 Coke's internal research found that most people, even Coke employees, preferred Pepsi. In 1985, they abandoned their classic recipe in favor of New Coke, which tasted more like Pepsi. This did not work out so well. I'm Don Keogh, president of the Coca-Cola Company. When we brought you the new taste of Coke, we knew that millions would prefer it, and millions do.