Here’s What Flavour Cola Really Is, And The Secret’s In The Name

Posted on 04/09/2024 by Boris Clair

If you had to guess what the secret behind that distinctively malty Biscoff flavour is, you probably wouldn’t say sugar ― but that’s likely what it is.

Similarly, red velvet cake’s earthy, tender flavour isn’t created by crimson berries or beetroot; traditionally, it’s the action of buttermilk and vinegar on Dutch-processed cocoa and baking soda that gives it its signature taste and hue.

It also contains vanilla.

So, it shouldn’t have shocked me that cola’s taste is partly down to an unexpected source; namely, the kola nut (yes, there is such a thing).

What’s a kola nut, and what other flavours are involved?

According to beverage company StrangeLove, “cola brands guard their own secret formulas with their lives, using generic terms such as ‘artificial and natural flavours.’”

Talk of Coca-Cola’s top-secret “7X” ingredient seems to confirm such theories.

Nonetheless, some ingredients stay constant, StrangeLove explains.

“Cola generally is a carbonated beverage which consists of these key ingredients; kola nut, citrus oils, vanilla and cinnamon,” they say.

This is usually mixed with a caramel base for that slightly sticky, moreish texture.

Kola nuts contain caffeine and are from tropical regions of Africa, Britannica says.

They look a little like the lovechild of chestnuts and cocoa beans.

They’re dried in the sun before being used in products like soft drinks and medicine, though Britannica says that “American and European soft-drink manufacturers, however, do not use the kola nut; instead, they manufacture synthetic chemicals that resemble the flavour of the kola nut.”

Nonetheless, “kola concentrate” is listed in Coca-Cola’s EU ingredients.

@sooziethefoodie

This is undoubtably the most interesting fruit I have ever been able to work with- the kola but. It is native to West Africa and is traditionally used for its high caffeine content. It grows in a pod similar to cacao. Now here’s where it gets interesting- it was used in the first recipe for Coca Cola and many say that it’s where the Cola part came from! Now every time I hear the word cola I’m going to think of this beautiful pink African fruit 🥹 It has a crunchy texture and a bitter flavor and I have been told that some tribes will eat it on its own with a little bit of salt and it also can be used to sooth a sore throat when mixed with honey. Once cooked with other ingredients the flavor is super pleasant. I boiled the Kola Nuts I had with fresh ginseng, ginger, yuzu peel, kumquats, clove, cinnamon, honey, and date syrup 🍵 #tiktoktaughtme #kolanut #cocacola

♬ original sound – Suzy

Anything else?

Given how secretive the biggest cola brand ― Coca-Cola ― has been about its 7x ingredient, many have speculated about what’s really in the world’s favourite fizzy drink.

A surprising amount of people use coriander seed in their attempted Coca-Cola remakes, alongside cassia (also known as Chinese cinnamon) and lavender.

Coca-Cola inventor John Pemberton is said to have written a recipe into his diary before he died that included lavender, coca leaves, alcohol, coca leaves, orange, cinnamon, lemon, coriander, nutmeg, neroli, and of course 7x.

Of course, the recipe has since changed ― it no longer contains alcohol and certainly uses no coca leaves, so it’s likely other elements have been switched as well.

Given that the brand won’t even let the two people who know how to mix 7x on the same plane at the same time in case it crashes, I don’t reckon we’ll be certain any time soon…

People Are Just Realising Oasis Had Another Tickets Fiasco Early In Their Career

Posted on 03/09/2024 by Boris Clair

Now that the dust has settled since the Oasis tickets fiasco, it may be tempting to ask yourself why audiences are so demanding these days, why is it so hard to get tickets?

However, fighting to get tickets to an Oasis gig is nothing new and in fact, almost 30 years ago, two-and-a-half million people were in a desperate scramble to nab tickets to their Knebworth show.

The BBC said: “More than four per cent of the population applied for tickets to see Oasis at Knebworth, the largest ever demand for concert tickets in British history.

“A whopping 250,000 people got to see the band over two nights – another record – but incredibly, Oasis could have sold out another 18 Knebworth shows.”

Staggering.

