Dr Pepper
It's from 1885, before you were born.
- Maker
- Keurig Dr Pepper
- Type
- Soft drink
- Debuted
- 1885
- Origin
- Waco, Texas
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About
As of 2026, it's 141 years old.
Dr Pepper is the cola that refuses to explain itself, and that's the whole point. First served in 1885 — older than Coke — it's built on a flavor described only as '23 flavors,' a marketing move so good it turned 'I can't tell what this tastes like' into a selling point.
Fiercely beloved, especially across the South, it's the soda that fans pick precisely because it isn't a normal cola and never pretended to be.
Mysterious, maroon, and proudly indescribable, Dr Pepper has spent 140 years being the answer to 'wait, what flavor is this?'
Dr Pepper through the years
First served in Waco, Texas
Pharmacist Charles Alderton creates it a year before Coca-Cola.
Introduced at the World's Fair
Dr Pepper reaches a national audience at the St. Louis World's Fair.
The "23 flavors" era
Marketing leans into the mysterious blend of 23 flavors without ever confirming the recipe.
