With its iconic red label and secret recipe, it’s been one of the world’s most famous soft drinks for more than a century. Now, however, Coca-Cola is on the brink¹ of a new chapter – with plans to launch its first alcoholic² drink.

一个多世纪以来，有着标志性红色标签和秘密配方的可口可乐一直是世界上最著名的软饮料之一。而今，可口可乐即将掀开一个新篇章——它计划推出第一款酒精饮料。

The company is currently experimenting with the creation of a popular type of Japanese alcopop known as Chu-Hi, containing distilled³ shochu alcohol mixed with flavoured carbonate water.

可口可乐公司目前正在尝试一种名为Chu-Hi的日本波普甜酒，这种受欢迎的甜酒是将蒸馏烧酒和风味碳酸水混合而成。

The low alcohol canned drink will be launched in Japan, home to a thriving if competitive industry, with countless⁴ Chu-Hi flavoured drinks – from kiwi to yuzu - sitting on convenience store shelves across the country.

这种罐装低酒精饮料将在日本推出。在产业兴旺、竞争激烈的日本，有不计其数的Chu-Hi风味饮料，你可以在日本各地的便利店看到奇异果风味和柚子风味等各种口味的Chu-Hi饮料。

Confirming the plan in an interview on the company’s website, Jorge Garduño, Coca-Cola’s Japan president, said: “This is a canned drink that includes alcohol; traditionally, it is made with a distilled beverage⁵ called shochu and sparkling water, plus some flavouring. We haven’t experimented in the low alcohol category before, but it’s an example of how we continue to explore opportunities outside our core areas.”

可口可乐日本区总裁豪尔赫·加都诺在官网发布的访谈中证实了这一计划。他表示：“这是一种含有酒精的罐装饮料；传统上，这种饮料是用一种名为烧酒的蒸馏饮料和苏打水相混合，并添加调味料而制成。可口可乐过去没有尝试过低酒精饮料，但这是我们在核心领域外持续探索商机的例证。”

Highlighting how “unique” this venture was for the company, Mr Garduño, who did not specify⁶ a timeline for the new product, added: “Coca-Cola has always focused entirely⁷ on non-alcoholic beverages⁸, and this is a modest experiment for a specific slice of our market.

加都诺没有明确告知新产品的发布时间表，他强调了这次探索对可口可乐公司的“独特意义”，他补充道：“可口可乐一直以来都专注于非酒精饮料，这次是我们对一块特定市场的适度尝试。”

“The Chu-Hi category is found almost exclusively in Japan. Globally, it’s not uncommon⁹ for non-alcoholic beverages to be sold in the same system as alcoholic beverages. It makes sense to give this a try in our market.”

“Chu-Hi几乎只在日本能找到。全球范围来看，非酒精饮料和酒精饮料同属一个销售系统并不罕见。所以有理由在我们的市场做一次尝试。”

The concept of alcoholic Coca-Cola drinks, however, was likely to stay within Japan rather than expand globally, due to the “unique and special” qualities of the Japanese market, he added.

不过，由于日本市场的“独特性”，可口可乐酒精饮料的概念可能只限于日本国内，不会扩展到全球。

Coca-Cola’s inaugural¹⁰ foray into the world of alcoholic beverages takes place more than 130 years after the original drink was first launched in the US, minus any alcohol in order to circumvent¹¹ restrictive prohibition¹² laws.

130多年前，可口可乐饮料在美国首次推出，后来进军世界饮料市场，为了避开严格的限制法规没有添加任何酒精。

It coincides with shrinking global demand for soft fizzy drinks, due to health concerns relating to sugar consumption, with sports drinks and water emerging as Coca-Cola’s strongest performing beverages.

当下由于人们担心摄入糖分引发健康问题，全球气泡软饮料的需求不断萎缩，运动饮料和水正成为可口可乐公司表现最出色的饮料。

Meanwhile, Japan’s alcopop market has grown expansively since the country’s first ready-to-drink Chu-Hi product for stores – called hiLicky - was reportedly released in 1983, with young women fuelling sales.

与此同时，自从日本在1983年推出了首款在商店销售的即饮Chu-Hi产品hiLicky后，日本的波普甜酒市场正大幅扩张。据称，推动Chu-Hi饮料销量增长的主要是年轻女性。