RIP, Panera Charged Lemonade: The drink nicknamed “Death Lemonade” is leaving the menu

Panera Charged Lemonade, a drink that has been targeted by multiple wrongful death lawsuits and drew the horrific, darkly humorous mockery of the internet, is leaving the menu. RIP, Charged Lemonade, you claimed one final victim… Yourself.

First introduced in April of 2022, the Charged Lemonade was supposed to be the cornerstone of Panera’s Unlimited Sip Club, basically a Moviepass-like service where for $10.99 a month you could snag unlimited drinks at the chain.

However, according to the multiple suits referenced above, Panera did not properly disclose how much caffeine was in the Charged Lemonade – or at least, did not display the information prominently enough. The 20 oz. size (a regular) contained 390 mg of caffeine, while the 30 oz. size contained 390 mg of caffeine. According to the FDA, an average adult shouldn’t have more than 400 mg of caffeine per day – meaning anyone drinking the 30 oz. size was already at risk of going over the daily recommended limit.

According to a lawsuit filed in October of 2023, a month earlier a 21-year-old woman named Sarah Katz died of cardiac arrest after drinking the Charged Lemonade. That same month, a man named Dennis Brown in Florida also allegedly died from cardiac arrest after drinking three servings of Charged Lemonade. And in January, 2024, a third woman filed a lawsuit, alleging she got “permanent cardiac injuries” from the drink.

Despite adding a more prominent warning, Panera did not remove the Charged Lemonade from its menu – until now. CNN notes that this is part of a larger overhaul of the Panera menu that has been ongoing, and the Charged Lemonade will be replaced by (thankfully) lower-sugar, lower-caffeine options: “blueberry lavender lemonade, pomegranate hibiscus tea, citrus punch, and a tropical green smoothie,” per a spokesperson who revealed the info to the news outlet.

Now if you want caffeine, you’ll just have to get it from literally anywhere else. Just not Charged Lemonade.