Cuban Soft Drinks: From Materva to Tropicola, A Story of Nostalgia

Few products evoke Cuban nostalgia quite like an ice-cold soda. From the legendary brands of the 1950s to the state-produced colas of the Special Period, the history of soft drinks in Cuba is a journey through an entire nation’s collective memory.

The Legends: Pre-Revolutionary Soft Drinks

Materva: The Yerba Mate Queen

Founded in Matanzas in 1920 as the Materva Soft Drink Company, this yerba mate-based drink became one of the island’s most beloved beverages. Its unique flavor — herbal, slightly bitter, and refreshing — had no rival in the Cuban market.

Materva’s advertising was irresistible. Celebrities of the era promoted its “energizing properties,” and for just a few cents you could enjoy an ice-cold bottle on any corner in Havana.

After nationalization in 1960, Materva stopped being produced in Cuba. But its story didn’t end there: Miami’s Cawy Bottling Company began producing it in the 1960s, and today it remains a symbol of Cuban identity in exile. In 2002, the Miami New Times named it the best local soft drink.

Ironbeer: “The Drink of Those Who Know How to Drink”

With that unmistakable slogan, Ironbeer won over Cuban palates from the early 20th century. At 5 cents a bottle, it was accessible to everyone. Urban legend attributed “invigorating virtues” to it — something between a soda and a magic tonic.

Today it’s produced in Miami and exported to Cuban communities across the United States. Its flavor — a fruity blend that’s hard to describe — remains unmistakable to any Cuban.

Malta Hatuey: The Killer Combo with Condensed Milk

Who doesn’t remember a Malta Hatuey with condensed milk? That combination — “lethal for diabetics but delicious,” as Cubans say — was the reward after a scorching day. The malt drink, with its toasted barley flavor, represented an everyday luxury that now seems from another world.

Jupiña, Cawy Limón, and La Bella Matancera

The list of classics doesn’t stop there: Jupiña (pineapple soda), Cawy Limón (lime-lemon), Piñita, and La Bella Matancera completed a landscape of beverages that made Cuban summers unforgettable. Each brand had its loyal following and its time of day.

The New Generation: Post-Revolutionary Soft Drinks

Tropicola: Cuba’s Coca-Cola

When Coca-Cola left Cuba, the void was filled by Tropicola — produced by the state corporation CIMEX. Considered “the Cuban equivalent of Coca-Cola,” it was even sold internationally during the second half of the 20th century.

Singer-songwriter Carlos Varela dedicated a song to it, seeing it as a symbol of “sovereign capitalism”: cola produced in Cuba, with sugars and flavors of “independent and anti-imperialist ancestry.” Beyond the irony, Tropicola was for decades the cola that accompanied birthdays, parties, and afternoon domino games.

Tukola and the Ciego Montero Brands

Los Portales S.A., the company behind the Ciego Montero brand, produced Tukola in six different flavors: cola, orange, lime-lemon, pineapple, mate, and a diet version. They also manufactured Cachito, Najita, and Tropicola itself for CIMEX.

The Crisis: When Soft Drinks Disappeared

By the 1980s and 90s, having a soda was already a special occasion. Cuban mothers and grandmothers hoarded cans like treasures for important events. But by the 2020s, even the newer brands — Tropicola, Tukola, Najita — became practically unreachable.

As one Cuban journalist wrote: “No more carbonated drinks in Cuba, no more the pleasure of feeling bubbles in your mouth. It’s time to drink cold water with sugar, whoever can.”

The shortage isn’t just about sodas — it reflects a national production crisis where even sugarcane juice, the most elemental drink, has become a memory.

Where to Find Them Today

For the Cuban diaspora, these flavors live on:

• Materva — Supermarkets in Miami, Amazon, Latin grocery stores
• Ironbeer — Available in Florida and online
• Jupiña and Malta Hatuey — Sedano’s, Publix, and Cuban bodegas in South Florida
• Goya Tropi-Cola — Available in the Goya line at US supermarkets

In Cuba, the reality is different. When they appear, prices are beyond most people’s reach. Cuban coffee and rum fare better, but sodas remain a scarce luxury.

More Than Soft Drinks: Liquid Memory

These aren’t just products. They’re time capsules. Every sip of Materva at a ventanita in Miami connects to 1920s Matanzas. Every Ironbeer evokes afternoons on a Havana porch. They’re the taste of a Cuba that was — and that the diaspora refuses to forget.

As Cawy Bottling Company says: “Long before drinks with wings and all things over-caffeinated, tea from the yerba mate plant was Cuba’s best-kept secret for lasting endurance.”

More than 100 years later, the endurance continues — in every bottle, in every memory, in every Cuban who opens a soda and toasts to what was.