What Ever Happened to Surge? The '90s Most Extreme Soda 

I used to drink Surge all the time when it was out. I felt it had less of a sugary sweet taste like Mountain Dew, while still tasting citrusy. Plus that bright green color is so iconic.

Would like to hear about Sobe, the lizard drink.

We had a Surge branded soda vending machine in my High School. It looked pretty much like you'd imagine. It was green with the big Surge label on the front. The weird thing about it was that on the side of the machine there was a picture of some "extreme" teenagers in mid yell like things were so "extreme" they couldn't help but to scream and in the background of that picture there was a blurred out but still unmistakable image of a Skee-Ball machine. I can tell you this amused my friends and I to no end and "Extreme Skee-Ball!" became an inside joke among us for quite a while.

I watch this channel for this specific narrator.

Burger King still carries it as an exclusive at their soda fountains. I miss this and Jolt Cola.

Man I’ve always remembered this soda from my childhood. The apartment complex I was living in as a child had a vending machine at the pool and I would always go up there to buy a Surge. Good times.

you went from Surge to the comeback of Mellow Yellow and completely overlooked the short-lived rollercoaster of a citrus soda that was Vault, also produced by Coca-Cola. Vault was wild and nearly filled the Surge-shaped hole that loomed heavy within my teenage heart.

We actually had Surge machines in our high school, it was 25 cents a can. I still remember some guys chugging it & acting like they just couldn't control themselves, lol.

I remember in high school the vendor guy came in with a rolling bucket of Surge and handed them out free. They did it every two days for two months. So when the machine came in, we were all so caffeine and flavor addicted that the only way any other machine got any money was if the Surge machine needed to be restocked. I still want one.

Man, Surge was great. Those were the days where me and my friends would pull caps off tossed out 20oz soda bottles looking for free drinks. They were always running those promotions and literally most people seemed to overlook them. On a good day we could find ourselves with 12 free sodas between coke and pepsi brands. For middle schoolers that was treasure.

My parents once scolded me for purchasing a Surge. They thought it was crazy and over-caffeinated. It is funny that it actually had less caffeine than the mountain dew I was frequently allowed to drink as a child.

I'm Norwegian and Urge is still crazy popular here, way more than Mountain Dew. Urge has always been my favourite soda and I remember in early 2010's they sold Urge Intense which is my all time favourite soda.

Surge's hype machine was hilariously chaotic. I remember in middle school when Coke came to promote Surge by giving everyone a free 16oz bottle in the cafeteria during the lunch periods. Thing is, we weren't allowed to take soft drinks from the vending machines back to class. Plenty of kids didn't want the free bottle, but they passed it to their friends who did, and those kids had to down them before going back to class. So you had a large group of 11-14 year olds chugging multiple bottles of Surge in 25 minutes. Many went home sick that afternoon, with teachers wondering what the hell was going on.

Can you do one for Jolt Cola? Twice the sugar. Twice the caffeine.

I loved Surge. They brought some to my high school to promote it back in the 90's. My family didn't drink a lot of soda, but after that I drank Surge whenever I could. When I could no longer get it, I stopped drinking soda again.

When it came out, our middle school gave cans away for free, full backpacks of it. Then they set up a 3 dedicated vending machine setup for Surge, with its name stretching across all 3 at 25 cents a can, Half the cost of normal cans. Kids used to buy the machines out, till the officials started locking the purchase times down.

I loved Surge, Kick and Mountain Dew growing up in the 90s. When Surge came back through Amazon, I got a pack. Loved it. Always thought it was incredibly dumb to bring back a soda exclusively through an online retail store… why not partner with Walmart or Target or some grocery store instead?

I was CRAZY about SURGE in the 90s. When it made a comeback my friends ordered a batch through Amazon, and they started carrying it at a convenience store right at work. I was disappointed the formula wasn’t as intense as before, but it was nice to have it back for a while.

The latest rerelease Surge tasted like 7-UP. Classic Surge tasted very unique. It was as if the Ooze from the Ninja Turtles, or Nickelodeon Gak were something that was designed to be eaten. It had such an overly sweet, ambiguously citrusy flavor, that it almost didn't taste like citrus. God, I miss it. I'm about to track down an Urge to see what's up with that!

