Soda Wars: Revenge of the Thirst is a weekly blog presented by the Peanut Butter List. Every Wednesday we illustrate which store has the best price on your favorite brands of soda. We price compare Pepsi, Coke and 7up in the 2 liter, 12 pack and 20/24 packs at ALL Colorado King Soopers, Safeway and Albertsons locations. With this blog you'll 'know before you go' who has the best deal on your favorite brands of soda each week before you head off to the stores.
Today is Wednesday, July 27th. The summer is approaching its' end and there's just a few short weeks before the kids go back to school. People are scrambling to try and get one last camping trip in before the long nights of homework begin. If you do make one more trip up the hill, make sure you pack plenty of sunscreen and a wet suit. The weather has been near 238 degrees during the day with a nice rain in the evening with just enough moisture to increase the humidity so that tying your shoes makes you sweat.
As with the weather, these soda prices are just as chaotic and random. One package has set a new lowest price level while others are priced so high the Brinks truck has to deliver the shelf tags and signage.
If you missed last weeks blog, the numbers in the colored bubbles are each items SCORE. This is our system of scoring each items sale price for the week. The higher the SCORE, the better the deal. Check last weeks Soda Wars blog for more details on the PBL SCORE.
Here's the 12 pack breakdown for this week:
12 pack Winner: Pepsi at Safeway ($2.69 WYB10 (M&M) / SCORE 93)
Safeways' ad looks a little scary when you look at the shelf tag and it reads "When You Buy 10." This is part of their 'Big Beverage Event' and this package is part of the Mix and Match sale on selected beverages. You can buy ten 12 packs if you want to, and that might not be a horrible idea at a $2.69 price point, but you can also buy some of the 32oz Gatorade or 24oz Propel for just .49¢ to get your 10 items.
With a SCORE of 93, this wouldn't be a bad time to buy the Pepsi you need to last until the Labor Day sales come out in a few weeks. If you grab your Pepsi 12 packs anywhere else, you'll pay $1.31 more at Kings and $1.98 more at Albertsons for each 12 pack. That may or may not be a ton of money on this one trip, but make decisions like that throughout the year and you just over spent hundreds of dollars on one simple item.
If you find yourself at Albertsons and you just have to buy your Pepsi, grab the Pepsi 20 packs instead. They are the item that set a new low price level in its category.
20/24 pack breakdown:
20 Pack Winner: Pepsi at Albertsons ($4.47 WYB4 / SCORE 100)
Albertsons and Pepsi set a new historical low price this week with this sale. It has been lower in the past, but those sales are a bit too rare to consider in calculating the SCORE. This price actually matches the Safeway price for 12 packs at $2.69 and a per can price of .22¢ each. So, if your a Pepsi drinker, you can go to either store to nab these prices but the flavor selection will be far greater to head to Safeway and grab the 12 packs.
For you Coke drinkers out there, Safeway is offering the 20 packs at $4.99 (SCORE 90) which, compared to the rest of the can prices on Coke out there, this feels like a clearance item. Any other store or package will cost you an extra nickel per can at minimum. In fact, at the very same store (Safeway) you'll spend an extra .12¢ per can if you grab Coke 12 packs over the 20 packs.
These Coke 20 packs are part of the 'Big Beverage Event' so you will need 10 qualifying items to get this price, but again, this is Mix and Match so you can split the difference with some of the .49¢ items as well.
2 liter breakdown:
2 Liter Winner: Pepsi at Safeway (.99¢ WYB10 (M&M) / SCORE 70)
I'm beginning to think that Pepsi forgot that they announced they were going to raise prices. For one cent more you can grab your 2 liters at Albertsons and you only have to buy 4 instead of 10, but depending on your beverage needs this week, Safeway might just be the place to go for all of your Pepsi needs.
Keep an eye out for those 1.5 liter bottles of Pepsi. They should still be priced at 2/$1.00 at most locations, but the stores seem to be having some trouble getting them in stock. If you can't find them anywhere, try asking the manager about them and see if you can get a rain-check to lock in that price until they get re-stocked.
In closing...
Pepsi took it in all 3 categories this week and offer the lowest prices for your soda. If you are truly a Coke fan and must have it, You can try searching online for instructions to build a Flux Capacitor, mount that puppy to the nearest DeLorean and drive 88 MPH to your nearest grocery store.
I want everyone reading this blog to know, that I'm not bias to any soda company over the other. My drink of choice, and just about the only soda I drink, is Dr. Pepper. The Dr. is owned by 7up and distributed by whichever company has large enough pockets to buy the rights for their city. For example, in Colorado Springs and Pueblo, plus the surrounding areas, Dr. Pepper is distributed by Coke. While in Denver and the surrounding bits of land, Pepsi distributes Dr. Pepper. I can't begin to explain why it is the way it is nor who has it where and which company stocks it. I just know that the particular combination of those 23 flavors is completely delicious.
Well that's it for Dr.Pepper Wars... I mean Soda Wars. See you here next week late Wednesday with new prices and with any luck, better prices. Have a good week friends, see you in 7.
What's you favorite soda?
