COP26 gives Irn-Bru a chance to go global as Nicola Sturgeon makes sure Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez gets a taste – Scotsman comment

Irn-Bru has famously outsold Coca-Cola in Scotland for years.

US congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez speaks during an event at the US Climate Action Centre during COP26 in Glasgow (Picture: Ian Forsyth/Getty Images)

So when US congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez arrived for the COP26 summit, she quickly declared she wanted to try it, displaying more than a little political savvy.

“I am trying to get my hands on some!” she tweeted. “… I am hoping for a window to find some. Where do I find it?? Do y’all have bodegas here?”

She eventually did manage to acquire a can of “Scotland’s ginger nectar” – as Irn-Bru described the drink – courtesy of Nicola Sturgeon, no less.

“Oh my God, love it, love it,” she said on an Instagram video. “Irn-Bru, count me in.”

She said it was similar to a drink popular in Puerto Rico called Kola Champagne but was also “very unique… it’s got pizazz”, adding that she planned to take some cans back to New York.

Some among the twitterati declared that the politician known as AOC could now be considered officially Scottish, while writer Val McDermid wrote: “A life-changing moment! Will you be seeking political asylum?”

Once upon a time, Irn-Bru could be difficult to acquire in her homeland, so much so that some of the drink’s fans even resorted to inciting friends travelling over from Scotland to become ‘Irn-Bru smugglers’. Happily, internet sales means such extreme measures are no longer necessary.

So right now, thousands of COP26 delegates from countries all over the world could be about to head home with tales of a wondrous new drink.

And maybe, just maybe, Irn-Bru will start outselling Coca-Cola in more countries than just Scotland.

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