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The iconic shows were unforgettable, too, with a VIP tent that hosted 90′s legends such as Kate Moss and Patsy Palmer and a backstage experience that was almost as jaw-dropping as the show itself.

According to The Quietus: “Oasis and their then label Creation once really did run an all-you-can-eat spectacular. All-you-can-drink as well. The backstage bounty at Oasis’s 1996 shows at Knebworth was astonishing.

“An immense marquee was lined with bars, all fully stocked with any drink you could imagine. A barbecue sizzled eternal. To anyone with a pass it was all free, all day.”

Noel doesn’t remember any of it, though

While fans and critics alike would agree that Oasis at Knebworth was unforgettable and one for the music history books, Noel Gallagher doesn’t remember performing there.

Speaking on Desert Island Discs, the musician said: “Genuinely, now, if I close my eyes, I can’t remember walking on stage at Knebworth. I know it took place because there were lots of people there.”

Er, yes, there certainly were.

Here’s What Flavour ‘Red Velvet’ Really Is, And It’s Not What I Thought

Posted on 03/09/2024 by Boris Clair

We’ve recently written at HuffPost UK about how the secret behind Biscoff’s distinctive flavour is most likely… sugar (no, really).

Which got me thinking; what’s the actual taste of red velvet cake? After all, neither “red” nor “velvet” are ingredients; at least “lemon meringue” and “chocolate” cakes are clear about what they are.

I wondered if the deep red hue and moist texture could come from something like beetroot; the sort-of earthy flavour and vibrant purple-red colour.

But no; its actual flavour is shockingly simple (at least to me).

What flavour is it?

It’s (drumroll please)… vanilla and chocolate.

The cake uses cocoa powder rather than actual chocolate, giving the sponge a milder taste than most chocolate versions.

It’s meant to be made with Dutch-processed cocoa, which is ground from cocoa beans washed in an alkaline solution of potassium carbonate. This is darker than its other counterparts.

Traditionally, there are also acidic elements (like vinegar and buttermilk) in the mix that help to give the cake its signature tenderness and tang, Better Homes & Gardens writes.

The red colour was originally created by the reaction of the acidic buttermilk and vinegar to the raw cocoa powder, which contains an antioxidant called anthocyanins which turns red when it comes into contact with acids.

Nowadays, though, most red velvet cakes contain crimson food dye.

“Velvet cakes” were a trend

The only velvet cake we hear about these days tends to be red velvet cake.

But “velvet cakes” were a Victorian trend before cake flour became available, often containing ingredients like almond flour, corn starch, and cocoa flour that helped to produce a smooth, fluffy, “velvety” texture.

This coincided with the invention of “mahogany cake”; cakes which included the same Dutch-process cocoa and acidic ingedient combination.

In the Great Depression, red velvet cakes were cheaper to make (thanks to the omission of “real” chocolate” than others, leading to its popularity across America and now the rest of the world.

The more you know, right?

I Just Learned What Bisto Actually Stands For, And It’s Pretty Clever

Posted on 02/09/2024 by Boris Clair

We’ve already shared the adorable meaning behind LEGO’s name, as well as the surprisingly posh origin of KitKat’s branding.

We’ve even explained how Biscoff gets that hard-to-explain flavour into their biscuits.

But what about Bisto, the iconic gravy base?

Well, it turns out that the name is actually an acronym ― each letter of Bisto refers to a property of the granules themselves.

What does it stand for?

Invented in 1908, Bisto was made by Mr Roberts and Mr Patterson, who were two employees of Cerebos salt (per Britshop).

The men were inspired by their wives’ requests to find a way to produce smooth gravy every time, an archived page from Bisto’s site says.

There were certain qualities a good gravy has; thick, tasty, and glossy, with a deep rich colour.

So when Mr Roberts and Mr Patterson came up with a product that managed to hit all the marks with only the addition of hot water, they seem to have used its name to celebrate their success.

According to the same archived Bisto page, “The finished product is named ‘Bisto’ for its unique ability to ‘Brown, Season and Thicken in One.’”

Where did the ‘Aaah, Bisto’ come from?

