How Mountain Dew Evolved From a Mellow Whiskey Mixer to a Caffeinated Neon Soft Drink
The Process examined how Mountain Dew, once a name for moonshine, evolved from a mellow citrus whiskey mixer in the 1940s into today’s modern, highly caffeinated, neon soda.
Mountain Dew began in the 1940s as a citrus mixer for whiskey — its name was old slang for moonshine.
The story began in Knoxville, where brothers Barney and Ally Hartman wanted a nice mixer for their bourbon. After Barney passed, the Tip Corporation in Marion, Virginia, bought it and later sold it to the Pepsi-Cola Company (now PepsiCo) in 1964. Mountain Dew’s formula changed with each new owner.
The early bottles sold it with a barefoot, rifle-toting cartoon mascot named Willy the Hillbilly and the slogan “It’ll Tickle Yore Innards!”
Mountain Dew has been through four different formulas. Not four improvements – four different products wearing the same name. …The Hartman version was clear. The Tip version was slightly cloudy. Neither was neon. Without it, Mountain Dew on a shelf looks almost identical to Sprite. Same transparency, same category. The color is not decoration. It is the reason anyone reaches for this can instead of the one next to it.
Fittingly, the old whiskey mixer came full circle in 2022, when PepsiCo and the Boston Beer Company launched Hard Mtn Dew, a 5% alcohol version.
