Anyone have an easy recipe for home made carbonated cola (with a similar
kick as coca cola or pepsi)?

With your help, I've solved the home carbonation problem and now endeavor
to replace the "cola kick" that is so addictingly pervasive in corporate
colas.

I've tried carbonated lemon juice but find the visceral kick isn't as
satisfying as that of a store-bought cola.

In a previous thread, folks mentioned the "caffeine", or "high-fructose
corn syrup" (aka HFCS) might be the ingredients in the manufactured colas
which provide that addictively satisfying kick ... hence my endeavor to
find a home kitchen cola recipe.

As for ingredients, it seems two no brainers are the caffeine powders and
the HFCS, both of which appear to be mail orderable if not in the local
stores, however, this open source recipe for homemade cola (licensed under
the GNU General Public License) doesn't seem to use either:
http://www.wikihow.com/Make-OpenCola
* 2.00 mL olive oil
* 3.50 mL orange oil
* 1.00 mL lemon oil
* 1.00 mL nutmeg oil
* 1.25 ml cassia (cinnamon) oil
* 0.25 mL coriander oil
* 0.25 mL neroli oil (similar to petitgrain, bergamot, or bitter orange
oil)
* 2.75 mL lime oil
* 0.25 mL lavender oil
* 10.0 g food-grade, NOT ART-GRADE gum arabic (thickener)
* 3.00 mL water

Which is the "essential" ingredient in the above that gives it the
satisfying cola kick you find in store-bought colas? (Note: Snopes thinks
it the leaf ... http://www.snopes.com/cokelore/formula.asp )