I used to drink like 8 Surges a day back in 97 😂. Loved that drink. They were 25 cents a piece out of the vending machine. Those were good and simple times compared to this clown world we're in these days.

They brought it back a few years ago. I kept trying to stock up on them because I knew they'd eventually discontinue it again, but I kept drinking them. Surge is addictive. They should bring it back again, but permanently...and with a zero sugar variation.

It's always weird to me that drinks/foods that have these massive cult fanbases that routinely sell out whenever they're brought back within minutes never just become a permanent fixture in the market again. It just feels like they're leaving money on the table tbh

Loved the commentary! How about a vid on "what happened to Fruitopia?"

The weirdest thing I remember about Surge was that there was one of the branded vending machines in the middle of my local Kroger at the time. Also, really surprised Mello Yellow gets as much press in this, but no mention of Vault at all. (No disrespect to Mello Yellow, it's my personal favorite of the radioactive yellow-green citrus drinks, but Vault was totally aimed at the same market as Surge in those years it was absent.)

So happy I’m Norwegian 😅 Urge is my favorite soda 😁 While as an exchange student in the US, I loved Vault (many years ago) been to America several times afterwards but haven’t found Vault again 😢

The taste of Surge was really good. One of the best tasting sodas I've ever had. Anyone remember DNL, that upside down 7up? It had the same color as Surge and a similar, great citrus taste. I miss that one, too.

The Surge at school issue was driven by Surge only pop machines being put next to the Coke machine in middle and high schools. Not only that, but a can of Surge was 25¢, while all the other pops were 50¢ a can. This was a very important part of the *Surge* in popularity of this soda at the schools I went to.

I loved Surge and I am so happy that some burger kings have it now! I wish it would be back out in stores regularly.

This just makes me miss 90s youth culture in general. Everything just seemed so upbeat and positive.

Josta was my favorite 90’s soft drink that left us too soon. I’ve never tasted anything quite like it, and containing guarana, it probably could have been a hit if the marketing was a bit different.

Around 1998 or so, my family went to Disney World. I forget what resort, but they had a free Surge Slushie machine in the lobby. Needless to say that won me over. What a time to be alive.

I'm not sure it's 100% discontinued, my dudes. I can literally drive to the corner store 45 seconds from my house here in Jacksonville and buy a can of Surge right now. Also, for the record (not related to this video, but on a similar topic): Oreo Cakesters are definitely not discontinued. They are currently sold in every gas station and grocery store in my area. That one always confused me because I never saw them disappear from shelves and have seen them in multiple "discontinued snacks" videos.

Oh hell, the nostalgia is real. Always wondered what happened to surge.

I swear slurm (futurama) was based on surge

Great episode! I'd love to see something similar about Josta. That drink left us way too soon 😢

Words cannot describe what joy it is to just walk into the local grocery store and pick up a tasty bottle of Urge. Whatever global franchises that we miss out on due to our tiny Norwegian market, we make it up with this everlasting beverage of ours. Yes I remember the ads but most importantly, it's my favourite carbonated drink next to 7Up. Also it went away here in Norway as well until the FB campaign brought it back and it's still around to this day, never to fade away ever again.

In 2020, my local gas station's coke cooler was stocked with Surge. No idea how that happened.

BK wasn't the first to have Surge slushes, as I distinctly remember getting them from Six Flags all the time. In fact, the drink was so good I'd often go to the park just to feed the craving for one. What a time to be a teen.

I would love to see an episode on Josta soda. It was only out for 1 or 2 years that I know of. It was great and weird.

I'll always remember Surge from Monday Nitro when WCW announcer Tony Schiavone would pick up a bottle of Surge, put it to his mouth like he was going to drink it before going to commericals and however many times he did this the level of Surge in that bottle would never go down. Also, I'd love to see a video on OK Soda.

I drank this stuff constantly when they brought it back a few years ago, I was surprised at how good it was

Please do a vid on Vault Soda

Here in Norway, it's simply known as Urge, and still sold pretty much everywhere!

Growing up in the mid and late 90's surge was my go to drink..

Urge is a must every time i travel to Norway, compared to the sad sugar tax versions of soda the UK has now... Urge is like travelling back to my teenage years :D. Weird that you can't find exporters of the Norwegian variant!

No mention of Vault? I'm like 95% sure it was a tweaked recipe of Surge with different branding. While we're on the subject of extreme 90s citrus sodas, I'd like to see a video on Kick.

