A viral drink, a skeptical writer, and one very surprising result.
Testing viral food trends is one of my favorite parts of my job. And every once in a while, one truly surprises me. It’s how I ended up discovering that pan-frying a glazed doughnut is every bit as life-changing as people claimed, and why loaded olive oil dip has become the reason I can no longer be trusted around fresh baguettes.
Lately, though, my algorithm has been serving me the same drink over and over again: Diet Coke coffee. At first glance, I wasn’t convinced. Not because I had any issue with espresso, but because I’m just not an iced coffee person. I’m fully aware this is practically grounds for expulsion from the internet. I’ll happily drink one if it’s handed to me, but it’s almost never what I order. Even so, after seeing enough people swear by the combination, I finally gave in to find out whether Diet Coke coffee deserved all the attention it’s getting.
How to Make Diet Coke Coffee
One thing became obvious after watching dozens of videos: There isn’t just one way to make Diet Coke coffee. While the basic formula always starts with Diet Coke and espresso, people have been putting their own spin on it, using everything from flavored syrups and creamers to sweetened condensed milk. There are even several versions that skip the espresso machine altogether in favor of instant espresso powder stirred directly into the soda.
For my first attempt, I decided to keep things fairly simple. I filled a glass with ice, poured in Diet Coke, added a freshly pulled shot of espresso, and finished it with a generous splash of Too Good Sweet Cream creamer. It came together in just a few seconds.
How does Diet Coke coffee taste?
I wasn’t expecting to, but I honestly loved it. Within a few sips, I’d gone from wondering whether the internet had finally lost the plot to wondering why I’d never thought to combine these two things myself.
What makes the drink work is that neither ingredient steals the show. The Diet Coke still tastes unmistakably like Diet Coke, while the espresso adds a roasted, slightly bitter flavor that makes the soda feel a hint more sophisticated without changing its personality. Adding sweet cream was the right call, too. It rounds out that bitterness and makes the whole thing taste intentional rather than two ingredients that accidentally ended up in the same glass.
What surprised me was how little it drank like an iced coffee. The espresso is definitely there, but it isn’t the first thing you notice. It was like drinking a Diet Coke with an extra layer of flavor rather than drinking coffee with soda mixed in. I can also see why people keep experimenting with it. Once you understand why the combination works, it’s easy to imagine trying different sweeteners and creamers to make it your own.
I’ll still be reaching for my hot coffee in the morning, but I have a feeling this is the drink I’ll be pouring in my glass every afternoon.
