Dr. Enuf

A trailer containing bottles of Dr. Enuf

Dr. Enuf is an American brand of soft drink bottled by Tri-City Beverage in Johnson City, Tennessee.[1][2][3][4][5][6][7] It is a lemon-lime flavored drink (though its taste is different from common lemon-lime sodas such as Sprite or 7 Up.) Dr. Enuf is fortified with several water-soluble vitamins. Its marketing slogan is "Enuf is Enough!"

Dr. Enuf's origins date back to 1949, when a Chicago businessman named William Mark Swartz was urged by coworkers to formulate a soft drink fortified with vitamins as an alternative to sugar sodas full of empty calories. He developed an "energy booster" drink containing B vitamins, caffeine and cane sugar. After placing a notice in a trade magazine seeking a bottler, he formed a partnership with Charles Gordon of Tri-City Beverage to produce and distribute the soda.[8]

Early product heritage with Mountain Dew

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Mountain Dew was first sold commercially at Johnson City, Tennessee in 1954 by Tri-City Beverage.

Early in its development, Dr. Enuf was reported to have several therapeutic effects, including the easing of stomach pains, relief from hangovers, and a clearing of the mind. One of the early advertised uses of Dr. Enuf, curing hangovers, coincided with Tri-City Beverage's other soft drink at the time, a drink mixer called Mountain Dew. Tri-City Beverage later sold the rights to Mountain Dew to Pepsi, but kept the Dr. Enuf brand.

The drink is still produced to this day by Tri-Cities Beverage. Dr. Enuf is available in original, Diet, Herbal and Diet Herbal varieties. A bottle of any of the varieties contains at least 80% of the recommended daily nutritional requirement of thiamine (Vitamin B1), niacin (Vitamin B3), potassium and iodine. The herbal varieties also contain ginseng and guarana, and are cherry flavored.

Availability

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Dr. Enuf is widely distributed in northeast Tennessee, particularly in the Tri-Cities, plus parts of southwestern Virginia and western North Carolina.[9][10]

While hard to find, Dr. Enuf is available in select locations[vague] throughout the Southeast as well as at many Cracker Barrel locations throughout the country. It is also available at Pal's restaurant locations.[11] As of 2022, Dr. Enuf is also available in Eastern Kentucky.

References

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  1. ^ "Herbal drink joins energy drink range", Beverage Daily, June 24, 2002.
  2. ^ "Dr Enuf gives a 'new age' boost – with nutrients", The Roanoke Times, June 18, 1997.
  3. ^ "Vitamin-Enriched Dr. Enuf Trying to Give Boost to Soft Drink Market", Los Angeles Times, November 2, 1998, archived from the original on February 1, 2013.
  4. ^ Dr. Enuf turns 60, TriCities.com, November 6, 2009.
  5. ^ "Tri-City's Diet Dr. Enuf and Diet Herbal Dr. Enuf beverages have been reformulated", Beverage Industry, September 2004.
  6. ^ "Dr. Enuf", Now and Then, 5 (3), 1988, Since Dr. Enuf was introduced in 1949, it has become a part of the folklore of Upper East Tennessee.
  7. ^ Edge, John T (2007), Southern belly: the ultimate food lover's companion to the South, Algonquin Books, pp. 248–49, ISBN 9781565125476.
  8. ^ Sauceman, Fred W (2009). The Place Setting. Mercer University Press. pp. 89–97. ISBN 9780881461404. According to corporate lore, Bill Schwartz [sic], a Chicago chemist, developed the formula after hearing his co-workers complain of lethargy..
  9. ^ Krouse, Peter (June 16, 1997), "Old-time Tennessee soft drik pops up with Carolina debut", News & Record, News bank.
  10. ^ Cavender, Anthony P (2003), Folk medicine in southern Appalachia, University of North Carolina Press, pp. 75–7, ISBN 9780807854938.
  11. ^ Pal's Sudden Service, retrieved September 18, 2023
[edit]
  • Dr. Enuf (official website), sells & ships the drinks in sets of twenty-four.
  • "A brief history of Tri-Cities Beverage", Traderz, Angel fire.