Projects:Making cola
I (Sjors) recently saw this video by LabCoatz reverse engineering the Coca-Cola recipe using (among other techniques) a mass spectrometer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TDkH3EbWTYc
Now I'm a bit of a Coca-Cola addict, so I'm intrigued and want to reproduce it.
Perhaps once we've done this we can also make other kinds of cola, like Toyen Cola, which has its recipe on the back. We could even do a taste test!
Overview
LabCoatz calls the end product of their recipe LabCola. One liter of LabCola is built off of four components:
- around 100g sugar
- 1mL of flavor solution A
- 10 mL of flavor solution B
- around 1 liter of carbonated water
Flavor solution A is made by adding the following components together (~100mL), then taking 20 mL from that and diluting to 1L using 95% ethanol:
- 45.8mL lemon oil
- 36.5mL lime oil
- 8mL tea tree oil (from Australian tea tree, Melaleuca Alternifolia)
- 4.5mL cassia cinnamon oil
- 2.7mL nutmeg oil
- 1.2mL orange oil (regular sweet orange)
- 0.7mL coriander oil
- 0.6mL fenchol (any version of alpha-fenchol should work)
Flavor solution B is made by adding the following components together (~400mL), then diluting to 1L using water:
- 185mL Durkee caramel color
- 150 grams food-grade vegetable glycerin
- 43mL 85% phosphoric acid
- 10 grams wine tannin
- 9.65 grams caffeine
- 10mL 5% vinegar
- 10mL vanilla extract (or a solution containing 0.95 grams per liter of vanillin)
It's important to note that this is not the Coca-Cola recipe, which uses coca leaf extract. It is supposed to be quite close, though.
Tools
- Mass scale
- Max measurement is 150g, most precise measurement is 9.65g
- possible source: Michiel may have one, Mats as well
- possible source: €14,20 https://www.bol.com/nl/nl/p/precisie-weegschaal-0-01-gram-keukenweegschaal-digitaal-milligram-precisieweegschaal-pocket-weegschaal-sieraden-weegschaal/9300000031220365/
- possible source: €139,15 https://www.labshop.nl/schoolweegschaal-efs-500-2/
- micropipette + tips
- ideally an adjustable micropipette, but these are quite expensive (€100+)
- fixed 100µL micropipette is cheaper, €25 https://www.merkala.nl/minipet-microliterpipet.html
- 50 mL graduated cilinder
- some 1L storage bottles
- solution A is normally produced 5L at a time, solution B normally 1L at a time, so six?
- https://www.labshop.nl/labfles-glas-blank-gl45-blauw-simax/
- €12,40 * 6 = €74,40
- heat-resistant glassware for preparing the syrup (1L)
- €9,23 https://www.labshop.nl/bekerglas-laag-model/
- Ø 105mm, dus dekglaasje ~€16 https://www.labshop.nl/horlogeglas-10-stuks/ maar afdekken kan misschien ook wel met folie?
- magnetic stirrer for mixing
- €133,10 https://www.labshop.nl/mini-magnetische-roerder-rotilabo-m-3/
- possible source: Michiel has one
- 1L volumetric flask to make the dilution steps easier
- water carbonator / sodastream
- Sjors has this at home
Ingedients
| Ingredient | Source link | Quantity | Quantity necessary | Order amount | Price per piece | Price total | Makes L solution12 | Makes L cola | Price per L cola |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | |||||||||
| Sugar | Supermarket | Around 100g | |||||||
| Carbonated water | Self-made | Around 1L | |||||||
| Flavor solution A | |||||||||
| Food-grade 95% alcohol | Link | 1L | 1L | 1 | €23,50 | €23,50 | 1L | 1 kL | 2.35 cents |
| Lemon oil | Link | 30mL | 45.8mL | 2 | €7,59 | €15,18 | 6,55L | 6,55 kL | 0,23 cents |
| Lime oil | Link | 30mL | 36.5mL | 2 | €7,99 | €15,98 | 8,22L | 8,22 kL | 0,19 cents |
| Tea tree oil | Link | 30mL | 8mL | 1 | €9,99 | €9,99 | 18,75L | 18,75 kL | 0,05 cents |
| Cassia cinnamon oil | Link | 30mL | 4,5mL | 1 | €8,90 | €8,90 | 33,33L | 33,33 kL | 0,03 cents |
| Nutmeg oil | iHerb | 30mL | 2.7mL | 1 | €13,97 | €13,97 | 55,56L | 55,56 kL | 0,03 cents |
| Orange oil | Bodystore | 30mL | 1.2mL | 1 | €4,99 | €4,99 | 125L | 125 kL | <0,01 cents |
| Coriander oil | bol.com | 5mL | 0.7mL | 1 | €20,95 | €20,95 | 35,71L | 35,71 kL | 0,06 cents |
| Fenchol | Pellwall (UK) | 5g (~5mL?) | 0.6mL | 1 | £7 + shipping | ~€8 ? | 42L | 42 kL | 0,02 cents |
| Total flavor solution A | ~ €120 | 1L | 1kL | €0,03 when produced at scale
€0,12 for first liter | |||||
| Flavor solution B | |||||||||
| Durkee caramel color | Pantryful | 32 oz. (946 mL) | 185mL | 1 | $14 + shipping | ~€12? | 5,11L | 511L | 2,3 cents |
| Food-grade vegetable glycerin | Labshop | 1L | 150g (~150mL?) | 1 | €12,04 | €12,04 | 6,66L | 666L | 2 cents |
| 85% Phosphoric acid | Labshop | 1L | 43mL | 1 | €20,27 | €20,27 | 23,26L | 2326L | 0,8 cents |
| Wine tannin | Brouwland | 20g | 10g | 1 | €5,99 | €5,99 | 2L | 200L | 3 cents |
| Caffeine powder | VoordeelkruidenIf we want more: Woele | 50g | 9,65g | 1 | €2,60 | €2,60 | 5,18L | 518L | 0,5 cents |
| 5% vinegar | Supermarket
(Double check 5%!) |
1L | 10mL | 1 | €0,99 | €0,99 | 100L | 10kL | <0,01 cents |
| Vanilla extract | Makro.nl | 50mL | 10mL | 1 | €15,19 | €15,19 | 5L | 500L | 3 cents |
| Total flavor solution B | ~ €70 | 2L | 200 L | €0,11 when produced at scale
€0,35 for first liter |
(1) The essential oils in solution A, quantities as under "Quantity necessary", together make 100mL of pre-solution. "Flavor solution A" then consists of 20 mL of pre-solution, diluted to 1L using alcohol. So for each mL of essential oil in the pre-solution, a fifth (0.2 mL) goes into a liter of the actual solution. So quantity times order amount is the amount of ingredients we have, divided by quantity necessary is the amount of 100mL pre-solution we can make with the order. We can make 5L of solution with that, so the formula is: (quantity * order amount * 5) / (quantity necessary). Since 1mL of solution A goes into a L of cola, 1L solution makes 1000L cola.
(2) For solution B, the ingredients together make about 400mL of pre-solution. "Flavor solution B" then consists of those 400 mL, diluted to 1L using water. So the "quantity necessary" goes directly into 1L of "Flavor solution B". Since order amount is 1 for all of these, the formula is: quantity / (quantity necessary). Since 10mL of solution B goes into a L of cola, 1L solution makes 100L cola.