Hi-C Ecto Cooler is back! Slimer’s favorite antifreeze-colored beverage has made its triumphant return just in time for Halloween. But don’t get too excited yet. While it’s now flowing on tap, it appears you can only get it at one location in the entire world. That’s right. You guessed it. Atlanta’s World of Coca-Cola.
If you’re like DrScreams, you’ve been missing the citrusy tang of Slimer’s favorite beverage ever since its last return to store shelves several years ago as a Ghostbusters reboot tie-in. Now it’s even harder to obtain, since you have to travel all the way to Atlanta to enjoy a tall, cold can of burp soda.
Can’t you taste it in the back of your throat? I know I can. World of Coca-Cola isn’t making this one easy, either. Hi-C Ecto Cooler is a beverage Easter egg. Don’t see too many of those in the wild. It was Ghostbusters fan Simon Mahan who alerted The Atlanta Ghostbusters that he’d discovered Ecto Cooler lurking in the “secret value” menu on a Coca-Cola Freestyle machine at World of Coca-Cola’s popular Beverage Lab attraction.
According to some hot goss spilling out of Atlanta, this sudden return of Ecto Cooler isn’t quite copacetic. While it still has that tart tangerine flavor that resides in the minds of a certain age, the beverage is no longer Slimer green in color. Instead, it came straight from the tap with a sunshine hue the color of a Valencia orange.
Hmm. Not quite sure I’m down with that. Might as well drink day-old Sunny D. As for the further proliferation of Ecto Cooler, the good folks over at The Atlanta Ghostbusters couldn’t find any further answers. For now, this just sounds like a fun little hidden treasure for anyone making their way to World of Coca-Cola.
The drink has had quite a few surprise returns over the years. It originally hit shelves in 1987 as a Ghostbusters tie-in, before getting another major promotional push alongside Ghostbusters II in 1989. It was so beloved by snack fiends that it outlasted the franchise at that time.
This sugar juice wasn’t an original invention, though. Hi-C pulled a sneaky maneuver by dyeing its Citrus Cooler neon green and slapping Slimer on the box. Thus creating an instant lunchroom negotiating tactic for snack trade warfare.
The Real Ghostbusters was canceled in 1991, but the drink remained so popular that it stuck around for years after, which doesn’t usually happen with tie-ins. It wasn’t until 1997 that poor Slimer was removed from packaging. Then in 2001, twelve years after the release of Ghostbusters II, Minute Maid finally decided to rebrand the flavor. They renamed it Shoutin’ Orange Tangergreen and gave Slimer’s job to a blobby pair of lips. Yum.
Nearly six years later, Minute Maid decided to tamper with their fan-favorite sipper once again. It got a third name, this time called Crazy Citrus Cooler. But that only lasted for a year or more. Then it was yanked off shelves, seemingly forever, to the cry of thirsty lunchbellies around the globe.
Nearly a decade went by, with Ecto Cooler gaining a mass cult following. The outcry for its return was so loud, Coca-Cola brought it back for the 2016 Ghostbusters reboot, but its triumphant reunion tour was marred in controversy when the new Ghostbusters cast and director were announced. And the whole ordeal left a bad taste in fans’ mouths. That didn’t stop this limited mass retail run from selling out, though.
Another five years rolled by before the Ghostbusters franchise was once again dusted off in 2021, with most of the original cast ready to suit back up. This time, Minute Maid decided to give fans an ultra-limited commemorative run, which was almost impossible to obtain without an eBay account.
Now, with its reemergence at Atlanta’s World of Coca-Cola, Ecto Cooler has become just as elusive as the last time. Most fans will probably need a plane ticket to revisit the taste of their favorite childhood beverage. Hoping to make the trip even more enjoyable for those who can hack it, Coca-Cola has also brought back their discontinued Delaware Punch and Five Alive beverages inside the same Freestyle machine. Now if that doesn’t make the journey worth it? What does?