Surge is my fav pop ever. It came back for a bit I WAS SO HAPPY, then it went away and left me sad

Used to work with an older woman that loved Surge so much that's what everyone called her, it's all I ever saw her drink

I drank them as a kid (occasionally) when my parents would buy them, but then they bought into the anti-Surge sentiment and quit buying it all together. I tried it again when they brought it back a few years back and it wasn’t bad. I just think the market is saturated with energy drinks and stuff now.

I missed the original era of Surge but it came back briefly in like 2015-2016 and I did rather enjoy it when I got to try it out.

Do one about Citra next plz, that was my favorite to disappear.

I really wish you guys would do an episode on this short lived soft drink called OK. It was another coke product but was only available between 1994 and 95. Its black and white 12-can boxes with red trim around the name OK looks kind of 90s kind of cool. They also had an interesting (during that time) phone-based marketing campaign, where you call this number to hear either weird “ok” jokes or other crazy, supposedly funny noises. Best of all, the drink itself tasted really good! It tasted like a mix of 7-up with Fanta.

Here in NE Ohio we have Surge available through Coke as a lower price option- not many stores stock it and Covid has disrupted things tremendously. I remember the look on a customers face- seeing it for the first time since he was a kid. This video explains why he was so wide-eyed and enamored.

I was in middle school when surge came out. For weeks they gave out free 12pks of cans after school to anyone who wanted them. No limit. Whatever we could carry... when they finally started charging we paid 25 cents per can. Our school never tried to limit or restrict surge. From my perspective the product only died when they started charging regular price for them after everyone became use to them being dirt cheap. Coke missed the mark so hard. Surge could have only succeeded as discount mt dew.

I LOVED Surge when I was a teenager! I was so disappointed when it was taken off the market. I got forced into drinking Mountain Dew and yeah it filled that void but it just wasn't the same. I missed out when it was on Amazon, but I did get to partake of it at Burger King once when it was there. Hopefully it'll come back again like Pepsi does with it's Mountain Dew flavors, or Crystal Pepsi.

they brought this back a few years ago and it was like a blast from the past

I loved Surge, but honestly couldn't tell you what it tastes like lol. I'd love to see a video about Fruitopia or the Snapple Elements! Both were faves of mine when I was younger.

I really fkn miss Sobe drinks. I looked it up online and i guess they still sell locally on where the drink is made but a lot of the flavors have been scaled down and that place is California. And yes, this narrator is the man!

Besides this, those Orbitz drinks that seemingly disappeared after 30 seconds had a smell that I can’t place and occasionally still get reminded of.

You confused me a bit, so here's a minor correction. Surge is still sold at BK, I drink it often. AL for anyone wondering. We have a coke bottling plant nearby, so maybe it's a local thing.

The depressing thing about the surge comeback was that it was almost impossible to find. They said it was at places like Walmart and Circle K, but no. I could only get it at a bodega that was covered in roaches and smelled like rotten meat.

They missed the perfect ad for Surge. 10 hours playing Goldeneye during finals weeks your Sophomore year.

Do a video about jolt cola!

I loved Surge back in my high school days. It would get me through my gaming hours, and I was overjoyed when I say it in convenient stores for a short while. They should really bring this back.

I was an elementary school student during the Age of Surge and i can tell you that our going berserk was definitely because of the marketing. Seeing the clips from Surge commercials brought back memories of me and my friends seeing them and deciding to recreate them as best as we could.

I worked for Coca Cola in 2015 when surge was brought back and people were freaking out when I was building a display at a grocery store and taking the cases while I was putting them up.

I've always liked Mello Yello more than Mountain Dew, it's just hard to find it at places (I really only drink soda when I'm eating out).

I lived in Alpine, Texas, up until August of 2021. There is a produce market there called Porter's (2 to be exact, but I only ever went to the one on 5th St.). As of Aug of '21, you could still be Surge there. They sold them in the 16 oz tall boy size in the coolers by the registers. Oddly enough, they were not for sale in the room temp soda section with all the other soft drinks, only in the coolers. I'm not sure why exactly, but they were there consistently. And they were just as addictive as I remembered from my teenage years!

Surge was so good. Not as sweet tasting so it seemed like more of the flavor came through. btw, citrus sodas are awesome with vanilla ice cream.

