Regnbuevand

Regnbuevand was a Danish private-label brand of soft drinks in various flavours. It was introduced around 1970 by the Danish supermarket chain Brugsen and produced by the Danish beverage company Harboes.

In 1976, the labels were redesigned to feature a rainbow, and the brand subsequently became popularly known as Regnbuevand (“Rainbow Soda”).

In the early 1970s, growing concern emerged over the use of caramel coloring to give cola its characteristic dark color. Although later research showed these concerns to be unfounded, several beverage companies sought to develop alternative colas without caramel coloring. These colas were colorless and appeared under names such as Albino Cola and White Cola.

In July 1976, Brugsen launched its colorless cola alternative, Klar Cola (“Clear Cola”). It coexisted with the regular cola into the 1980s. The Regnbuevand brand was discontinued in the 1990s.

In 2016, FDB, renamed COOP in 2013, marked its 150th anniversary by briefly reviving a selection of discontinued private-label products from the previous century. As part of this initiative, Klar Cola returned to the market for a short period in the autumn of 2016. The reissue was limited to 250,000 bottles and produced exclusively in this single flavor.

Regnbuevand was originally sold in 250 ml glass bottles, the standard format for non-alcoholic beverages in Denmark until the 1990s. The anniversary edition, however, was released in a slightly taller 275 ml bottle. Production of the anniversary cola was handled by the Danish beverage company Frem, which had previously produced its own Albino Cola in the 1980s and 1990s.

In Kenneth’s collection

• I have the limited anniversary edition from 2016 (exp. October 2017), I also have extra 3 for sale or trade.

I am always interested in buying old Danish colas. Let me know if you have an original regular Cola or Klar Cola from Regnbuevand.