Frem Cola
In 1949, Egon Adelhardt founded Mineralvandsfabrikken Frem in the Danish town of Ribe, producing a range of classic carbonated soft drinks. The cola was probably introduced in the late 1950s. Nearly three decades later, in 1978, the business passed to his sons Egon Jr. and Palle, with youngest brother Søren joining in later years.
By the late 1970s, caramel coloring in cola had become a talking point in Denmark. A handful of beverage makers began experimenting with colorless colas, and Frem joined the trend in the 1980s with its own — memorably named Albino Cola. It developed something of a cult following, and from the 2000s onwards Frem would occasionally bring it back in small batches. These modern reissues carried the simpler name Klar Cola — “Clear Cola” — but the idea remained the same: cola taste without the familiar brown hue.
In 2016, with no third-generation family members willing to take over, Frem was sold to another family-owned Danish company, Bryggeriet Fuglsang. A well-established brewery and soft drink producer, Fuglsang continued manufacturing both the Frem and Fuglsang beverage lines after the takeover.
The story took its final twist in May 2021, when Fuglsang itself was bought by Royal Unibrew. The new owner also happens to produce and distribute Pepsi in Denmark — and saw little reason to compete with its own star product. Just like that, Frem Cola, Fuglsang Cola, and the long-running clear cola experiments became a thing of the past.
In Kenneth’s collection
- A 250 ml bottle (exp. August 9, 2003), purchased 2018 from a collector
- A 250 ml bottle (exp. July 2, 2016) + 1 for sale or trade
- A 250 ml bottle colorless Klar Cola (exp. March 2021)
