads as follows: "Carbonated water, cane sugar, citric acid, concentrated grapefruit juice, caffeine, gum arabic, sodium citrate, natural flavor, EDTA (to protect flavor), sodium benzoate (a preservative), brominated vegetable oil, and Yellow 5." A bottle has 12 fluid ounces and contains 180 calories and 45 grams of sugar. So, just looking at the ingredient list, you can see that this drink does not have the early twentieth century roots of some of the other drinks I have reviewed from Old 52. In fact, it has that 1960's feel of experimentation with chemicals and coloring, but not to the degree of some beverages today. It also contains "less than 1% juice," just for the record. In addition, it is cane sugar sweetened, which is very promising.

Now, let's get to the meat of the review. Is it just me or does mentioning meat in a beverage review seem a bit odd? Anyway, I twist open the cap to a small "pop" and off we go. The first sniff reveals a strong lemon-lime scent, stronger than what I might expect out of the vast array of lemon-lime drinks out there. This is promising. The liquid is a light green color and the whole experience reminds me of drinking a Mountain Dew. At first taste, it tastes somewhat like Mountain Dew, but the carbonation has a bit more bite to it, almost like some of the ginger beer/ale that I have sampled before. The overall taste is sweet, and it leaves a bit of a sugary aftertaste, sort of like a fresh lemonade, where the sugar overpowers the lemons. In addition, the inclusion of caffeine in the ingredient list puts it more in line with Mountain Dew than with some of the other lemon-lime drinks on the market.

Overall, I really enjoyed Kickapoo Joy Juice. It is a bit more artificial than I would prefer personally, but the taste is great. It is the kind of drink that would go well with pizza, but could be solid as a standalone. For a standalone, however, I think I would like it a bit less sugary to enhance thirst quenching ability. Of course this is the difficulty with most soda pop as one drinks it for the taste. In the end, I was quite happy with the drink as a whole, and it was a bit better than I would have expected.

Full Disclosure: This beverage was provided compliments of Old 52 General Store

• Kickapoo Joy Juice @ Old 52

The holidays are here and I can't let them pass by without showing you a classic set of Sundblom Santa cans from Coca-Cola. Cola-Cola has featured the Sundblom Santa on their packaging since 1931. Haddon H. Sundblom is perhaps best known for his work for The Coca-Cola Company with his rendition of St. Nick based on the popular poem, "'Twas the Night Before Christmas" (a.k.a. "A Visit from St. Nicholas", Moore, 1822). Sundblom also created the "Sprite Boy" and the Quaker Oats man. Sundblom's association with his Santa Claus artwork is so strong that he is often thought of as the first person to depict him as the modern image of "jolly old St. Nick". This, of course, is not true as St. Nicholas can be traced back to the 4th century and the jolly fat man with a white beard had his origins in the late 18th century and more so by the mid-19th century.

The Coca-Cola Company in the United States chose four of Sundblom's pieces to print on their Coca-Cola Classic cans in 1996. Each 12 oz (355 mL) can has "1996 EDITION" in gold at the bottom left of the artwork and they all stay true to their bold red color branding, unlike recent can designs. Likewise, all four cans have a little history followed by the title of Sundblom's work on one side of the can. The historical text under the Always Coca-Cola logo reads: "The Coca-Cola 'Sundblom' Santa: From 1931 through 1966, The Coca-Cola Company commissioned artist Haddon H. Sundblom to create Santa Claus illustrations for its Christmas advertising. Since then, people everywhere have identified this Santa Claus with The Coca-Cola Company."

The first can is Sundblom's "The Pause That Refreshes" from 1958. Here we see Santa kicking back in a green chair as jolly as can be with a bottle of Coca-Cola. He is missing a boot and is in the process of sliding off his remaining black boot with the red sock covering his left foot. Below the chair is a fawn, peacefully sleeping. The "Pause" could mean Santa is taking a break from his Christmas deliveries. Let's go with that. The illustration text on this can reads, "'The Pause That Refreshes,' was rendered in 1958. This holiday season, the only pause that refreshes is ice-cold Cola-Cola."

