The combination of Doritos and Mountain Dew took form together at a taste-testing event in Eastway on Sunday, Nov. 9.

Four drinks were available for students to taste, which included Lemon Ginger, Mango Habanero, Rainbow Sherbet and the infamous “Dewitos.”

Jacob Derwin, a sophomore broadcast journalism major said he was hesitant before trying Dewitos because of the odd combination.

“It tasted like a tortilla chip with carbonation. It was really weird. It wasn’t bad, I didn’t spit it out, but I didn’t finish the cup,” Derwin said.

He said the tester smelled identical to a bag of Doritos, but it didn’t have a cheesy or nacho taste. To him, it tasted salty.

Molly Pfeil, a senior visual communication design major, agreed.

“I’m offended by how not awful it is. It was actually kind of decent,” she said.

Pfeil said she would buy it as a novelty item because getting to try the drink was a fun experience.

“(It’s) definitely not a product I would buy in a 12 pack or a 24 pack, probably not even in a bottle,” Mike Coey, a sophomore digital media production major, said. “It wasn’t one of their home run ideas, which is sad because Mountain Dew is consistently known for putting out a quality product even in the taste testers.”

Coey said he understands putting the two ingredients together for marketability, but he doesn’t think Dewitos is worth putting into future production as the most talked about drink among the testers. 

“We are always testing out new flavors of Mountain Dew, and giving our fans a voice in helping decide on the next new product has always been important to us. We opened up the DEW flavor vault and gave students a chance to try this Doritos-inspired flavor as part of a small program at colleges and universities,” A Pepsi spokesperson said, according to an article in The Atlantic.

Pfeil said the event was random and not advertised. She found out about the taste testing because she was eating dinner at Eastway with friends and one of them pointed out the set up to her, but she doesn’t know why Pepsi choose Kent State specifically.

Derwin said he thinks setting up a taste test on a college campus meant getting as many diverse opinions as possible.

“Where else are you going to find a random collection of people from a bunch of different areas, all interested in different things with different tastes? I think we’re all willing guinea pigs and we’re all into this stuff,” Derwin said. “A lot of us drink Mountain Dew. We eat Doritos and we’re willing to try new soda because we all drink it so much. I think we’re good test subjects.”

Contact Neville Hardman at [email protected].