When I shared my blog post on Sun-Crest Orange and NuGrape last week in my Facebook group, a friend said they were two of his favorites along with Choc-Ola.
The beverage is arguably not really a pop but, like Yoo-hoo, it was sold in bottles and cans in the same section of the store as other soda pops and the cans were available in pop vending machines. I say “was sold” because Choc-Ola was phased out of production in 2003.
Choc-Ola was created by Harry Normington, an English immigrant who eventually settled in Indianapolis. He began selling Choc-Ola in 1944. It became extremely popular in Indiana and surrounding states, never more so than when it was touted by Cowboy Bob, the host of an Indianapolis kid’s show. At the height of its popularity, it was sold in 1977 to Moxie who sold it eight years later to Yoo-hoo. In 2003, Mott’s bought the company and promptly phased out Choc-Ola.
The drink was only available in the occasional bottle that lingered on Indiana store shelves afterward. But in 2010 the owner of the Rock-Cola ‘50s Cafe in Indianapolis secured the expired patent and trademark and now sells it at his restaurant.
The plan had been for Choc-Ola to be released in cans and thus be more widely available. In fact, a few years ago, some friends told me they had seen cans at the Indiana State Fair, but the canning venture did not work out. At this point, the only place to get Choc-Ola is at the Rock-Cola diner in Indianapolis.
My buddy, Barry, and I sought out the oh-so-illusive beverage few years ago and made a trip to the Rock-Cola ‘50s Cafe. Choc-Ola is similar to Yoo-hoo but has a creamier, richer chocolate flavor. The main reason for this is that Choc-Ola actually has nutritional value as it is 40% milk. The owner of Rock-Cola says the main difference between Choc-Ola and Yoo-hoo is that Choc-Ola tastes good. I agree that Choc-Ola we tasted was truly better than Yoo-hoo, but I may have been partially swayed by the fact that I was enjoying a delicious Hawg Dog at the cafe too.
I am very interested in purchasing Choc Ola -bottle, jug or can!!! I live in NKY bad would love to get this drink-I and my family grew up drinking Choc Ola. Please let me know if and how I can do this.
Michelle, to the best of my knowledge, the cafe I talk about in the post is the only place to get it, but I believe they do sell it by the jug. So if you took a cooler, you could drive over to Indy and stock up (once this COVID-19 situation is resolved, that is.)