Sundblom's "Refreshing Surprise" from 1959 is on the second can. In this illustration, a small boy catches Santa sneaking into his family's refrigerator. He is smiling at a surprised Santa who is starting to use a bottle opener to open a bottle of Coca-Cola. The illustration text reads, "This creation, entitled 'Refreshing Surprise,' was rendered in 1959. Surprise your guests with real holiday refreshment. Serve them ice-cold Coca-Cola."

The third can features Sundblom's "When Friends Drop In" from 1961. Here a small dog has spotted Santa. Santa is in front of a decorated Christmas tree holding a bottle of Coca-Cola in one hand and holding up a finger from his other hand to his lips to tell the dog to stay quiet. The illustration text reads, "This creation, entitled 'When Friends Drop In,' was rendered in 1961. Make sure you always have plenty of ice-cold Cola-Cola when your friends drop by in this holiday season."

Sundblom's "Season's Greetings" from 1962 is on the fourth and final can of this set. In this illustration we see a happy Santa enjoying a bottle of Coca-Cola while playing with a toy train set. The illustration text says, "This creation, entitled, 'Season's Greetings,' was rendered in 1962. This holiday season greet your guest with ice-cold Coca-Cola. THE ONLY REAL HOLIDAY REFRESHMENT". To me it looks like they forgot to add an "s" to the word "guest"… unless they think you are only going to have one guest. If that's the case, it would mean that you wouldn't need to buy as much ice-cold, refreshing, Cola-Cola. Nah… I really think they forgot the "s".

The Sundblom Santa and Coca-Cola go hand in hand with the holiday season. It was refreshing to dig these 15 year old cans out of my collection to share with you this week. They are all great designs and when you look at them, you can't help but feel the warmth and happiness of Christmas… and perhaps a craving for an ice-cold Coca-Cola. Happy Holidays!

Coca-Cola has a long tradition of releasing holiday cans. Some years we see their famous Haddon Sundblom Santa Claus who was first introduced on cartons of bottles in 1931. Some years we see the Coca-Cola Polar Bears, having first starred in commercials in 1993 and which Coca-Cola holds as a beloved icon since 1922. This year Coca-Cola partnered with the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) to raise awareness and money to help "Save the Polar Bears." As part of this campaign, Coca-Cola decided that this year they would put polar bears on their Coca-Cola cans.

Coca-Cola made a public announcement on October 25, 2011, in the United States that beginning in November 2011, they were going to release the Polar Bear can design on their flagship brand, Coca-Cola. To make the cans stand out, they proposed something that had never been done before… make the Coca-Cola cans white.

The release window for these cans was slated to be from November 1, 2011, until February 2012, with 12-pack cases for the 12 oz. (355 mL) size and in 8-packs (with a special red plastic band holding the cans together) for the 7.5 oz. (222 mL) size. The can designs showcased a solid white background with a mother polar bear and two cubs in silver. The polar bears are walking across the silver snow in the Arctic. Not only was the red background turned white, but the white Coca-Cola logo was now red. Both cans display the text, "Protect the Polar Bear's Home. Join us at COKE.COM/ARCTICHOME." The design looks great. It was a very bold move by Coca-Cola to change history by changing the color of their cans.

Coca-Cola was very excited about this promotion to help the WWF and the polar bears. They made an initial donation of $2 million to the WWF and invited Coca-Cola consumers to make a $1 donation to the WWF by texting the package code to 357357. Coca-Cola also promised to match all donations made with the package code by March 15, 2012, up to a total of $1 million.

Fast forward to the beginning of December 2011, when Coca-Cola learned a very important marketing lesson concerning branding. For those not familiar with this concept, it encompasses recognition of a product, most notably visual aspects of the brand such as a logo and colors. For example, everyone associates dark blue with Pepsi, green with Mountain Dew, orange with Sunkist, and red with Coca-Cola. Coke themselves have promoted an initiative they called "Red-Black-Silver" to denote their regular, Zero, and diet lines. Let's not forget that Coke Zero originally was released in white packaging here in the U.S., before eventually setting on the black color used today. Other companies, such as Pepsi (with Pepsi Max) and Dr Pepper Snapple Group (with Dr Pepper Ten) have adopted this color association of black/grey to mean "calorie-free soda" aimed primarily at men vs. "diet soda" which finds more favor with women.

