Why Do Tab Superfans Want to Bring the Soda Back So Badly?

So far Coca-Cola hasn’t responded. But the Save Tab Soda organizing committee is undeterred. “We’re in it for the long haul,” says vice president Jenny Boyter, a 64-year-old retired high school principal from Atlanta.

This kind of effort may seem “silly or extreme” to outsiders, Burbach admits. But for its fans, Tab is much more than a soda. Trish Priest’s work colleagues identify her as a Tabaholic. For a milestone birthday, her coworkers completely redecorated her office with Tab merch, says the 56-year-old Microsoft program manager from Seattle. (She’s also an admin of another Facebook group titled “Bring TaB! Soda back to ALL store shelves! #BringBackTaB,” this one boasting over 1,000 members.) “I even had a colleague take a Tab to Toulouse, France, for me because we had a meeting there.” For Boyter, her soda activism has created a vital sense of community during retirement. “Because Tab is a part of everyone’s life,” she says, it brings people together.

On a recent Zoom call, the founding members cracked a handful of their last remaining diet colas to tell me all about how they fell in love with Tab, what they’re doing to bring the soda back, and why they think this vintage soda deserves a second life.

This interview has been edited for clarity.

When did you all start drinking Tab?
Priest: I actually don’t remember when I started, but I don’t remember not drinking Tab.

Boyter: My mom was often on a diet, so we always had Tab. Looking back at pictures from 20, 30, 40 years ago, I’m like, “Oh, there’s a Tab right there.”

Burbach: I had Tab when I was a kid at my grandparents’ place. But then I didn’t see it again for about 20 years. It showed up again in 2018 in the market near where I live and I was shocked. I thought it’d been discontinued. I was so excited to see it that I bought every 12-pack on the shelf.

How many Tabs per day would you drink in the before times?
Priest: I’ve fluctuated between three to six a day. I try not to go over six.

Boyter: I don’t drink coffee, so I would drink one Tab every morning and that was just perfect. Once in a while I’d come home from work and be like, “Okay, that was a two-Tab day.”

Burbach: I usually had three per day. I would have one first thing on my trip to work and then as soon as I was finished, I’d have my next one ready. Then I would switch to water and probably have another [Tab soda] in the middle of the afternoon.

How do people identify you as a Tab lover?
Priest: I work for Microsoft and they provide soda but not Tab. So I’ve brought [Tab soda] to work for 22 years. Tab is my identity at work. I always have a can in meetings; it’s the international symbol for “Trish is sitting here.”

Burbach: Same for me. I’d be carrying Tab around with my laptop at work and people would say, “Oh my gosh, where did you find that? I didn’t know they still made that.” One of my colleagues mentioned her grandma used to drink Tab, so I gifted her a six-pack because it’s so difficult to find.