We had a hunch people would feel strongly about what should be declared the best regional soda of them all—and, hey, we were right. After three rounds of voting and more than 17,500 votes cast (!), you, our readers and social media followers, have made your voices heard and a winner has been crowned.
In case you need a refresher, our Burp Bracket began with eight contenders: Boylan Black Cherry representing the Mid-Atlantic, Faygo Rock & Rye representing the Midwest, Cheerwine representing the Southeast, Shasta Tiki Punch representing the West, Big Red representing the Southwest, Dr. Brown’s Cream Soda representing the Northeast, Jones Cream Soda representing the Northwest, and, last but not least, Izze Sparkling Blackberry representing the Mountain region.
In the finals, it all came down to Cheerwine (N.C. represent) vs. Jones Cream Soda (sup, PNW), and by a margin of just 14 votes, the winner is…
CHEERWINE! THE VERY SWEET, CHERRY-FLAVORED SODA FROM THE SOUTHEAST IS THE BEST REGIONAL SODA!
We’d say, “Rhett & Link must be proud,” except that when they tasted our Burp Bracket contenders on an episode of Good Mythical MORE, neither of them particularly cared for Cheerwine.
All the same, we’re glad to have put the issue to rest. Cheerwine is the best! Thanks to everyone who voted and kept us on the edges of our seats as these races shook out. And, lastly, congrats to Christine Spates, winner of our Burp Bracket sweepstakes!
These aren’t regional sodas. They’re national brands. Also, the faygo flavor you listed for the Midwest is not available in large parts of IA, IL or WI.
For the Burp Bracket, we selected sodas that are strongly associated with the regions in which they originated. And since the internet exists, you could argue that pretty much all regional products are national products, huh. Regarding the Faygo flavor, we asked our social media followers for their input and Rock n Rye was the pick. Thanks for the feedback and have a nice day!