Pure Sodaworks Root Beer #4

A few weeks ago the fine folks at Pure Sodaworks sent me a six pack sampler of soda.  Thankfully, one of the most difficult decisions I make is which soda to drink first when I’ve never reviewed one from a particular brand.  The way I usually tackle this issue is to try their root beer or cola first.  It’s with those two flavors that the attention to detail can really be appreciated.  For instance, Pure Sodaworks has a Strawberry Jalapeno flavor that I’m dying to try.  That wacky flavor combination is already hyping up the brand for me, but I want to see what they can do with a flavor that everyone makes… root beer.  To be specific this is Root Beer #4, I have no idea why it’s Root Beer #4 it just is.

Looking at the coloration of the beverage it’s lighter than I’d think a root beer would be, but I do see some sediment at the bottom of the bottle so I’m excited about that.  Looking at the ingredients list I see that this contains Sparkling Water, Pure Cane Sugar, Molasses, Herbs and Spices, and Citric Acid.  That my friends is a 100% Natural Root Beer.  No sodium benzoate or artificial flavors to be found here.  Lighter color be darned, I’m ready to find out what made #4 so much better than numbers one through three.

I upend the bottle to swirl around the spices.  The scent that gently wafts from the mouth is one of the most unique root beer scents I’ve experienced to date.  It’s a root beer that smells like Christmas.  The aroma is something I would like to duplicate in a potpourri, but at the same time it’s pushing me to consume it as a rapid pace.  Since I don’t have the time for arts and crafts today, I guess I’ll just have to drink it.

I just typed two curse words and deleted them.  This is amazing root beer.  This is possibly the best first sip I’ve ever taken and I’m ready to go back for more.   Molasses seeps into each sip keeping me grounded in the fact that this is indeed a root beer and not just a hodge podge of spice and flavor.  What I can only assume is ginger swirls about and creates the lightest of burns with each sip taken.  It’s just enough to keep my mouth alive and aware of what’s happening.  The more I drink it though the harder the molasses has to work as the initial root beer flavoring is vanishing as all the other flavors present begin to build on one another.  This tastes less and less like a root beer and more like sweet spiced tea.  How is this metamorphosis even possible?  I guess if a caterpillar can become a butterfly then root beer to tea isn’t that much of a stretch.

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Twist is baffled... at least I think he is.

We’ve reached an odd point in the review.  I’ve never had a root beer transform into tea about halfway through the bottle.  Within my last few sips I couldn’t even recognize that it was a root beer at all. Even the aftertaste is that of spiced tea… so very bizarre. 

While it was playing the role of Root Beer #4 the flavors were both unique and familiar.  The carbonation was at just the right level of fun and the whole thing seemed like it was destined for our highest rating.  Then the breakdown occurred.   A blurry line stood between root beer and spiced tea, with the latter taking out the former with the skill of an assassin.  I don’t know how that happened, but the drink was good.  Confusing, but still very good.  With that said I definitely recommend this to all.  You’ll taste a beverage unlike any other and you’ll be a better person for it.

~A

This soda supplied to us by Pure Sodaworks

JOIA Blackberry Pomegranate & Ginger

For the time being (and it will be a short time) I’ve run out of my own stuff to review.  Thankfully the folks at ThirstMonger have kept me well stocked with other beverages, namely Joia.  We’ve reviewed a Joia flavor before and at the time I was rather impressed with their flavor selection.  Today’s offering deserves the same praise as the flavor listed is Blackberry, Pomegranate and Ginger.  In case you’ve forgotten, Joia is an all-natural soda sweetened with pure cane sugar and erythritol which is a natural sweetener.  Blackberry, pomegranate, ginger, and elderflower are all listed as ingredients as well, so I’m feeling pretty good about what I’m about to consume.  The healthy cranberry red color is also quite pleasing to the eye.  Enough chittering, time to crack this bottle open.

The aroma that comes off the top is not unlike a rose.  There is a sweet, flowery smell, that if huffed a bit stronger deconstructs (There, I wrote it.  I wrote one of the “fanciest” review words there is.  I’ve been trying to avoid that word, but it just came out this time.  Dang it.  I’ve sold out to the English language) into the listed fruit flavors on the bottle.  Let’s see if this superb scent translates into a terrific taste.  Double alliteration.  You like that?

That is an incredibly pleasant experience.  Immediately I’m shown that the level of carbonation has been though out.  It’s just the right amount of tickle when compared to the viscosity of the beverage.  It ultimately stays out of the way, but occasionally cracks a joke form the corner just to let you know he’s there. 

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Even Twist can't break this c-c-combo

All three listed flavors have shown up for roll call and aren’t hiding toward the back of the group.  When I first take a sip the triple threat is at its strongest.  The blackberry and pomegranate stand tall upon my taste buds with a very noticeable ginger right behind them.  Pretend you’re playing “Red Rover” with fruit.  Blackberry and Pomegranate are on a team and they call out, “Red rover, red rover, let Ginger come over.”  Ginger releases whatever losers he was tied to and crashes into the arms of B.B. and Pommy.  That’s how Joia introduced this ginger flavor to my mouth.  You see him running up from the distance, gaining speed, like you’re about to be hit in the face with the burning sensation of ginger. 

