Coke's Blak triggers a Blech!

Coca-Cola Blak. $1.69 per 8-ounce bottle. Also available in four-packs.

Bonnie: Beverage companies are vying for drink dollars as folks are turning away from sugary carbonated drinks and toward bottled water. That's why there's an explosion of beverages like this new Blak from Coke.

Blak is Coke's mid-calorie, coffee-flavored carbonated soft drink bottled in a resealable, plastic-coated version of the original hourglass 8-ounce Coke bottle. Blak's taste resembles flat Coke mixed with coffee, sweetened with both sugar and artificial sweeteners. The latter gives it an unpleasant artificial aftertaste. The added coffee extract gives this cola twice the caffeine of a Classic Coke, while the sugar/aspartame/acesulfame K mix cuts the calories in half. I'm not sure who'd enjoy this mongrel drink. Blak is blech to me!

Carolyn: Desperation over seeing sales flowing to water and coffee is driving soda companies to higher levels of innovation, as with this new Coke, which tastes like a Coke float made with coffee ice cream.

I'm sure Coca-Cola officials are hoping Coca-Cola Blak will wean cafe latte drinkers away from coffee and hook them on soda. But Coke Blak is not for anyone who, like me, likes coffee as much for its warmth and cream as for its coffee taste and caffeine. Moreover, I think it's just as likely that Coke Blak will turn youngsters who begin their day with a kick of Coca-Cola onto the pleasures of coffee.

Haagen-Dazs Light Ice Cream. Blueberry Cheesecake, Caramel Cone, Chocolate Fudge Brownie, Cookie Dough, Cookies 'n Cream, Dutch Chocolate Chip and Vanilla Caramel Brownie. $3.69 per pint.

Bonnie: I'm truly sorry to report that all seven of these new Haagen-Dazs Light ice cream flavors are also-rans to the original seven flavors. The Mint Chip and Cherry Fudge Truffle Light are so good, you don't miss the 70 fewer calories and 10 to 12 fewer grams of fat they have than regular super-premium Haagen-Dazs. Not one of these new flavors is as good.

While tasting these, I inadvertently also opened the new Haagen-Dazs full-fat Mayan Chocolate. I have to admit, I'd prefer just a bite or two of that cinnamon-dusted decadence to a bowlful of any of these new lights.

Carolyn: Haagen-Dazs ice cream has always been the epitome of indulgence; Ben & Jerry's, the epitome of indulgence with candy mix-ins marketed in a fun way.

So without going back on what I said about enjoying Haagen-Dazs Light when the line debuted last spring, I still have to ask: Is reduced-fat Haagen-Dazs with mix-ins just another non-premium ice cream with mix-ins?