Surge started the whole energy drink craze. I remember being a kid and talking about how surge had more caffeine than the dew.

they never stopped making it. I still see it from time to time and buy it.

The urge to surge🍀

We got a nothing but Surge machine in our high school and as a promotion to get us hooked, it was only a quarter instead of fifty cents like the other drinks in the Coke machine next to it. It worked too. 😂

I remember drinking surge. It was the summer of ‘98. My sisters friend Natalie had an Uncle Loui with a big farm in Northern California. We would drink surge & play popcorn on the giant trampoline. That’s when everyone takes there shoes off & puts them on the trampoline, and everyone jumps around. Shoes would be flying everywhere & if one touched you, you were out. Catching a shoe with your feet meant you could tag someone back in, if we were playing teams.

I remember those and the funny is my dad is a Mellow Yellow drinker after hearing about it being replaced by Surge he went to the nearest store that still sold them then bought as much as he could afford with the limited budget we had. It was a crazy time having Surge replace Mellow Yellow then moved to a different town for weird reasons and things got weirder after that.

I found Surge today at Burger King (Dunbar, PA to be exact). It was one of the options on the Coca-Cola Freestyle machine.

Do fruitopia

You can't make a video about surge without mentioning the CD (compact disc, for you youngsters). That CD had many great songs from bands who didn't quite make it and one who blew up.... Jimmy Eat World. Their song "Seventeen" was on there and what made me buy the full length album. There were also other great 90s nostalgic songs on there.

Bring surge back. I loved it.

Surge? It finally came back 2 yrs ago in my state after being gone for so long! It’s back baby!

Please do one of these on Vault. I feel like it was very under-appreciated.

When they switched from the rounded Surge font to the more 'digital' font, they had a scratch off game on the back of the label. My friends and I drank so much that we won like 10 cases, a few shirts, and a stupid bucket hat. Thats like giving kids speed and then sending them into the casino! Man, i miss that 😊

In 4th grade, I distinctly remember coke sending a surge truck and rep to our school to promote the drink, then leaving a dedicated surge vending machine that sold only surge for 25 cents a can.

Miss the old 90’s commercials and how crazy they were lol

This brings back memories. I used to have a Surge alarm clock that I won. It was black with a green surge logo that lit up. What was cool was that the alarm clock would yell "Surge!!!". 🤣

I wish I could say I have fond memories of that Easter Sunday where me and my cousin (9 and 12) drank 4 liters of Surge. Alas, the sugar, caffeine, and extreme citrus flavor wiped out a bunch of those memory cells.

Surge was also reformulated as "Vault" too. And Surge was sold in flats at Walmart pre-pandemic as well.

I saw a reissue of Surge and Crystal Pepsi when I was visiting Texas in the summer of 2016. Had to buy both just because I grew up in the 90's.

Surge is and will always be my favorite pop

i won a Surge Screaming alarm clock that i used for a decade plus 😂. The Screaming "Surge" was the stuff of nightmares.

There's some places in Georgia that still stock Surge in vending machines.

I loved Surge in high school. I was very sad when it was discontinued. Vault was pretty awesome too, and naturally they got rid of that too!

man - I loved surge. 10 year old me felt like such a rebel since we couldn't have it at school. then it just disappeared, so mtn dew became the drink of choice for gaming

Mello Yello NHRA was great, but in SoCal where I went, it had 0 chances. I had my first Mello Yello at a race. Immediately loved it. The problem? I couldn't find it at all. I had no chance to buy it other than at the race events.

I remember when it came back for a bit and a few of my friends were excited for it. Got it a few times, was still good.

I'm not sure where your information came from, but from 2014-2018 Surge was available for purchase in large cans at my local gas station/supermarket in Kennedy, NY. When I asked about it, they said that Coke had been stocking it again. This appearance on the market may have been regional, but its missing from your timeline.

I actually found some surge a few years ago. Idk if anyone still sells it but it was around a bit longer than people think. Maybe a few places still sell it

still available in all over stores as Urge (Norway)

So i grew up as a teen in the 90’s and surge was that cool drink that was banned at middle school, how were we to resist?

I remember being on summer break in 6th grade: I got an ad in the mail for a free 6 pack of Surge. It reminded me of a sweeter Mello Yello, but I did appreciate the free 6 pack.