Perhaps we'll never know why history had to repeat itself, but it did. Last week, countless articles appeared in print and online in many news sources including The Wall Street Journal reporting on the backlash from consumers concerning the white and silver Coke can. The headlines were very creative… "A Frosty Reception for Coca-Cola's White Christmas Cans" (WSJ) and "Green promotion with white cans has consumers seeing red" (Examiner.com). Consumers felt tricked as many thought the white cans were actually Diet Coke cans. Numerous cans were returned and consumers received refunds for unopened cans from retailers. Diabetics complained that they were also fooled by the color of these cans and their health was affected by the extra sugar. Flight attendants were reported serving the white cans to passengers asking for Diet Coke because the cans looked like Diet Coke. Many of those that correctly read the labeling claimed that the formula changed and that the soda in these cans didn't taste like regular Coke, but instead it tasted closer to Diet Coke. There are even YouTube videos with people performing blindfolded taste tests claiming that Coke out of a white can tastes different than out of a red can. Finally, Coke purists called the color change on Coca-Cola's 125th Anniversary blasphemous.

In response to this backlash, it was reported that Coca-Cola decided to pull all of the white cans off of the shelves and replace them with red cans. This information later changed to Coca-Cola not pulling the cans, but instead, stopping production of the white cans. Coca-Cola planned on selling the rest of the existing cans and phase in red cans of the same design.

As an attempt to save face, Coca-Cola published a press release on December 1 announcing that the red polar bear cans will be hitting shelves in early December. In the release, they stated , "People have told us that they love the limited edition white 'Arctic Home' Coca-Cola cans, and we know they love our iconic red cans, especially during the holidays. So we're introducing the next limited-edition 'Arctic Home' can, which will still feature the same polar bears, but with our iconic red Coca-Cola background." There no mention of any customer complaints or the similarity to Diet Coke.

In fact, Coca-Cola went as far to create an updated (and unannounced) Coca-Cola Holiday Cans Fact Sheet (PDF) which was publicly available on their website detailing the can design release schedule and the differences between the white cans and the Diet Coke cans. Please note that this fact sheet is linked to from a Company Statement dated November 15, 2011.

• Phase I – (Nov. 1 – Dec. 2): Coca-Cola White "Arctic Home" 12 oz. Can
• Phase II – (Dec. 2 – Feb 2012): Coca-Cola Red "Arctic Home" 12 oz. Can
• Diet Coke "Holiday" 12 oz. Can [no dates mentioned]
• Coca-Cola "Arctic Home" 7.5 oz. Mini Can [no dates mentioned]
• Diet Coke 7.5 oz. Mini Can [no dates mentioned]

Here's where the story gets strange, as if Coke is attempting to rewrite history. If you view the properties of the Coca-Cola Holiday Cans Fact Sheet (PDF), you can see that it was created from a Word 2010 document by "mdoser" on 11/30/2011 12:24:06 PM and Modified on 11/30/2011 12:32:29 PM. This is well after the November 1, 2011, release of the Arctic White cans at the beginning of the promotion, and after the November 15 date on the Company Statement that links to it within the text of the statement. It's as if Coca-Cola wants to brush this whole debacle under the rug and have the public forget about it. Are they thinking they can trick us into believing that this was the plan all along? As a can collector I welcome the white and red cans into my collection. As a consumer, I have lost respect for Coca-Cola, not for turning the cans white, but for not being honest enough to admit they failed.

Quite often, beverage cans made outside of the United States are quite outstanding. The 1994 Fanta Disney's Aladdin set from Germany is a great example of spectacular can design.

Most people have seen or know of Disney's 31st animated film, Aladdin. It was released nationwide in the United States on November 25, 1992 and made its way over to Germany on November 18, 1993. The story is based on the folktale of "Aladdin and the Magic Lamp" from "One Thousand and One Nights". Disney's Aladdin featured many voice talents, including, Robin Williams, Gilbert Gottfried, and Frank Welker (of Scooby-Doo fame) and went on to win two Academy Awards (among other awards) and spin off into two sequels.