It might surprise you to learn how long the brand’s instantly recognisable “aah” has been around.

Per Bisto, a 1919 ad, made by cartoonist Wilf Owen only eight years after the launch of the product, featured two kids sniffing a pie.

“Ah! BISTO,” the text of the advert reads ― “nobody knows exactly who came up with the idea for Bill and Maree [the children] but they soon became loved by the nation,” Bisto says.

“Their legacy lives on to this day with their catchphrase ― ‘aah! Bisto.’”

Bill and Maree had a makeover in the ’70s, appearing on packs and in ads until 1995.

I Just Learned How Long It Really Takes To Animate A TV Show, And I’m In Shock

Posted on 27/08/2024 by Boris Clair

If you’ve ever completed a flipbook in the corner of your school copybook, you’ll likely have thought to yourself, “How can animators do this for entire episodes?”

Even given that backgrounds are reused, many animated shows use 24 frames per second ― the thought of drawing enough to last you, say, 30 minutes is enough to make me giddy.

Luckily, both TV writer Michael Jamin (formerly of King Of The Hill and Beavis & Butthead) and animator Butch Hartman (who’s worked on shows like Danny Phantom and The Fairly OddParents) have answers.

Unluckily, however, both their accounts mean I’ll never be able to watch a cartoon in the same way again.

It’s a lonnng time

According to Jamin, he spent about six weeks writing a 30-minute episode of King Of The Hill with his colleagues ― after that, they’d spend a couple of weeks making the episode’s soundtrack.

Animators needed the final cut of the track to ensure their characters’ mouths moved in time.

When those were sent to the animators, he said the storyboard (not the whole animated show ― just the storyboard) took “a month or so.”

A month or two after that, they’d watch an early “animatic” to see how it flowed ― but only “a few months after THAT” would they see the coloured-in version. This was still months before the final edit.

“From beginning to end, when it’s ready to air, it’s about nine months,” he added.

That seems to check out

Hartman agreed, saying Danny Phantom and Fairly OddParents both consisted of two 11-minute animated sections.

In the end, it would take “about ten months to do.”

That’s from conceiving the script to completion, though, he says.

However he adds “it’s sped up now with flash animation to about six months, but that’s about the time.”

Oh good… a casual half-a-year!

I Just Learned What ‘Bank Holidays’ Were Originally Called And I Can’t Stop Laughing

Posted on 23/08/2024 by Boris Clair

This bank holiday weekend is looking pretty good, with Notting Hill Carnival set to take place in London and just-about-okay (by UK standards, anyway) weather predicted across much of the country.

Uncontroversially, I’m a huge fan of bank holidays. But I’ve always wondered why they’re called that.

I had a vague idea it had something to do with banks (which is true), but I wasn’t sure what it is about, say, a Monday in late August would necessitate a teller’s day off.

So, I looked into it recently ― and I’ve been laughing about what I found since.

What’s the history of bank holidays?

Sir John Lubbock, the 1st baron of Avery, who authored the Bank Holidays Act of 1871, is the reason why we have them in the first place.

Some say the politician, author, and banker (hence the name) set the dates according to when cricket was played in his local village ― he was said to have been a huge fan.

And per BBC Radio 4′s site, this bank holiday per weekend used to take place on the first, not the last, Monday of August.

That’s not the only change they shared, though.

“For a while some called the first bank holidays ‘St Lubbock’s Days’ after the banker Sir John Lubbock” who helped them to become law, BBC Radio 4 says.

“Funnily enough that didn’t stick,” they added.

We used to have a lot more of them

According to the Trade Union Congress, “Prior to 1834, the Bank of England observed about thirty-three saints’ days and religious festivals as holidays, but in 1834, this was drastically reduced to just four: Good Friday, 1st May, 1st November, and Christmas Day.”

The ’70s was the last time the Trade Union Congress (TUC) successfully campaigned for an extra bank holiday, the TUC says.

Nonetheless, they say about a third of UK workers clock in on at least one bank holiday a year (anyone in hospitality, food, transport, and more will know that other peoples’ time off is your peak crunch time).

