Two years ago this summer, two ambitious scientists commenced the long, laborious, diabetic adventure to discover the best soda to use for an ice cream float. Using Stewart’s vanilla ice cream as the constant foundation throughout the endeavor, and by breaking the dozens of soda options down into six specific categories, these two meticulous analysts…no, dare I say HEROES…taste tested each soda and ice cream combo using a rigorous system of metrics and scoring to determine just what soda is the best for floats. The results were not what either expected, and you can read about each part of the investigation below.

The categories we used to score each float included Flavor, Sweetness, Carbonation, Cohesion, and Visual Appeal, using a 0 to 5 grading scale. The two scores were then combined for a 0 to 10 overall score per category. Then all categories were combined for a 0 to 50 total score for that soda.

The flavors we explored were:

Week 1: The Cola Wars

Week 2: Cream Soda

Week 3: “Pepper” Sodas

Week 4: Cherry Sodas

Week 5: Fruit Sodas

Week 6: Root Beer

As stated, the final results were not what either of us expected. Some delicious sodas we love didn’t fare well with ice cream, and some sodas we may have been indifferent to or didn’t think would work well actual came to life when combined with vanilla ice cream.

We listed the best soda score within each specific category and then broke all the sodas down to the top overall choices. And while our experiment used only the most intense scientific methods, I’m sure we missed a few along the way. If you have a favorite, let us know! Maybe we’ll be forced to undergo another follow-up experiment to ensure future generations are not deprived of the absolute truth in the best soda for ice cream floats!