Fanta's Aladdin cans are all made from steel. This means they are sturdier than the aluminum cans of the United States with this thicker material. This helps to avoid denting but also adds to their weight. Steel cans are also magnetic as aluminum cans are not. All of the cans in this set are in full color on a white background and only on the Fanta Orangenlimonade (translated: Orangeade or Orange Soda) flavor. Each can has text that reads, "Film-Sammelmotiv" (translated: Film-motif collection) followed by the number of the can in the set. The artwork on each can looks like it could have been taken from a scene in the movie.

The first can is titled, "Im Palastgarten" (translated: In the Palace Garden). Here we see Princess Jasmine sitting on some stairs in front of a fountain in the palace garden. There are many doves flying around her as well as one that has landed in her hand. Her pet tiger, Rajah, and her father, The Sultan, are in front of her in the foreground. There is a green border around this scene and at the top is the palace with the lamp and a couple of swords to either side of the palace.

The second can is titled, "Im Versteck" (translated: In Hiding). This scene takes place in the marketplace outside of the palace where Princess Jasmine disguises herself as a peasant girl. Here she meets Aladdin and his pet monkey Abu. The palace can be seen in the background. This scene has a brown border and there are many Royal Guards along the top of the can.

The third can is titled, "Der Schatz in der Höhle" (translated: The Treasure in the Cave). Here we see the main antagonist, Jafar, with his Scarlet macaw, Iago. This is where Jafar convinces Aladdin to retrieve The Magic Lamp from The Cave of Wonders. Abu also appears on this can, as well as, the tiger entrance to the cave. The entire scene is in a red and yellow border and at the top of the can is the Magic Lamp lying on a sea of treasures.

The fourth can is titled, "Die Wunderlampe" (translated: The Magic Lamp). This scene shows Abu holding The Magic Lamp which Aladdin just rubbed. Aladdin is kneeling in shock that something is coming out of the lamp. Behind Aladdin is The Magic Carpet. This scene is in a yellow border and at the top we see Aladdin with a diploma and wearing a graduation cap, Abu and The Magic Carpet having a drink, Aladdin as Prince Ali, and an elephant.

The fifth can is titled, "Der fliegende Teppich" (translated: The Flying Carpet). This scene shows Princess Jasmine and Aladdin as Prince Ali together flying on The Magic Carpet high above The Palace. They are surrounded by a blue border and at the top are many poses of Abu looking angry and worried.

Overall, the 1994 Fanta Disney's Aladdin cans are a very well-designed set. As Disney cans, they are also very collectible. I really like the use of all of the colors and the fact that the order of the cans remains true to the order of the animated film.

My last can review covered cans for the adult market. This review will take a look at cans marketed to children. Shasta Shortz was a 6-can set from the United States in 2003 with wild colors and crazy candy-like flavors that were made caffeine-free with kids in mind.

Each of the "short" cans was 8 fluid ounces (kid-portioned) and had a full color design of a pair of shorts wrapped around the entire can. The cans were sold in 8-pack boxes, so Shasta was able to focus more on the design and drop things like the volume and nutrition facts. They did add the text "THIS UNIT NOT LABELED FOR INDIVIDUAL SALE" on each of the cans since this key information was missing. This also forced consumers to buy more cans as they could only buy them in bulk. Each can also has its own unique barcode, however, I'm not sure why since the cans weren't sold individually.

The first can we will look at is Cotton Candy. The shorts on this can are pink with red, white and what looks like light pink vertical stripes. The belt and background are both purple. The belt has a thin silver belt buckle and two silver buttons on the fly. On the back, we see the words "SHASTASHORTZ.COM" on the left and there is a barcode designed as the back right pocket.

The second can we will look at is Red Grape Stain. These shorts are blue denim with (you guessed it), pinkish red grape stains in a few places on the shorts. The brown belt has a silver rectangular buckle with the words, "SHASTASHORTZ.COM". There is also a pen and a Levi's-style tag that reads, "SHASTA". On the back is a grape-stained barcode pocket on the left. On the right there is another Levi's-style tag on the side of the pocket that reads, "SHASTA", a pen hanging out of the pocket and a wallet with a 10 dollar bill sticking out of it. Finally, along the top there is a pink ribbon type of thing with "SHASTA" written all over it. I'm really not sure what it is supposed to be.

