Unopened (but Emptied) 12 Ounce/355 Milliliter Pepsi's Grapico (USA - 2021). Since 1916, "What Grapes Taste Like in the South".
NOTE: This offering is for ONE collectible can. It is NOT for a six-pack. NOT for a 12 pack. NOT for a truckload. It is for ONE collectible can, as stated.
DETAIL: Traveling internationally as part of my occupation, I continually have friends and customers ask me to bring back to the USA Pepsi and Coca-Cola cans and bottles from elsewhere in the world. Surprisingly, I have had many friends and customers outside of the USA ask me to secure for them collectible cans of Coca-Cola and Pepsi. Here’s one such offering, an unopened (but emptied) can of Pepsi/Buffalo Rock Grapico. Grapico is very popular in Alabama, Florida, South Carolina, and Georgia. It can be found in most any grocery store within those four states. It has been produced since 1916, and has a very strong regional following.
Grapico is a caffeine-free, artificially flavored carbonated soft drink with a purple color and a grape taste that is sold in the Southeastern United States. When introduced in 1916, the product quickly became a success, which in part was due to implying that Grapico contained real grape juice even though it contained fake juice. In the spring of 1926, J. Grossman's Sons sold the Grapico business to the Pan American Manufacturing Company in New Orleans.
Pan American continued J. Grossman's Sons' improper practice of implying that Grapico contained real grape juice and lost the right to use the word "Grapico" to designate their artificial grape drink in 1929. Although the J. Grossman's Sons line of the brand had ended, the Grapico brand continued on through Alabama businessman R. R. Rochell and his Birmingham, Alabama-based Grapico Bottling Works.
R. R. Rochell had first become a wholesale syrup customer of J. Grossman's Sons in the Summer of 1917 to serve the Alabama soft drink market. Rochelle bottled Grapico in Alabama in 1917 and then in Mississippi in 1918. In June 1920, Rochell's Grapico Bottling Works formally incorporated in Alabama as "The Grapico Bottling Works". By the time Pan American had lost their artificial grape drink name in 1929, Rochell was selling bottled Grapico in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, and Louisiana.
Rochell received the federal trademark on the name Grapico in 1940, giving his Grapico Company of America the right to use the name "Grapico" everywhere in the United States. In 1955, Grapico Company of America attempted to expand its fruit-flavored brands with Orangico, a sister product to Grapico that included real orange juice. The orange juice-based Orangico did not sell well and the federal trademark eventually expired.
In September 1981, both the franchising rights to the Grapico brand name and The Pepsi Bottling Group in Newnan, Georgia were acquired by Buffalo Rock, an independent Pepsi bottler based in Birmingham, Alabama. Buffalo Rock revived the Orangico trademark in 1999 for an artificially flavored orange drink and introduced Diet Grapico in 2005.
Between at least 1981 and 1988, Grapico was distributed in only three states: Alabama, Florida and Georgia. In August 1988, Buffalo Rock announced that they would expand distribution of Grapico the rest of the Southeastern United States. By June 1990, Grapico was being sold in South Carolina.
Grapico is now produced at Buffalo Rock's Birmingham, Alabama bottling facility. Buffalo rock is also known for Buffalo Rock Southern Spice Ginger Ale and SunFresh Lomonade. Grapico is mentioned in "Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe", the 1987 best selling novel by Fannie Flagg; Anne George's 1996 novel "Murder on a Bad Hair Day: A Southern Sisters Mystery", and the 2004 novel "Making Waves" by Cassandra King.
Grapico mixed with Absolut Peppar jalapeño flavored vodka is a drink called the "Ex-girlfriend". It's called the "Ex-girlfriend" because "it's sweet and seems like a good idea, but eventually it's going to burn you and make you sick." Grapico and coconut rum is called a "grapicolada." Grapico's advertising slogans includes: "Since 1916: Older than dirt but a whole lot sweeter. How we like grapes in the South."
Many collectors ask for empty cans. Unbeknownst to most, soda cans almost always, eventually leak. The acidic contents finally manage to penetrate the interior plastic lining and aluminum shell resulting in a virtually invisible pinhole. Once a can has leaked (and lost all of part of its contents), the normal procedure is to carefully drill two small holes into the bottom of the can so as to remove the remaining contents, being careful not to damage the can. Then draining the can to make sure all of the contents are removed, and carefully rinsing it. The end result is an emptied can which still looks full (as the two tiny holes are underneath the bottom of the can). The can is still sealed, but it is empty of contents. It is cleaned, and ready to ship, albeit carefully packaged as an empty soda can is actually very fragile and susceptible to damage. Again, it is unopened, but empty.
If you’re in the USA, this might not at first blush seem a “collectible”. But then in Eastern Europe or Central Asia for instance, a can of Coca-Cola printed in their alphabet might not seem very unusual or collectible. But to an American, that same can is quite collectible. Likewise in Europe or Asia, American cans, especial those of limited production, are likewise quite collectible. So for all of my friends in Europe and Asia, here’s a genuine, new, full, unopened can of Pepsi’s "Buffalo Rock Grapico" (USA 2021).
