Cafe Cola

Long before Coca-Cola and Pepsi-Cola became bottled soft drinks, they were served at American pharmacies, where each drink was prepared at the soda fountain. While researching how soda was made in those days, Matt Rogers developed the recipe that became Cafe Cola, introduced by Pure Sodaworks in Chattanooga, Tennessee, in 2012.

The cola joined a growing range of handcrafted sodas produced by the company, which had opened its own bottling facility in April that year following a successful Kickstarter campaign. Cafe Cola was added later in 2012, after the team had tasted 20 different versions of the recipe. The finished cola combined pure cane sugar with orange, lemon and lime juices, herbs, spices, caramelized sugar and locally roasted espresso.

Pure Sodaworks was founded in 2011 by husband-and-wife team Matt and Tiffany Rogers, who had previously established the artisan company Everyday Eclectic. The business began with a mobile soda cart serving handmade sodas at farmers’ markets, festivals and other local events before expanding into bottled soft drinks. Matt Rogers developed the soda recipes and designed the company’s visual identity, while Tiffany Rogers handled branding, marketing and photography. Shawn Clouse later joined the business.

The company distributed its sodas across parts of the southeastern and midwestern United States before the Pure Sodaworks brand was officially retired by late 2019 or early 2020. Matt and Tiffany Rogers subsequently turned their attention to other craft businesses, including RogersMade.