What Is Poppi Soda?

Soda has dominated the drink market for around a century now. From soda fountains in the Prohibition era to the later cola wars between Coke and Pepsi, people have reached for sodas when they want a cool, refreshing sip. In the last few years however, people have started to pay attention to something they pretty much knew all along: Soda is not exactly healthy. So we’ve recently been inundated with healthier alternative sodas like Poppi. What is Poppi? What does Poppi taste like? Is Poppi good for you? Let’s answer all the Poppi questions that pop up!

What is Poppi?

Poppi is the latest in a recent explosion of viral, supposedly healthy sodas. Poppi touts the benefits of ingredients like apple cider vinegar and is a prebiotic. Prebiotics are a little different than that other health term you’ve heard recently, probiotics. A probiotic contains live microorganisms. A prebiotic is full of fiber that feeds the microorganisms that live in your guts. Poppi gets its prebiotic properties from inulin, which can also be found in garlic, asparagus, leeks, and chicory. Poppi claims it can help with weight loss, lowering cholesterol, and even improving your complexion.

Who owns Poppi?

Poppi was started by the husband and wife team, Stephen and Allison Ellsworth. The couple started out selling their sodas at farmer’s markets in Dallas, then showed their concoctions on a 2018 episode of Shark Tank. After that show, Poppi was picked up by Whole Foods, had a Super Bowl commercial, and became a hit on TikTok with celebrities like Billie Eilish and Kylie Jenner being spotted holding a Poppi can. Recently, there have been rumblings of Coca-Cola purchasing the Poppi brand. 

What does Poppi taste like?

Okay, so it’s a “healthy” soda made with apple cider vinegar and prebiotics. But what does Poppi taste like? Well, there are multiple flavors of Poppi and they all have their own distinctive characteristics. But none of them have that astringent apple cider vinegar taste. They all mask it pretty well with fruit and sweeteners. Poppi has cola, Dr Pepper, and root beer equivalents as well as fruit flavor combinations like cherry limeade, grape, and strawberry lemon. 

Does Poppi have caffeine?

Only Cola Poppi and Doc Pop Poppi contain caffeine. The caffeine content is about the same as a can of Coke: 32mg compared to Coke’s 34mg. Poppi only has around 25 calories thanks to a limited sugar content. 

Is Poppi good for you? 

It’s definitely better for you than traditional soda. Or, to put it another way, it’s less bad for you. While all of its gut health benefit claims may not exactly be proven, Poppi is a low calorie, low sugar drink. It might be better for your health to drink a Poppi than a Coke, but it would probably be even better to just have some water.