動手達人:家庭自制可口可樂的祕訣大綱

For a century, the executives of Coca-Cola Co. have done everything possible to put their famed cola 'within arm's reach of desire,' to the point that one chief executive frequently pondered an extra tap at the kitchen sink--with Coke flowing from it.

一個世紀以來，可口可樂公司(Coca-Cola Co.)的高管們使盡渾身解數，努力想把大名鼎鼎的可樂置於人們觸手可及的地方，以隨時滿足對它的渴望。有一名首席執行長甚至經常考慮在廚房水池上額外安裝一個龍頭――讓可樂從龍頭裏流出來。

The company's plan to team up with the maker of the Keurig single-serve coffee brewers to develop a do-it-yourself countertop Coke machine comes pretty close.

公司與Keurig單杯咖啡機的生產商合作開發臺式自制可樂機的計劃，標誌着多年來的努力目標幾近實現。

The new cold drink machine won't look anything like SodaStream, the leading home soda maker, says Coke's new partner, Green Mountain Coffee Roasters Inc. It will have a similar design to Green Mountain's boxy coffee maker, and keep the Keurig name.

可口可樂的這家新合作伙伴――綠山咖啡公司（Green Mountain Coffee Roasters Inc）表示，這款新型冷飲機和SodaStream（家用汽水機主要品牌）外觀完全不同。機器的設計將與綠山公司四方形的咖啡機類似，並將沿用Keurig這一品牌名稱。

'You put a pod in, push a button, and get a drink,' Brian Kelley, chief executive of Green Mountain said in an interview Thursday, one day after Coke said it will pay $1.25 billion for a 10% stake in its new partner.

綠山公司首席執行長布賴恩・凱利(Brian Kelley)接受採訪時表示：“你把飲料膠囊放進去，按下按鈕，飲料就做好了。”可口可樂此前一天宣佈，將斥資12.5億美元收購其新合作伙伴10%的股份。

The companies are betting that customers want convenience, he says, not having to lug cases of Coke or carbon dioxide canisters like those used in a SodaStream. The soda Keurig won't depend on canisters, says Green Mountain, because consumers found them inconvenient to refill and hard to manipulate.

他說，兩家公司確信，消費者追求便利，不想把一箱箱可樂或者SodaStream使用的那種裝二氧化碳氣的鋼瓶拖到家裏。綠山公司表示，Keurig汽水機不會依賴氣瓶，因爲消費者覺得充氣不方便，而且很難操作。

In a statement Thursday, SodaStream International Ltd. said Coke's announcement 'serves as further validation of the relevance of our unique business model and the enormity of the global opportunity that lies ahead for us.'

SodaStream International Ltd.發佈聲明稱，可口可樂宣佈的計劃“進一步證明了我公司獨特商業模式所具有的重要意義，也證明我們面臨的全球性機遇無比廣闊。”

Avoiding CO2 cannisters was one of the highest hurdles in the five-year process of creating the cold brewer, Mr. Kelley said. Another challenge was figuring out how to instantly chill the soda. 'We make our hot drinks come out hot quickly; we had to make the cold ones come out cold quickly,' he added.

凱利表示，在開發這款冷飲機的五年裏，如何避免使用二氧化碳氣瓶是最大的障礙之一。另一項挑戰是如何讓汽水迅速冷卻。他補充稱：“我們能使熱飲出來後迅速變熱；我們也必須使冷飲出來迅速變冷。”

The soda pods will contain two chambers, he said. The first will have a liquid syrup for flavoring; the second will contain a pre-form of carbonation that will be released when the drink-making process starts. In addition to pods for Coke brands, the Keurig will also offer pods for non-carbonated cold teas, juice and sports drinks. The company wouldn't say whether they will contain powder or liquid.

他說，汽水膠囊將由兩部分構成。第一個部分內裝有液體調味糖漿；第二個則裝有碳酸化預製原料，會在飲料製作過程啓動時釋放出來。除可口可樂品牌的飲料包以外，Keurig還將提供非碳酸涼茶、果汁和運動飲料的冷飲包。該公司未透露飲料包中是粉末還是液體。

The flash-chilling and pre-measured doses of drink syrup are what differentiates the new Keurig soda maker from SodaStream and are probably why quality-obsessive Coke is willing to take such an unusual step.

瞬間冰鎮功能和預先設定劑量的飲料糖漿是新款Keurig汽水機與SodaStream的區別所在，很可能也是極重質量的可口可樂願意採取這一非常舉措的原因。

But the move is no guaranteed home run. Coke's last attempt to create a miniature soda fountain for the home, BreakMate, flopped in the early 1990s after great fanfare.

但可口可樂並不一定能一舉成功。公司20世紀90年代初曾試圖開發微型家用汽水機BreakMate，結果在大張旗鼓的宣傳之後偃旗息鼓。

'The opportunity is small, will likely frustrate bottlers trying to accelerate bottle/can sales, reflects a bias for pushing brands over innovating 'in the bottle' and carries significant execution risk,' Mark Swartzberg, a Coke analyst at Stifel, wrote in a note to investors Thursday.

