Cresta was a frothy fruit-flavoured

drink A drink or beverage is a liquid intended for human consumption. In addition to their basic function of satisfying thirst, drinks play important roles in human culture. Common types of drinks include plain drinking water, milk, juice, smoothies a ...

produced in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

Schweppes Schweppes (, ) is a beverage brand that originated in the Republic of Geneva; it is made, bottled and distributed worldwide by multiple international conglomerates, depending on licensing and region, that manufacture and sell soft drinks. Schwep ...

from the early 1970s through to the early 1980's. It originally came in four different flavours:

strawberry The garden strawberry (or simply strawberry; ''Fragaria × ananassa'') is a widely grown hybrid species of the genus '' Fragaria'', collectively known as the strawberries, which are cultivated worldwide for their fruit. The fruit is widely ap ...

, lemon & lime,

pineapple The pineapple (''Ananas comosus'') is a tropical plant with an edible fruit; it is the most economically significant plant in the family Bromeliaceae. The pineapple is indigenous to South America, where it has been cultivated for many centuri ...

and

orange Orange most often refers to: *Orange (fruit), the fruit of the tree species '' Citrus'' × ''sinensis'' ** Orange blossom, its fragrant flower *Orange (colour), from the color of an orange, occurs between red and yellow in the visible spectrum * ...

;

blackcurrant The blackcurrant (''Ribes nigrum''), also known as black currant or cassis, is a deciduous shrub in the family Grossulariaceae grown for its edible berries. It is native to temperate parts of central and northern Europe and northern Asia, whe ...

& Cream Soda were added later.

Advertising campaign

Cresta is widely remembered for its 1970s advertising campaign led by a cartoon

polar bear The polar bear (''Ursus maritimus'') is a hypercarnivorous bear whose native range lies largely within the Arctic Circle, encompassing the Arctic Ocean, its surrounding seas and surrounding land masses. It is the largest extant bear specie ...

(also called Cresta) sporting sunglasses whose attempts at looking suavely cool would be overwhelmed by bouts of uncontrolled enthusiasm when drinking Cresta. The bear's widely quoted catch phrase "It's frothy, man!" summed up the difference between Cresta and more traditionally fizzy

soft drink A soft drink (see § Terminology for other names) is a drink that usually contains water (often carbonated), a sweetener, and a natural and/or artificial flavoring. The sweetener may be a sugar, high-fructose corn syrup, fruit juice, a su ...

s. This campaign was created by John Webster of

Boase Massimi Pollitt Boase Massimi Pollitt (BMP) was a British advertising agency which traded between 1968 and 2004 before being renamed as DDB London. It was purchased in 1989 by the US marketing services conglomerate Omnicom. Its lineage can be directly traced to ...

, who also invented the Smash instant potato advertisements featuring robotic aliens and the Honey Monster in

Sugar Puffs Honey Monster Puffs are a honey-flavoured breakfast cereal made from sugar-coated wheat sold in the United Kingdom. The cereal was originally sold as Sugar Puffs, but was re-branded in 2014. It was labeled as Honey Monster Sugar Puffs for a t ...

campaigns. Most of the commercials were animated at the Richard Williams Studios for funding on ''

The Thief and the Cobbler ''The Thief and the Cobbler'' is an Unfinished creative work, unfinished animated film, animated fantasy film co-written and directed by Richard Williams (animator), Richard Williams. Originally conceived in the 1960s, the film was in and out o ...

''.

In popular culture

* Cresta is mentioned, several times, in the song "The Unfortunate Gwatkin" by the band

Half Man Half Biscuit Half Man Half Biscuit are an English rock band, formed in 1984 in Birkenhead, Merseyside. Known for their satirical, sardonic, and sometimes surreal songs, the band comprises lead singer and guitarist Nigel Blackwell, bassist and singer Neil Cr ...

on their 2014 album ''

Urge For Offal ''Urge for Offal'' is the thirteenth album by UK Wirral-based rock band Half Man Half Biscuit, released 20 October 2014 on Probe Plus Records. The album reached #68 on the UK album chart. Nigel Blackwell of Half Man Half Biscuit has discussed ...

''. * During the John Inman version of Teddy Bear's Picnic several bears are mentioned including a big bear waving something around and saying "It's frothy man" according to the singer, a thinly veiled reference to the Cresta bear mascot. * An over 40 year old bottle of Cresta (notably possessing an odour and taste of "medicine and sewage") was reviewed by YouTuber

Ashens Dr Stuart Clive Ashen (born 16 December 1976), commonly known by his online alias Ashens ( ), is a British comedian, critic and YouTuber known for reviewing various products; his reviews usually include toys, video games and food. , his main ...

References

Soft drinks {{soft-drink-stub