Baja Blast

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Baja Blast
Baja Blast logo.svg
Baja Blast.jpg
TypeCitrus soft drink
ManufacturerPepsiCo
Country of originUnited States
Introduced2004; 19 years ago (2004)
Related products

Mountain Dew Baja Blast is a tropical lime-flavored soft drink under the Mountain Dew brand, exclusively distributed at Taco Bell restaurants. Since the original flavor's launch in 2004, the Baja Blast brand has since expanded to include new flavors, alcoholic beverages, and energy drinks, as well as merchandise, such as flavored lip balm,[1] room sprays,[2] and Halloween costumes.[3]

History

The flavor was first made available in 2004. The drink contains 4.8% caffeine-free Mountain Dew. Created for, and exclusively sold at, Taco Bell locations, it was a collaboration between the company and Mountain Dew owners PepsiCo. One of the first instances of a restaurant offering an exclusive soda beverage was created to increase sales of fountain soda.[4][5] The flavor was heavily promoted at launch with advertising campaigns.[6]

In 2014, ten years after the drink's original launch, it was released for the first time in a packaged format.[7][8] The retail release was only available for a limited time. The drink was promoted on Twitter, as well as through on-air advertisements featuring Dale Earnhardt Jr.[9]

In January 2014, Taco Bell released Mountain Dew Sangrita Blast, a non-alcoholic sangria flavor, as a sister flavor to Baja Blast, along with a diet version of Baja Blast.[10][11][12]

In 2015, Baja Blast was re-released for a limited time at retail stores, along with Sangrita Blast.[13][14][15]

In 2016, the flavor was part of the "DEWcision" campaign. It was put up against Mountain Dew flavor Pitch Black, and fans would vote for their favorite, the winner of which would be kept on store shelves permanently. The campaign featured wide promotion of both flavors, including advertisements,[16] NASCAR paint schemes[17] and a "Dewggro Crag" event themed around the Nickelodeon game show Guts.[18][19] It was ultimately announced that Pitch Black had won the vote, and would remain on store shelves.[20][21] As such, Baja Blast was once again discontinued from retailers.

The flavor has returned to store shelves yearly since 2018.[22][23][24][25][26] A zero sugar version was offered starting in 2019.

In 2019, Taco Bell began offering a birthday-themed Baja Blast freeze to celebrate the drink's 15th birthday.[27][28][29] Select locations, branded "Taco Bell Cantina," offered the alcoholic "Mountain Dew Baja Blast Twisted Freeze."[30] The "Baja Blast Colada" freeze was offered by Taco Bell in 2021.[31][32][33]

In 2022, Baja Blast was announced as one of the flavors of the Hard Mountain Dew line of alcoholic beverages, which would release in retail stores later that year.[34][35][36][37] The flavor was added to the Mountain Dew Energy line of energy drinks later that year.[38][26]

Flavors

In 2021, Baja Blast was released at retail as part of the "Summer of Baja" promotion, alongside new, "spinoff" flavors. These flavors were Baja Punch, a tropical punch flavor, and Baja Flash, a pina colada flavor.[25][39][40]