The third can we will look at is Camo Orange Creme. I have no idea where in the world you would be that would require orange camo, but if you found such a place, these would be the shorts for you. On the front there is a military dog tag that seems to be hanging from somewhere up above that has "SHASTASHORTZ.COM" on it. Similar to the Red Grape Stain can, there is a ribbon type thing at the top with "SHASTA" all over it – this time in green. Maybe it is the bottom of a shirt? On the back, the left pocket is the barcode and the right pocket has the flavor with 3 green stars above it.

The fourth can we will look at is Chillin' Cherry Punch. These light green shorts have vertical stripes, like the Cotton Candy can, but here they are in red and white. The shorts have a purple lace which is untied, giving them the feel that they are swim trunks. On the back is "SHASTASHORTZ.COM" and the familiar barcode pocket.

The fifth can we will look at is Bubble Gum. Here are purple swim trunks with an untied black lace. This messy Shasta drinker has sticky pink bubble gum all over his bathing suit and a yellow barcode pocket on the back.

The last can we will look at is Rah-Rah Root Beer. These are orange sweat-shorts that are again untied with a red waistband and white stripes up each side. On the back is a big red number "8" and a barcode. I'm sorry to say that Shasta dropped the ball on this sporty can as this is the only can without the barcode pocket.

As you can see from the photos, this is a very creative and fun can set. It's a shame we don't see more cans like this from Shasta. The Shasta Tiki Punch can is nice, but it's nowhere near the awesomeness of the Shasta Shortz cans.

In 2004, The Miller Brewing Company released an 8-can set in the United States to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of Rock Music. To do so, they partnered with Rolling Stone magazine, Fender Guitars, and Napster (remember them?) to feature a diverse group of musicians in rock history. Their goal was to get a representative of different influential artists, styles, and time-periods as best as they could on the cans.

The cans were made, but not without controversy. After all, how can you possibly represent 50 years of rock on 8 cans? Unfortunately, those upset with the cans weren't so because they felt certain artists were passed over, but because they took notice that no black artists were represented.

Miller Brewing Company responded with a public apology and insisted that when they were selecting artists, they did so based on the music business and not on race. In fact, they said they tried to get Jimi Hendrix on a can, but his estate declined participation. A number of other artists of all races also declined participation because they did not want to be associated with beer or alcohol due to their own bad experiences in the past with the beverage.

Other supporting promotions included Napster's music giveaways and Fender's guitar giveaways. The pinnacle of this promotion was the "Rock Through Time" concert in New York City at the Roseland Ballroom on September 17 and 18, 2004. No tickets were sold. Attendees had to win event tickets from the Miller Brewing Company. The lineup did not cause a race controversy and included: Lenny Kravitz, Bo Diddley, The Strokes, James Brown, Slash, Cheap Trick, The Doors of the 21st Century, Velvet Revolver, Ben Folds, Wyclef Jean, and The Darkness. None of these artists appeared on the cans.

The first four 24 oz. cans in the set are the Miller Lite cans. All are designed similarly with the artwork on a single side (aside from the silver band at the top). The silver band at the top reads, "Rolling Stone Collector Series". On the front of three blue cans is a black and white photo of the featured artist's (Elvis, Willie Nelson, and Blondie) Rolling Stone magazine cover along with the Issue number, date of the issue and quote from the issue. The 4th blue can has a black and white photo of the Fender Stratocaster guitar used by Eric Clapton and a Rolling Stone quote.

The last four 24 oz. cans in the set are the Miller Genuine Draft cans. These are designed the same as the Miller Lite cans with a few exceptions. There is no color band at the top. The same words appear at the top but the entire background is gold. On the front of the three Rolling Stone magazine cover cans we have Alice Cooper, Bon Jovi (note the Fender guitar… nice placement), and Def Leppard. The last remaining can, the Fender can, features Joe Walsh's Fender Stratocaster guitar.

As I've said in the past, I'm a musician and a big music fan and I love this set for what it is. However, it could have been so much more.

