I was wandering the aisles of H Mart, a Korean grocery store, when I spotted some glass bottle sodas that I’d never seen before. After some quick research via Google Translate I discovered that they were all bottled in Baghdad! I know almost nothing about Iraqi soda culture, but I was excited to learn.

  • Mishn Orange
  • Mishn Orange
  • Mirinda Orange
  • Mirinda Orange
  • Sinalco Cloudy Lemon
  • Sinalco Cloudy Lemon
  • Coca-Cola (Baghdad)
  • Coca-Cola (Baghdad)

The Flavors

I found 4 sodas that were all bottled in Iraq. They were:

  • Mirinda Orange
  • Sinalco Cloudy Lemon
  • Mishn Orange (Mission Orange)
  • Coca-Cola

Mirinda is originally from Spain but has been owned/distributed by PepsiCo for a long time, Sinalco is a German brand, Coca-Cola is obviously American, and Mishn was originally an American but is now a Zombie brand after the company’s disappearance in the 1970’s. It’s currently bottled by Crystal Baghdad. More on that in another post. I tried each of these sodas and gave my live reviews in this video, but keep reading for more.

Ranking

  1. Mishn Orange – This stuff hits! The orange flavor tastes very fresh, even if it isn’t. I have no idea if it’s just a chemical flavoring, and I really don’t care. It was delicious. It was really well carbonated, sweet but not syrupy, and had a very vibrant orange taste. This brand used to be popular in the United States from the 1920’s to the 1950’s, but it faded away in the 1970’s as competition was growing from the bigger soda companies. Really happy I found this because it was like drinking a bit of history.
  2. Sinalco Cloudy Lemon – Sinalco is actually a pretty big brand, but I’d never encountered their sodas before. The cloudy lemon reminded me of a carbonated lemon drop candy. It was tart, but not sour, and there was plenty of smooth sweetness to round it out. Very refreshing, and the branding is clean and memorable.
  3. Mirinda Orange – Another tasty orange soda. The flavor was much closer to a real orange than most of what we have in the US, and it tasted a little less sweet than the Mishn soda. It wasn’t bad, but it didn’t have as good of a texture as the the Mishn Orange. It was a little thinner.
  4. Coca-Cola – I have nothing against this cute little bottle of Coke, but the flavors were a bit smoother and subtle in this version than what we have at home. Less bitter. The flavors that come through are much more caramel forward. It’s not bad, but I like a little more bite.

Conclusion

These sodas were a great find, and I’ll need to keep my eyes peeled for them again. Any other regional sodas that you think I should try?

  • Iraq – Mishn Orange
  • Old Mission Orange
  • Old Mission Orange