The abbot of the San Marco monastery in Florence, Father Manuel Russo
The abbot of the San Marco monastery in Florence, Father Manuel Russo, discovered in the archives of an ancient monastery pharmacy a document from the 19th century containing a recipe for a medicinal drink made from coca leaves and kola nuts, which could have been a precursor to Coca-Cola.
Consensus
- A monk named Father Manuel Russo discovered a 19th-century document in the archives of the San Marco monastery in Florence.
- The document describes a recipe for a wine-based tonic made from coca leaves and cola nuts.
- The tonic was used as a restorative and tonizing remedy for fatigue, illness, and aging.
- The recipe resembles the formula used by John Pemberton in 1886 to create the syrup that became Coca-Cola.
- Pemberton replaced wine with carbonated water due to legal restrictions on alcohol.
- The San Marco monastery pharmacy, established in 1460, is still operational.
Points of divergence
- The document was described as a recipe for a medicinal drink named vinoso ricostituente and included wine as an ingredient. — vm
- The document was a promotional brochure detailing the recipe for a 'restorative wine elixir'. — fontanka
- PepsiCo launched the first 'healthy' cola in July of the previous year, containing prebiotics, 5 grams of sugar, 3 grams of prebiotic fiber, and 30 kilocalories, with no artificial sweeteners. — vm
- The discovery sparked debate about whether Coca-Cola was actually invented in Florence, though Father Russo urged caution and warned against potential legal action from Coca-Cola. — fontanka
- The Guardian cited the Spanish alcoholic syrup Kola Coca, produced in Valencia in 1885, as an alternative possible inspiration for Coca-Cola. — fontanka
Coverage (2 sources)
- Monk in Florence discovered recipe for 19th-century elixir with composition like Coca-Cola — Вечерняя Москва
- У монахов нашли рецепт возможного предшественника Coca-Cola — Фонтанка