What nerve tonic did John Pemberton register in 1885 before Coca-Cola?

In 1885, John Pemberton registered Pemberton’s French Wine Coca as a nerve tonic before creating Coca-Cola.

Pemberton’s French Wine Coca was an alcoholic coca wine made with coca leaves, kola nut and damiana. It belonged to the patent-medicine tradition of the late 19th century, when drinks and tonics were widely advertised as treatments for ailments ranging from fatigue and indigestion to nerve problems.

The product was partly inspired by Vin Mariani, a popular coca wine created by Angelo Mariani in the 1860s. Pemberton’s version differed notably by including kola nut, which supplied caffeine and helped inspire the later Coca-Cola name.

When temperance legislation affected Atlanta and Fulton County, Pemberton developed a non-alcoholic, carbonated version. That new drink became Coca-Cola in 1886. The earlier tonic therefore was not Vin Mariani itself, although Vin Mariani is an important predecessor and likely influence. Coca-Cola’s early formula also contained coca-derived ingredients; cocaine was removed from coca extracts later.