I guess Lubbock isn’t a saint to everyone…

I Just Realised What ‘Pepsi’ Really Stands For, And It’s More Medical Than I Thought

Posted on 22/08/2024 by Boris Clair

We’ve written before at HuffPost UK about what everything from Twix to HobNob and HARIBO really stands for.

We’ve even shared the hidden detail in Twix’s clever branding.

So what about Pepsi, the iconic red, white, and blue-branded soft drink?

Is its moniker some mixture of real, human names (like HARIBO), or a clever portmanteau (like LEGO)?

Is it an acronym or a clever reference (like how the name Marmite sneakily refers to its former cooking and distribution method)?

No, no, no, and no, it seems.

The brand is actually named after indigestion.

What?

I’m as surprised as you are. But then again, I also didn’t know the beverage was originally called “Brad’s Drink.”

Its inventor, Caleb D. Bradham, changed the name in 1898.

Pepsi’s site merely says, “He bought the name ‘Pep Kola’ from a local competitor and changed it to Pepsi-Cola.”

But according to the LA Times, who heard from Dr. Sydnee McElroy and her husband Justin (both hosts of Sawbones: A Marital Tour of Misguided Medicine), the name “derived from dyspepsia (ie, indigestion), which the beverage was supposed to assuage.”

MEL Magazine says the drink’s supposed main ingredient, pepsin, was marketed as a way to get rid of stomach issues.

“A 1902 advertisement that was developed with at least the blessing of Pepsi inventor Caleb Bradham referred to it directly as ‘Pepsi-Cola (The Pepsin Drink),’” they wrote.

Pepsin is an enzyme your stomach makes to help digest proteins in your food.

Though I couldn’t find that specific ad, I did find a 1902 ad that says it “aids digestion” and a 1907 ad that reads ”[Pepsi] is an absolutely pure combination of pepsin ― for the ingestion ― acid phosphate and the juices of fresh fruits.”

However according to Pepsi themselves, “Despite its name and hearsay, pepsin was never an ingredient of Pepsi-Cola.”

How could people think it was a health drink?

Whether it comes from “dyspepsia” or “pepsin” (or perhaps a vague association with both), Pepsi was certainly marketed as a health aid at first.

They were far from alone, though.

Digestives were originally marketed and designed as (you guessed it) digestion aids.

Maltesers were first sold as “energy balls” and used as diet food at first too, with a 1936 ad saying, “made LIGHT for energy… non-fattening.”

It wasn’t just food, either; around the same time, people thought sitting up straight would cure tuberculosis.

What a world…

So THAT’s Why TV And Movie Credits Use Roman Numerals

Posted on 21/08/2024 by Boris Clair

We’ve recently shared at HuffPost UK what the stars surrounding the mountain in the Paramount logo may actually mean, as well as why TV shows and movies so rarely show known brand names.

But there’s another movie mystery at the other end of your favourite films, too.

If you look closely after the credits have rolled, you’ll see that the copyright credit is often written in Roman numerals, rather than the regular Arabic numerals we’re all used to.

That’s not a copyright thing ― books, for instance, usually use regular numbers.

So, why does that change once a story gets on screen?

Well, part of it has to do with mystery

The “deception theory” of Roman numeral credits suggests that TV and movie studios simply don’t want you to know when their piece of media was first released.

The BBC, for instance, uses the technique. “The convention is not to spell out what year something was made,” the broadcaster wrote on their online news site.

Using Roman numerals means you have to spend a lot of time working out what the date is (or, in the adorable case of this grandmother, Google searching the letters as politely as possible).

That way, you couldn’t tell the age of repeats or older content.

ABC’s 33 WYTV says there’s also the “why change?” theory ― in other words, TV shows and movies have used Roman numerals for their copyright credits for so long that it just feels pointless to change it.

They also suggest that it could have something to do with physical film ― back in the day, numbers could fade into unreadable forms on physical tape, but Roman numerals held their shape better over time.

Either way, people don’t love it

Researching the reason for the numerals resulted in my seeing many, many disgruntled forum users who hate the quirk.

