Mountain Dew passes Diet Coke, becomes No. 3 soft drink in U.S.

PepsiCo’s Mountain Dew has been one of the strongest soft drinks in the U.S. for some time, thanks to edgy marketing and devoted fans.

Now it’s notched another victory, passing Diet Coke to become the No. 3 soft drink brand -- behind Coca-Cola and Pepsi -- over the first nine months of 2010, according to trade journal Beverage Digest. The data does not include Wal-Mart or the soda fountain business, which are both large in the U.S.

Beverage Digest reported that Mountain Dew's share of sales in measured channels was 7.6 percent or 7.4 percent, depending on the measurement methodology.