According to the Wikipedia article on Diet Coke, we've had -
1. Diet Coke ('plain') (1982)
2. Caffeine-Free Diet Coke (1983)
3. Diet Cherry Coke (1986)
4. Diet Coke with Lemon (2001); in some countries, it's known as Coca-Cola Light Lemon.
5. Diet Vanilla Coke (2002)
6. Diet Coke with Lime (2004)
7. Diet Raspberry Coke (was only available in New Zealand from late 2005, but is already being 'deleted' from their range as of Jan-06).
8. Diet Coke sweetened with Splenda (2005)
9. Diet Black Cherry Vanilla Coke (2006)
I have to admit I'm confused over Coke Zero and the Diet Coke sweetened with Splenda. They both taste better than plain old Diet Coke to me, so I guess it's not really important what the formula is...
The Wiki article, doesn't really help explain things -
Diet Coke does not utilize a modified form of the Coca-Cola recipe but is instead an entirely different formula.
Fans of Diet Coke often express a strong preference for the continental European formula over the British-American version, as it tastes far closer to regular Coke. This is because the Diet Coke formula is based upon the New Coke formulation and Coca-Cola Light, now being sold in the U.S. as Coca-Cola Zero, is based on the Coca-Cola Classic formula.
Maybe I should try mixing up my own batch using this purported Coca-Cola Recipe.
Speaking of diet soda (or diet pop as some of us call it), Tab is an interesting drink. It came out in 1963 after the first diet soda - Diet Rite Cola (introduced in 1958 for diabetics and then marketed to the general public in 1962).
The first two versions of Tab had a strange lingering artificial sweetener aftertaste. It was originally sweetened with cyclamate and then saccharine and, after various cancer scares - switched to aspartame in the 1980's. It is still produced and popular with some soda aficianados.
Tab also has a place in popular media; as described in the Wikipedia article -
# In the Steve Martin comedy The Jerk his character's favorite beverage is Tab.
# On an episode of Futurama, Bender and Fry find a giant Tab can on Planet Amazonia.
# In one episode of Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law, a live-action dream sequence shows Harvey strolling the beach with a human-sized, ambulatory can of Tab.
# On an episode of The Simpsons, Homer confuses the tab button on the computer with the soft drink, and expected the computer to dispense the drink when he pressed the button.
# Bill Pullman's character in the film Zero Effect consumes nothing but tuna fish straight from the can and Tab.
# According to America (The Book), the last remaining Tab machine in the US is located in the White House.
# Matthew Broderick and Ally Sheedy are shown drinking Tab in the movie WarGames.
# In the movie Scrooged, Bill Murray drinks a mixture of Tab and vodka.
# In the movie Austin Powers, Austin can be seen drinking Tab while learning about the years he had been cryogenically frozen.
# In another episode of "The Simpsons" Bart is seen drinking a can of Tab after doing a ballet recital.
The article also mentions, Tab is not an acronym for Totally Artificial Beverage but rather a name intended to appeal to people that keep tab of their calorie intake.
