427: Original Recipe

We discover what we believe might be the original recipe for Coca-Cola…and share it with you! When this episode first aired in 2011, it made international headlines. This, and another story about telling copies from originals. Visit thisamericanlife.org/lifepartners to sign up for our premium subscription.(00:00:00) Act One: The formula for Coca-Cola is one of the most jealously guarded trade secrets in the world. So we were surprised to find a 1979 newspaper article that appeared to show Coke's original recipe. We spoke with historian Mark Pendergrast, author of For God, Country and Coca-Cola, and were even more surprised to find reasons to believe the recipe is real. (25 minutes)(00:26:26) Act Two: Jake Halpern tells this story about document expert John Reznikoff, who came into possession of some materials which—if authentic—would change history. Then things got complicated. (32 minutes)Transcripts are available at thisamericanlife.org / This American Life privacy policy. / Learn more about sponsor message choices.

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