Commentary:
For several years now I have developed a habit. An embarrassing habit some might say. When the carhops at Chicken Express on Clifford Street saw me coming, they ran. That is, they ran back inside the store to retrieve my daily dose of Dublin Dr. Pepper without even taking my order. But that’s all getting ready to come to an end. 
Dr. Pepper Snapple sued earlier this year claiming that Dublin Dr Pepper — its oldest and smallest bottler — violated its licensing agreement by selling beyond its distribution territory and using an unauthorized logo, which carried the name of the town. An agreement was reached this past week when the Dr Pepper Snapple Group settled a trademark dispute by acquiring the rights to the Dublin Dr Pepper franchise from the local bottler, a family-owned, 121-year-old institution in the Central Texas town of Dublin.
Two local eateries will be affected as well. Just in recent years you could enjoy a Dublin Dr. Pepper on fountain while eating at Chicken Express or Soda Springs Bar-B-Q.
“Our customers have really enjoyed having Dublin on the fountain,” said Soda Springs Bar-B-Q owner Scott Lewis. “It’s really sad for that town and for the history of the product.”
A unit of Dr Pepper Snapple will continue to distribute a sugar-sweetened Dr Pepper for the six-county territory in Central Texas, but the bottles will carry no reference to Dublin. Such bottles are already used in the North Texas market served by the corporate-owned distribution unit.
“We’ve had customers get really upset that we won’t have Dublin anymore,” said Chicken Express owner Richard Ebenhack. “We’ve carried it for several years and will now carry the regular (corn syrup) Dr. Pepper product.”
The plant has now been renamed Dublin Bottling Works and will produce its own brands of soft drinks, including Triple XXX root beer, which dates to 1895. It will also operate the museum and Old Doc’s Soda Shop, where it can sell licensed Dr Pepper merchandise. The company laid off 14 local employees.
As for me, well, I will survive along with my teenage sugar addicted son. Maybe a little more sugar in my sweet tea for me until someone provides a better addiction.