If I had my choice, I would have been consistent and put a colored band at the top of the MGD cans. More importantly, I would have had 50 cans in the set. One can would represent an artist that was important in that year of rock. I like the Rolling Stone cover artwork, so that photo design and information would remain, but I wouldn't put any cans out with just a photo of a guitar. The cans are to showcase artists, not instruments (even if the artist's name is on the can). Lastly, to move away from the race issue and to focus on the diversity of music, I would make sure the photos on the cans were in full color.

20 years ago, in 1991, A&W put out a set of really cool summertime set of Snoopy and Woodstock cans in the USA. These are popular characters from the Peanuts comic strip, written and illustrated by Charles M. Schulz from October 2, 1950 to February 13, 2000. This time of the year, Peanuts fans (such as myself) look forward to watching It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, and A Charlie Brown Christmas. I am also quite partial to cartoon dogs such as Snoopy, Pluto, and Scooby-Doo.

This is a can set of 8 + 1. There are eight cans in the main set of which there is a different design per can. When researching for this article I discovered a rare 9th can which duplicates one of the designs with alternate coloring. Now, I can't decide if it is really a 9-can set or an 8-can set or an 8 + 1 can set. (Please post your opinions below this review as I am curious as to what you think!)

Since this is the largest can set I have reviewed to date, I am going to attempt to do so by flavor. What makes the set even better is that the designs for each can wrap around the entire can instead of just being on one side. This effect creates a detailed scene or comic panel per can.

The A&W Root Beer cans highlight baseball and grilling. The baseball can has Snoopy in an orange hat hitting a baseball with his bat. There is a blimp in the background with the A&W Root Beer logo on it.

The grilling can has Snoopy as "Joe Cool," with sunglasses on, an orange "Joe Cool" shirt, and a chef's hat. He is grilling some hamburgers, has an A&W Root Beer cooler filled with A&W Root Beer. He is also holding a can of A&W Root Beer that has the same design as this can.

The Diet A&W Root Beer cans show Snoopy and his best friend, Woodstock, weightlifting and surfing. The weightlifting can has both Snoopy and Woodstock holding barbells. Snoopy is showing off by holding it in one hand over his head and Woodstock is close behind holding the barbell at chest level. There is also an easel with a sign that has the Diet A&W Root Beer logo on it.

The surfing can has snoopy with sunglasses on his forehead on a surfboard holding a can of Diet A&W Root Beer with the same design as this can and two straws. Snoopy has a thought balloon that says "SURF'S UP!" and Woodstock is flying in the air in front of him. These are the only two cans that feature Woodstock in this set.

The A&W Cream Soda cans have Snoopy on the beach and cycling. The beach scene on the A&W Cream Soda can has Snoopy walking on the beach as "Joe Cool" with a thought balloon that says, "COOL.". Snoopy is wearing an orange "Joe Cool" shirt and has sunglasses on his forehead. To the left of Snoopy is a can of A&W Cream Soda with the same design as this can and two straws. We also see a starfish a seashell and a beach umbrella.

The cycling scene is on the A&W Sparkling Vanilla Cream Soda can. On it we have Snoopy riding a bicycle and wearing a bike helmet for safety. In the background there is a hot air balloon with A&W Cream Soda on it. I guess they didn't have room to add "Sparkling Vanilla" to it.

This leaves us with the Diet A&W Cream Soda cans. They show Snoopy jumping hurdles and dancing to music. The Diet A&W Sparkling Vanilla Cream Soda hurdles can has Snoopy wearing an A&W tank top jumping over a hurdle. It also has a flag with the Diet A&W Cream Soda logo on it. Again, I guess there wasn't room for the "Sparkling Vanilla" on the flag.

The final can in the set I own is the music A&W Diet Cream Soda Can. On it, Snoopy is dancing the "Snoopy Dance" with musical notes in the background. Snoopy is wearing sunglasses and there is a can of A&W Diet Cream Soda to the left of him with two straws. This can is particularly important to me because I am a musician and because the Peanuts are known for introducing us to some great jazz music. The soundtrack to A Charlie Brown Christmas is one of my favorites.

There is a +1 can or 9th can of this set I discovered while doing some research to this review. It is an A&W Diet Cream Soda can with the same design as the A&W Diet Cream Soda can that is in my collection. The only difference is a reversal of colors. On this can, all brown lines are orange and all orange lines are brown. I was surprised to find this can and according to the collector that has it, his friend found it on the same shelf at the store in Missouri where he bought the other cans in this set.

