text: Image copyright www.cocacola.co.jp 
   
   Coca-Cola has launched its first alcoholic drink, a lemon flavoured alcopop, in Japan in a bid to tap new markets and consumers. 
   
   In a global first for the US drinks giant, three fizzy lemon drinks went on sale on Monday. 
   
   The product aims at a growing market of young drinkers - especially women. 
   
   Described by Coca-Cola as "unique" in the company's 125-year history, the three drinks range from 3% to 8% alcohol. 
   
   In keeping with the company's tradition, the recipe is closely guarded but the drinks are modelled on the country's popular Chu-Hi drinks, usually a mix of local spirit and a range of fruit flavours. 
   
   Image copyright AFP Image caption The drinks hit the shelves on Monday 
   
   Chu-Hi - an abbreviation for shochu highball - has been marketed as an alternative to beer, proving especially popular with female drinkers. 
   
   Local companies like Suntory, Asahi and Kirin currently dominate the sector for canned Chu-Hi drinks. 
   
   The most popular flavours are strong citrus ones such as grapefruit or lemon, the latter one being the taste Coca Cola now wants a share of. 
   
   Image copyright www.suntory.co.jp Image caption Chu-Hi drinks are often aimed at young women 
   
   Coca-Cola says there are no plans to bring the new drinks range to markets outside Japan. 
   
   Alcopop drinks boomed in Europe and the UK in the 1990s with the likes of Smirnoff Ice and Bacardi Breezer becoming hugely popular. 
   
   They were controversial, with concerns they encouraged young people to drink more alcohol because of soft drink-like taste. ||||| FUKUOKA, Japan—A fizzy lemon-flavored alcoholic drink that went on sale in Japan on Monday marked Coca-Cola Co.’s first fling at selling alcohol in its 132-year history. 
   
   At a sampling event in Fukuoka on Saturday, hundreds of people lined up for a taste, including some who didn’t expect to find the U.S. company experimenting with Japanese-style booze. 
   
   ...
target: – For 132 years, Coca-Cola has stuck to non-alcoholic beverages. No more. On Monday, the company introduced three fizzy lemon drinks in 3%, 5%, and 7% alcohol on the Japanese island of Kyushu, home to 13 million people. Coca-Cola's Lemon-Do falls into Japan's popular "chuhai" category, drinks that typically combine grain-based alcohol with flavored carbonated water, reports the Wall Street Journal. The canned beverage—in lemon, salty lemon, and honey and lemon flavors—will be slightly cheaper than the average chuhai, however, with a $1.50 price tag including tax. "We've started to experiment because, in the end, we are trying to follow the consumer. And, in the case of Japan, this is a relatively well-developed segment of low alcohol," Coca-Cola CEO James Quincey says, per the Journal. The brand hopes to appeal to female drinkers especially. Early testers seem impressed, comparing the drink to those made in bars. "I'm a bit surprised that this is a Coca-Cola brand," says a 59-year-old tester. "It's nice, but I would add a splash of grapefruit or more lemon to it." There are no plans to make Lemon-Do available outside of Japan, reports the BBC.