September 12, 2022

Russians Get "Good Cola"


Russians Get "Good Cola"
Coca-Cola and Dobry Juice sold in a Russian market. Zamir Usmanov, Lenta.ru

After stopping sales of Coca-Cola Company brands in Russia in March, Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company (Coca-Cola HBC) has begun marketing Dobry Cola, meaning "Good Cola" or "Nice Cola" in Russian. The renamed beverage will be sold through the Teremok fast food chain. 

In early August, Zoran Bogdanovich, CEO of Coca-Cola HBC, reiterated to employees that the company was changing production in Russia in response to Putin's war in Ukraine: "In close cooperation with The Coca-Cola Company, we have ceased all production and sales of the company's brands in Russia. There are no plans to reintroduce the Coca-Cola Company's brands or products in any format." 

Instead, Coca-Cola HBC Eurasia has renamed the company's Russia division Multon Partners LLC, and is marketing Dobry Cola and Dobry Juice to interested sellers. The company owns 10 factories in Russia.

Dobry Cola will compete with Russian companies who began producing their own "cola drinks" after Coca-Cola HBC exited Russia earlier this year. 

You Might Also Like

A Debilitating Drought
  • July 30, 2022

A Debilitating Drought

Following the Ukrainian invasion, Russian bars and restaurants are expecting to face foreign liquor shortages. 
Automotive Industry Out of Gear
  • June 26, 2022

Automotive Industry Out of Gear

Russian imports of Chinese cars have steadily fallen since the invasion of Ukraine began, revealing a stalling industry.
Huawei Slinks Out
  • April 15, 2022

Huawei Slinks Out

Russia's international economic isolation continues as Chinese telecoms giant Huawei moves to leave the country.
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of our Books

Steppe
July 15, 2022

Steppe

This is the work that made Chekhov, launching his career as a writer and playwright of national and international renown. Retranslated and updated, this new bilingual edition is a super way to improve your Russian.

Frogs Who Begged...
November 01, 2010

Frogs Who Begged...

The fables of Ivan Krylov are rich fonts of Russian cultural wisdom and experience – reading and understanding them is vital to grasping the Russian worldview. This new edition of 62 of Krylov’s tales presents them side-by-side in English and Russian. The wonderfully lyrical translations by Lydia Razran Stone are accompanied by original, whimsical color illustrations by Katya Korobkina.

A Taste of Chekhov
December 24, 2022

A Taste of Chekhov

This compact volume is an introduction to the works of Chekhov the master storyteller, via nine stories spanning the last twenty years of his life.

Moscow and Muscovites
November 26, 2013

Moscow and Muscovites

Vladimir Gilyarovsky's classic portrait of the Russian capital is one of Russians’ most beloved books. Yet it has never before been translated into English. Until now! It is a spectactular verbal pastiche: conversation, from gutter gibberish to the drawing room; oratory, from illiterates to aristocrats; prose, from boilerplate to Tolstoy; poetry, from earthy humor to Pushkin. 

How Russia Got That Way
September 20, 2025

How Russia Got That Way

A fast-paced crash course in Russian history, from Norsemen to Navalny, that explores the ways the Kremlin uses history to achieve its ends.

Stargorod: A Novel in Many Voices
May 01, 2013

Stargorod: A Novel in Many Voices

Stargorod is a mid-sized provincial city that exists only in Russian metaphorical space. It has its roots in Gogol, and Ilf and Petrov, and is a place far from Moscow, but close to Russian hearts. It is a place of mystery and normality, of provincial innocence and Black Earth wisdom. Strange, inexplicable things happen in Stargorod. So do good things. And bad things. A lot like life everywhere, one might say. Only with a heavy dose of vodka, longing and mystery.

Jews in Service to the Tsar
October 09, 2011

Jews in Service to the Tsar

Benjamin Disraeli advised, “Read no history: nothing but biography, for that is life without theory.” With Jews in Service to the Tsar, Lev Berdnikov offers us 28 biographies spanning five centuries of Russian Jewish history, and each portrait opens a new window onto the history of Eastern Europe’s Jews, illuminating dark corners and challenging widely-held conceptions about the role of Jews in Russian history.

Survival Russian
February 01, 2009

Survival Russian

Survival Russian is an intensely practical guide to conversational, colloquial and culture-rich Russian. It uses humor, current events and thematically-driven essays to deepen readers’ understanding of Russian language and culture. This enlarged Second Edition of Survival Russian includes over 90 essays and illuminates over 2000 invaluable Russian phrases and words.

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955