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Cheerwine is a cherry-flavored soft drink by Carolina Beverage Corporation of Salisbury, North Carolina. It has been produced since 1917, claiming to be "the oldest continuing soft drink company still operated by the same family".
History[]
When the Maysville Syrup Company of Maysville, Kentucky went bankrupt in 1917, L.D. Peeler, Hughston Kirby, Kurt Weinmann and other invested businessmen moved the company to North Carolina and renamed it the Carolina Syrup Company. That same year, Peeler, Kirby and Weinmann purchased a recipe for a cherry flavored soda from a Saint Louis flavor salesman, which eventually became Cheerwine. Though it has been around since 1917, Cheerwine first became a registered trademark in 1926.
The family of Lewis Peeler has run the Cheerwine company since its founding, and his great-grandson Charles Clifford “Cliff” Ritchie has been CEO and president of Cheerwine's parent company, Carolina Beverage Corporation since 1992.
Cheerwine bottle, c. 1920, on display at the North Carolina Museum of History
Cheerwine has a mildly sweet flavor with strong cherry notes, most notably black cherry; is burgundy-colored; and has an unusually high degree of carbonation compared to other soft drinks. The product was named for its color and taste; the company website states that "it made sense to name a burgundy-red, bubbly, cherry concoction—Cheerwine."
Trivia[]
- The southern fast food chain Cookout has Cheerwine on all their fountain machines, as does the Floridian barbecue chain 4-Rivers Smokehouse.
- Another Floridian chain, PDQ, as well the southern sit-down chain Cracker Barrel, have it as well, albeit only in glass bottles.
- The "Retro Cheerwine" variant is sold in glass bottles and is sweetened with cane sugar instead of high fructose corn syrup.
- Despite its name, Cheerwine is not really wine and it contains no alcohol.
- Cheerwine was the first bottled cherry soda.
Gallery[]