Overall the Snoopy A&W can set is one of my favorites. It was designed very well with complete scenes wrapping around each can and the design stays true to the branding of each soda flavor. What do you think?

It is June 2, 2003 and Twilight author, Stephenie Meyer, awakens from a profound dream of a story of forbidden love between a teenage girl and a vampire. 13 days earlier, on May 20, 2003, the last episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer aired after 7 seasons. During the series we see Buffy, a teenage girl, involved in a relationship with a vampire.

Jump back to October 1999 in the United States, during the 4th season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and we have The WB, Fox Licensing & Publishing, and Barq's Root Beer teaming up for their "Barq's and Buffy Halloween Bash". [Barq's was acquired by The Coca-Cola Company in 1995]. This promotion, using Barq's vampire-like tagline, "Barq's has bite" targeted the 18–37 demographic with a chance to win Barq's product, Buffy clothing and merchandise or the grand prize, getting to attend a Halloween party with members on the Buffy cast. Game pieces were the names of Buffy characters printed under bottle caps. You had to watch the October 12 episode of Buffy to find out the character's name that matched the winning bottle caps. If you had a bottle cap with the name, "Riley Finn", you won a trip to Hollywood to attend the party, view a private screening of the October 26 Halloween-themed episode and receive many other Buffy-related gifts at the party.

In addition to the bottles, four limited-edition 12-ounce cans were released with members of the "Scooby Gang" a.k.a. Buffy's closest friends who team up each episode to defeat the "Big Bad" creature, demon, vampire, etc. All of the cans are exactly the same except for the color printing of the Buffy character(s) on the can (one can has two characters). Each can maintains the Barq's silver background and the normal Barq's branding on one side of the can. Across the top is a black band that says, "Buffy the Vampire Slayer COLLECTIBLE SERIES" in white text. The other side has the Buffy character(s) in front of a red design that looks like something that would be associated with the martial arts. Surrounding the character(s) are three logos: Barq's Famous Olde Tyme Root Beer, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and The WB New Tuesday. Just under the black band at the top, above the characters' left shoulders are the words, "THIS IS NOT A GAME PIECE. SEE SIDE PANEL FOR DETAILS". There is not much else to say about the designs of the cans other than who is featured on them.

Buffy Can

The first can features Buffy the Vampire Slayer herself, also known as Buffy Summers (Sarah Michelle Gellar). Ironically, Sarah Michelle Geller was a part of the real "Scooby Gang" when she played the role of Daphne in the first two live-action Scooby-Doo movies (2002 & 2004).

Giles Can

The second can shows Rupert Giles (Anthony Stewart Head), high-school librarian by day, father figure to Buffy and advisor to her friends at night.

Xander Can

On the third can we see Xander Harris (Nicholas Brendon), the comic relief of the series and geeky character based on the high school days of creator, Joss Whedon.

Willow & Oz Can

The fourth can is a little different than the others as it features two characters who during that season were in a relationship. Willow Rosenberg (Alyson Hannigan), a nerdy, upbeat girl who dabbles in magic is alongside her romantic interest, Oz (Seth Green), who is also a werewolf and lead guitarist for the band Dingoes Ate My Baby.

Overall, this is a set that focuses more on the characters of the Buffy show and a contest than great artwork and design. Fans of the show and fans of any of the individual actors would be especially interested in these cans. I know a little bit about this television series as I ended up watching the entire series, for better or worse, so these cans stand out to me. However, if they were say, The Spice Girls can set or The Backstreet Boys can set, I wouldn't care too much about them other than to have them for my collection.

Oh yeah, just for fun, here's a can from that other teenage vampire story…

Twilight: New Moon Can

This limited edition Pepsi can was marketed in Italy in 2009 to promote the film, Twilight: New Moon. On the can are Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson) – a vampire, Jacob Black (Taylor Lautner) – a werewolf, and Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart) – a teenage girl. On this can we have a full color picture (like the Buffy cans) of all three main characters as they are in the movie poster. I suppose for Twilight fans (of which I am not), this is an awesome can.