La Colombiana

Just like Coke in the U.S, Inca Kola in Peru, and Calpis in Japan, Colombia's got its own national-favorite soft drink. Colombia's is called, conveniently enough, (La) Colombiana:

This pinkish-peachy-colored beverage advertises that it's kola-flavored. I really didn't, and still don't, know what kola tastes like. I had to look it up just to see what it is. Apparently, kola flavoring is derived from the nut of the kola tree, which is native to the rain forests of Africa but now is grown in the tropics around the world.

Colombiana's smell is something along the lines of an artificial banana flavor. I got excited when I had Colombiana for the first time because of the smell. You see, I absolutely absolutely absolutely love love love fake banana flavoring but, unfortunately, the taste is more like a cream soda, which I don't love...at all. I've had a few of them while here, including the diet version which is similarly flavored, but I'm not a fan. If you like (orange) Creamsicles you'll probably like the soda. It's huge here so I guess there are enough people who like that flavor.

One interesting thing that I've seen here that I don't think that I've seen an equivalent for before is that people add Colombiana soda to local-favorite Aguila (Eagle) beer. They put one can of soda in the pitcher and then fill the remaining space with the beer. The combo is called Cola and Pola ("pola" is an informal/casual way to say "beer" in Colombia):

Since I hate the taste of beer and don't really like Colombiana all that much, I passed on a chance to try out the combo. I think I'll stick with diet Coke and diet Mountain Dew for now, unless of course, I come across an Inca Kola or Calpis for a change.