One Mumsnet member wrote, “it can be frustrating to wait for the credits to roll, only to find that the date appears as a row of Roman numerals which often flash by too quickly to convert them into Arabic (‘ordinary’) numerals.”

A Guardian reader reckoned the technique is used because “most of the audience (unlike Guardian readers of course) will be unable to read them and so will not realise that the film is so old”.

“I’d bet my non-existent house that most people in the UK can definitely NOT read Roman numerals,” a Digital Spy forum member opined.

Whatever the reason, though, I sort of agree with another Digital Spy forum user ― “it looks cool,” they commented.

I Just Learned The Stars On Paramount’s Logo Have Secret Meanings, And I Had No Idea

Posted on 20/08/2024 by Boris Clair

Logos are interesting things.

There’s the hidden bear in Toblerone’s one, for instance; there’s the interesting history of NBC’s rainbow-hued logo, partly designed to emphasise the beauty of colour TVs, to consider, too.

It turns out NBC isn’t the only Hollywood bigwig with a quietly clever logo, either.

According to TIME’s Populist, there’s a hidden significance to the stars above Paramount’s iconic mountain, too.

Which is?

Well, first we have to talk about the studio’s history.

The company, which was founded in 1912, was known for discovering and signing the biggest stars (hmmm…) of its day.

Marlene Dietrich, Mary Pickford, Douglass Fairbanks, and Gary Cooper were among its early Hollywood heroes.

The mountain itself was allegedly scribbled on a scrap of paper by “the Man Who Invented Hollywood,” W.W. Hodkinson.

This mountain has since changed design, and so have the number of stars (from 24 to 22).

“The original logo had 24 stars (for each of the two dozen actors under contract in 1916),” TIME writes.

Though Paramount says “the meaning behind [the stars] has always been a subject of lore in the industry,” they link out to the same TIME article on their site.

Huh. Why has it changed?

Even if we can’t say for sure the actor theory is true, the company themselves has written that their Paramount+ logo’s constellation hides a sneaky Easter egg.

“The number of stars was reduced to 13 — a star for each letter used when spelling ‘Paramount Plus’,” their site reads.

They also had to be made bigger to be visible on a phone screen (handy that there are fewer of them, then).

It’s not clear why the company shifted from 24 to 22 stars, though.

As the company’s content travels online as well as being shown in cinemas, its site says there need to be different considerations for its logo ― especially as it’s increasingly seen on smaller screens.

That includes not only the stars, but “the detailing on the mountain, or even the spacing between the classic Paramount script” too.

Who knew so much went into the iconic logo?

I Just Learned Why We Say ‘O Clock’ And I Never Would Have Guessed

Posted on 18/08/2024 by Boris Clair

At HuffPost UK, we’ve been really nerding out about language recently.

With all of this in mind, we thought it was about time that we spoke about clocks. As our knowledge about language keeps ticking over, we figured that we’d take a hot minute to really look into how we talk about time.

Basically, what I’m saying is, we wanted to know why we say ‘o’clock’

Before researching this,.I considered what I thought it could mean or where it came from. As a northerner, my first instinct was to think that it was a derivation of on’t’clock

However, the actual answer is definitely not something I could have come up with myself.

So, according to Vocabulary.com, It’s a shortened form of the now obsolete phrase ‘of the clock’, from the Middle English ‘of the clokke’.

Additionally, IFLScience said: “The first recorded instance of this use reportedly being in 1560.

“For a time, a rival phrase “a clock” was also used, though this seems to have died out in the 19th century, with o’clock becoming the preferred contraction.”

Of course, we know that over time, language and how we convey expressions and phrases evolves.

So, with that in mind, it’s worth noting that ’o’clock wasn’t the only phrase going through some changes back then.

Gizmodo explained that during this period, the phrase ‘Jack-o’-lantern’ started to popularise. This name came from ‘Jack of the lantern’,.which originally just meant ‘man of the lantern’ with ‘Jack’ at the time, being the generic ‘any man’ name.

Jack of all trades, anyone?

Really, the phrase is quite obsolete these days but we are glad we’re still clocking in some nods to our ancestors and simpler times.

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