SHIPPING & RETURNS/REFUNDS: Shipping empty cans is a bit tricky, as they have to be boxed and heavily padded, otherwise they will be crushed. So the cost of shipping virtually weightless empty cans might be a bit higher than you might imagine – in essence you’re paying to ship a box, not the can. Domestic shipping is $8.49 for first class mail, $12.99 for Priority Mail. Domestic rates include USPS Delivery Confirmation. Canadian shipments are $19.99 for Air Mail or $36.99 for Global Priority Mail. All other International shipments are $26.99 for Air Mail, $53.99 for Global Priority Mail. Your purchase will ordinarily be shipped within 48 hours of payment. We package as well as anyone in the business, with lots of protective padding and containers.
All of our shipments are fully insured against loss, and our shipping rates include the cost of this coverage (through stamps.com, Shipsaver.com, the USPS, UPS, or Fed-Ex). International tracking is provided free by the USPS for certain countries, other countries are at additional cost. Please note for international purchasers we will do everything we can to minimize your liability for VAT and/or duties. But we cannot assume any responsibility or liability for whatever taxes or duties may be levied on your purchase by the country of your residence. If you don’t like the tax and duty schemes your government imposes, please complain to them. We have no ability to influence or moderate your country’s tax/duty schemes.
ADDITIONAL PURCHASES do receive a VERY LARGE discount (postal costs for additional empty cans from the third onward typically only cost $1 each for both domestic and international shipping). So as to maximize your discount, please ask for a rate quotation and instructions BEFORE checking out. We do offer U.S. Postal Service Priority Mail, Registered Mail, and Express Mail for both international and domestic shipments, as well United Parcel Service (UPS) and Federal Express (Fed-Ex).
If upon receipt of the item you are disappointed for any reason whatever, I offer a no questions asked 30-day return policy. Send it back, I will give you a complete refund of the purchase price; 1) less our original shipping/insurance costs, 2) less any non-refundable fees imposed by eBay. Please note that though they generally do, eBay may not always refund payment processing fees on returns beyond a 30-day purchase window. So except for shipping costs and any payment processing fees not refunded by eBay, we will refund all proceeds from the sale of a return item. Obviously we have no ability to influence, modify or waive eBay policies.
ABOUT US: Prior to our retirement we used to travel to Eastern Europe and Central Asia several times a year seeking antique gemstones and jewelry from the globe’s most prolific gemstone producing and cutting centers. Most of the items we offer came from acquisitions we made in Eastern Europe, India, and from the Levant (Eastern Mediterranean/Near East) during these years from various institutions and dealers. Much of what we generate on Etsy, Amazon and Ebay goes to support worthy institutions in Europe and Asia connected with Anthropology and Archaeology. Though we have a collection of ancient coins numbering in the tens of thousands, our primary interests are ancient/antique jewelry and gemstones, a reflection of our academic backgrounds.
Though perhaps difficult to find in the USA, in Eastern Europe and Central Asia antique gemstones are commonly dismounted from old, broken settings – the gold reused – the gemstones recut and reset. Before these gorgeous antique gemstones are recut, we try to acquire the best of them in their original, antique, hand-finished state – most of them originally crafted a century or more ago. We believe that the work created by these long-gone master artisans is worth protecting and preserving rather than destroying this heritage of antique gemstones by recutting the original work out of existence. That by preserving their work, in a sense, we are preserving their lives and the legacy they left for modern times. Far better to appreciate their craft than to destroy it with modern cutting.
Not everyone agrees – fully 95% or more of the antique gemstones which come into these marketplaces are recut, and the heritage of the past lost. But if you agree with us that the past is worth protecting, and that past lives and the produce of those lives still matters today, consider buying an antique, hand cut, natural gemstone rather than one of the mass-produced machine cut (often synthetic or “lab produced”) gemstones which dominate the market today. We can set most any antique gemstone you purchase from us in your choice of styles and metals ranging from rings to pendants to earrings and bracelets; in sterling silver, 14kt solid gold, and 14kt gold fill. When you purchase from us, you can count on quick shipping and careful, secure packaging. We would be happy to provide you with a certificate/guarantee of authenticity for any item you purchase from us. There is a $3 fee for mailing under separate cover. I will always respond to every inquiry whether via email or eBay message, so please feel free to write.
How did we get "into" soda pop cans? Pepsi and Coca-Cola are probably the most instantly recognizable cultural icons anywhere on the globe. And for that reason, somehow, Cultural Anthropologists, Sociologists, Archaeologists, etc., and other enthusiasts of these social sciences are irresistibly drawn to them. Our studies and travels have taken us from the frozen tundra of Siberia to the deserts of India and the Middle East, to communist countries, democracies, and dictatorships. And bizarrely, you can always find machines or shops vending Coca-Cola and Pepsi (and Marlboro, Pall Mall, Viceroy, Lucky Strike, and Camel cigarettes).
When we used to travel every year to Eastern Europe and Central Asia, friends and colleagues would ask us to bring back Coca-Cola or Pepsi cans. Christmas issues from various countries were always frequent requests (like Europe's Grandfather Frost and his Elves). We would put extras on our eBay store. Before long colleagues in Europe asked for cans from the USA. Not just iconic Pepsi and Coke cans. But especially limited edition Mountain Dew and Dr. Pepper cans. We accommodated them too. And the extras went onto our eBay store. And suddenly, over 20 years, it grew to 500 offerings. They’re a complete money loser. It’s probably an obsession only a cultural anthropologist (or psychiatrist!) would understand. But we have thousands of followers around the globe, and we can’t let them down.