In June 2022, Baja Blast's retail release was accompanied with new flavors Baja Gold, a pineapple flavor, and Baja Mango Gem, a mango flavor. A third new flavor, Baja Deep Dive, was a mystery flavor available exclusively as a giveaway prize.[26][38]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Mountain Dew Baja Blast Lip Balm Is A Thing And, Yes, It's Bright Blue". Delish. 2020-05-06. Retrieved 2022-09-13.
  2. ^ Scinto, Maria (2021-07-14). "Baja Blast Fans Need To Know About This Bizarre New Mountain Dew Product". Mashed.com. Retrieved 2022-09-13.
  3. ^ "Dress the DEW: MTN DEW and Spirit get spooky this Halloween season". FoodSided. 2022-09-06. Retrieved 2022-09-13.
  4. ^ "New Mountain Dew Flavor Available Only at Taco Bell". QSR magazine. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  5. ^ Lomax, Alyce (2004-08-16). "Taco Bell's Blue Dew". The Motley Fool. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  6. ^ Hall, Steve. "Taco Bell Promotes New Drink With Wood Chipper". www.adrants.com. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  7. ^ "Mountain Dew Packages Taco Bell's Baja Blast". BevNET.com. 2014-04-24. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  8. ^ "Mtn Dew Baja Blast". Convenience Store News. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  9. ^ "Mountain Dew gives tweeters a blast from the past". Digiday. 2014-05-12. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  10. ^ "Taco Bell Releases New Apple-Flavored Soda and Mtn Dew Sangrita". www.foodbeast.com. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  11. ^ Stampler, Laura (2014-01-17). "You're Not Ready for Taco Bell's Mountain Dew Sangria". Time. ISSN 0040-781X. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  12. ^ "Taco Bell Adds Six Unique Flavors to Its Fountain". CSP Daily News. January 17, 2014. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  13. ^ "Mtn Dew Brings Back the Blast". CSP Daily News. April 9, 2015. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  14. ^ "Mountain Dew Brings Back 'Baja Blast' Bottles and Cans and Introduces 'Sangrita Blast'". BevNET.com. 2015-04-09. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  15. ^ "The Return of Baja Blast & Sangrita Blast Mountain Dew". Music Mayhem Magazine. 2015-04-05. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  16. ^ Tran, Lina (2016-05-25). "Mountain Dew Gets Into the Virtual Reality Game". Eater. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  17. ^ "Mountain Dew Enlists NASCAR Stars For Promo". www.mediapost.com. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  18. ^ Richards, Katie (June 20, 2016). "Mountain Dew Taps Into Your '90s Nostalgia By Resurrecting GUTS Aggro Crag". Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  19. ^ "We Resurrected The Aggro Crag And Had The Challenge Cast Prove Who's Got GUTS". MTV News. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  20. ^ "Mountain Dew's flavor election goes down to the wire". www.prweek.com. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  21. ^ "The Results of DEWcision 2016 Are In". Convenience Store News. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  22. ^ "Mountain Dew Baja Blast is coming back". WPTV. 2018-04-06. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  23. ^ "Mountain Dew is bringing back Baja Blast to stores for the summer". wkyc.com. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  24. ^ Johnson, Allison (2020-03-04). "Mountain Dew Baja Blast is Back for a Limited Time". Wide Open Eats. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  25. ^ a b "Mtn Dew Baja Blast's First Two Spinoffs Have Officially Hit Stores". IRL. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  26. ^ a b c Pomranz, Mike (June 7, 2022). "Mtn Dew Baja Blast Is Returning to Stores This Summer with Three New Flavors and an Energy Drink". Food & Wine. Retrieved 2022-06-08.
  27. ^ Flager, Madison (2019-10-18). "Taco Bell's Limited-Edition Baja Blast Birthday Freeze Comes With Candy Confetti Sprinkles". Delish. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  28. ^ "Taco Bell's New Birthday Baja Blast Is a Sprinkle-Filled Frozen Dream". Thrillist. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  29. ^ Raum, Morgan (October 22, 2019). "Taco Bell Put a New Twist on the Baja Blast Freeze In Honor of the Drink's 15th Anniversary". people.com. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  30. ^ Hahn, Fritz (January 11, 2019). "It's 2019 and Taco Bell will now serve you a frozen margarita with your Crunchwrap Supreme". The Washington Post.
  31. ^ Fitzpatrick, Caitlyn (2021-05-20). "Taco Bell Is Serving Up a New Mountain Dew Baja Blast Freeze That Has a Piña Colada Twist". Best Products. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  32. ^ "Taco Bell Debuts Piña Colada-Inspired Mountain Dew Baja Blast Colada Freeze". Hypebeast. 2021-05-24. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  33. ^ "Taco Bell's New Mtn Dew Baja Blast Colada Freeze Is Summer in a Plastic Cup". Thrillist. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  34. ^ Valinsky, Jordan. "Taco Bell favorite Mountain Dew Baja Blast is going boozy". CNN. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  35. ^ "Baja Blast Joins Hard Mountain Dew Flavors Arriving This Year". Nerdist. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  36. ^ "When Is Hard Baja Blast Mountain Dew Coming?". Food Network. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  37. ^ Pomranz, Mike (January 28, 2022). "A Boozy Baja Blast Is Joining the Hard Mtn Dew Lineup". Food & Wine. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  38. ^ a b "Summer of Baja Is Back with New Baja Blast Flavors and a Giveaway". Thrillist. Retrieved 2022-06-08.
  39. ^ Miller, Bob (2021-06-08). "Mountain Dew Adds New Baja Flash And Baja Punch Flavors As Part Of 'Summer Of Baja' Promotion". Chew Boom. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
  40. ^ "PepsiCo releases two new Mtn Dew Baja Blast flavors". www.foodbusinessnews.net. Retrieved 2022-03-09.
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