Stifel 的可口可樂分析師馬克・斯沃茨伯格(Mark Swartzberg)在給投資者的報告中寫道：“勝出的機會很小，可能會讓試圖加快汽水瓶罐銷售的灌裝企業感到失望，反映出該公司偏重品牌推廣而非產品創新，並伴有重大執行風險。”

Green Mountain says it already has reached 13% U.S. household penetration for its pod-based coffee machine in a few years. (SodaStream has a 1% household penetration.) But soda is different than coffee. Coffee needs to be brewed fresh to taste good and most consumers prefer it hot, unlike soda, which can be bottled or canned and sit on shelves or in fridges for weeks while retaining its taste and carbonation.

綠山公司表示，該公司的膠囊式咖啡機短短几年間已經滲入13%的美國家庭（SodaStream的滲透率爲1%）。但汽水和咖啡是不一樣的。咖啡要現煮口感纔好，而且多數消費者更喜歡熱咖啡，而汽水可以裝在瓶子或者易拉罐裏，在貨架或者冰箱裏擺放幾周也不會影響口味，不會跑氣。

Soda is already readily available and cheap, thanks to extensive bottling and distribution systems built up over decades. Many consumers might not want to fork out $100 to $200 for a Keurig cold drink machine that would sit next to their coffee makers on increasingly cluttered kitchen counters--especially when SodaStream machines start at $80.

得益於過去幾十年建立起來的廣泛的灌裝和分銷體系，汽水已經是隨處可買而且價格低廉。許多消費者可能不想花100到200美元添置一臺Keurig冷飲機放在咖啡機旁邊，讓廚房檯面亂上加亂――尤其是在SodaStream汽水機起售價僅爲80美元的情況下。

The companies haven't said what the soda pods will cost. The coffee K-Cups are more expensive per serving than buying a tin of coffee of a comparable brand. But people are willing to pay a premium for the convenience, Green Mountain has said. The company also has marketed Keurig as a good deal, since they are cheaper than buying a cup at a coffee shop.

兩家公司尚未透露汽水膠囊的售價。每份K-Cups咖啡價格要比購買相同品牌罐裝咖啡貴。但綠山公司表示，人們願爲追求便利而多付些錢。該公司也在營銷中打出Keurig物超所值的口號，因爲它做出的咖啡要比在咖啡店買便宜。

If the at-home push succeeds, it could turn the cold beverage industry on its head. U.S. household penetration of soda is roughly 90%--nearly rivaling toilet paper.

如果家庭自制可樂的計劃取得成功，則可能徹底改變冷飲行業的面貌。汽水在美國家庭的滲透率約爲90%――接近廁紙的滲透率。

Dorothy Chatman, a 69-year-old retired school teacher, and lifelong Coke drinker, is intrigued. She already owns a Keurig coffee maker. As for a Keurig cold drink machine with pods of Coke, 'I'd probably buy that too, ' she said, adding that it sounds 'convenient.'

69歲的退休教師多蘿西・查特曼(Dorothy Chatman)喝了一輩子可口可樂，她對可樂機很感興趣。她已經有了一臺Keurig咖啡機。她說，至於帶可樂膠囊的Keurig冷飲機，“我很可能也會買”，她還說，這種機器似乎“很方便”。

Coke could fatten its profit margins if more consumers agree to make its sodas and other flavored cold drinks at home. That's because customers would be adding the water, which is heavy and inflates transportation costs. The lightweight pods also make e-commerce more financially feasible.

如果有更多消費者願意在家自制汽水及其他調味冷飲，那麼可口可樂的利潤率有望提高。這是因爲消費者會自己加水，而水很重，（如果像原來一樣由公司負責加水）會增加運輸成本。從財務上來說，重量很輕的可樂膠囊還讓電子商務變得更加可行。

Bottling and distributing soda is a high-cost, low-margin business. In Europe, where Coke sells concentrate mix to independent bottlers and distributors, the company's operating profit margin is around 40%. The company's margin in North America dropped to the low teens from around 20% after acquiring its largest U.S. bottler in 2010.

汽水灌裝和分銷業務成本高，利潤率低。在歐洲，可口可樂向獨立灌裝商和分銷商出售濃縮液，營運利潤率達到40%左右。而在北美，可口可樂2010年收購其美國最大的灌裝商之後，利潤率由20%左右降至10%-14%之間。

Shares in Green Mountain soared 26% to $102.10 on Thursday after the Coke partnership was announced late Wednesday. But shares in SodaStream also rose Thursday, gaining 7.2% to $38.35, as some investors placed bets the at-home movement will gain momentum and that SodaStream could team up with PepsiCo Inc. or Dr Pepper Snapple Group Inc.

受與可口可樂結盟的消息推動，綠山公司股價次日飆升26%，達到102.10美元。但 SodaStream當天股價也上漲7.2%，達到38.35美元，因爲一些投資者押注自制冷飲有望形成趨勢，他們還預計，SodaStream可能會與百事公司(PepsiCo Inc.)或Dr Pepper Snapple Group Inc.結盟。

SodaStream, PepsiCo and Dr Pepper declined to comment on any potential talks.

SodaStream、百事公司和Dr Pepper拒絕就任何潛在談判事宜置評。

SodaStream's website makes fun of its rivals, with the slogan 'Sorry, Coke and Pepsi.'

SodaStream的網站打出“不好意思，可口可樂和百事可樂”這一標語，調侃其競爭對手。