Then right as he’s within spitting distance the arms of Blackberry and Pomegranate slow him down enough that they avert disaster.  Ginger may pull their arms back trying to break free, but B.B. and Pommy hold strong.  Take a mental picture of that.  Three “kids” playing this game and at this exact point having a great time either holding their friend back or trying to muster enough strength to power through.  All of them at this point in time are succeeding, the outcome is unknown, but the time had is excellent.  That’s what Joia Blackberry Pomegranate & Ginger soda is.  It’s a fantastic combination of fun, flavor, ingredients, and style.  This is a truly wonderful beverage.

~A

Something Natural Black Cherry

I wanted to do a review today, but didn’t feel like drinking a sugary soda.  Thankfully a while back the guys at ThirstMonger sent me two flavors of Something Natural and I had only completed the review of one of them.  You may remember the last time I reviewed a beverage from Something Natural.  The flavor was strawberry peach and I was genuinely impressed with both their simplistic ingredient list and the way they used both sugar and stevia to sweeten.  Well today I have Something Natural Black Cherry and I truly believe this is going to hit the spot.

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Twist ate a bird once...once.

A stronger than expected black cherry scent is easily detected exiting this beautiful bottle.  Something Natural really does do an excellent job in the presentation department.  Everything is simple yet elegant, making just looking at the bottle a treat.  I am a little nervous about black cherry sparkling water though.  Black cherry is known for being a very robust flavor and so many flavors made into sparkling waters get muted or left behind in the process.  Hopefully Something Natural knows what they’re doing in this regard.

My fear was met somewhere in the middle.  The flavor of black cherry is easily identified, but at the cost of tasting somewhat diet.  It’s my opinion that the black cherry flavor should never be confused with a diet taste.  I don’t care if you’re soda is Diet Black Cherry, removing the cherries natural rich flavor is a crime against the fruit. 

Something Natural Black Cherry doesn’t taste poorly at all, but I really think their flavor selection could be better.  In the previous review of strawberry peach they had two flavors in their arsenal that translated well into the light fizzy world of sparkling water.  Everything else about this beverage is located on an elevated notch.  It’s not quite the top notch, but it’s getting there.  The carbonation is fun and inviting.  As I’ve stated before, the bottle is pleasant.  The ingredient list is to be envied… it’s just that the most important aspect doesn’t work for me.  I wonder how Something Natural Watermelon would taste.  I’ve looked over their flavors and the second heaviest one seems to be Raspberry Keylime.  While I can’t speak for the taste of it, I wouldn’t have the initial doubts about that flavor that I did toward Black Cherry.  It’s just too strong of a fruit, flavor, or idea to hinder.

 All in all though it’s not a terrible drink; I could easily finish the bottle and my rating will reflect that.  If I were you I’d just grab another of their flavors prior to this one.

~A

Almdudler

Moxie is the official state soft drink of Maine; it’s rather important up there.  I think it’s pretty darn nifty that a state has an official soft drink.  Heck, I wish all states had one, that way I could make it a point to “drink around the USA” and try them all.  While official states sodas are cool and all, they don’t hold a candle to what I’m about to consume.  Today’s selection is the NATIONAL Soft Drink of Austria and it’s called Almdudler - 50 Jahre.  Since Austrian and German are similar languages I can tell you that 50 Jahre means 50 Years and is probably not a part of the name.  Heck English is Germanic so you probably figured that one out without failing German in college.  I have no earthly idea what Almdudler is, if it is indeed anything other than a brand.  TO GOOGLE! 

Ok, so Almdudler is just a brand, but the name apparently comes from an old phrase “auf der Alm dudeln” which means singing in the alpine meadows.  There’s your history lesson for the day and a few words that will surely end up carrying some unsuspecting Austrians to our site.  Howdy, Austrians! 

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The romantic bottle scene is somewhat ruined by the giant green iguana staring at them.

Looking at the affixed English label I see that Almdudler is made with carbonated water, cane sugar, citric acid and natural flavors.  The ingredients go on to say that Almdudler contains NO preservatives or artificial ingredients.   That’s a little bit of a white lie as citric acid is a natural preservative, but since it’s the national soft drink of Austria we’ll let it slide.

Why did I think this cap would twist off?  No discernible smell comes from the bottle, but after a hefty huff I get the smallest ideas that it might be apple flavored.  The ingredients, as you might recall, just list “natural flavors” so I’m really just guessing here.  This is no time for guessing though, it’s time for drinking.

Well, it looks like I’ll be guessing for a while.  Wait… delayed apple taste, oddly enjoyable.  Almdudler doesn’t have a very strong flavor at all.  It avoids the crashing chandelier at the beginning of the play and just shoves a small boy out to quietly sing.  The initial taste has me stumped as it’s sort of fruity, but the flavor isn’t exaggerated enough for me to identify it.  Gradually I get a bit of citrus taste until I’m led to the subtle apple at the end. 

Ok, so I tried to cheat and look up the flavor of Almdudler by going to their website.  I was met with the yell of “ALMDUDLER!” and then given a… well how shall I describe it.  Did any of you ever play Monty Python’s Complete Waste of Time for PC?  No?  That doesn’t surprise me, but if you had you’d realize that this website is designed like that game from 1995.  It’s the perfect comparison, so I really don’t care if you get it or not.  Ok, so the website is very click friendly and has little surprises when you hover your mouse over it.  Here, go to the website already.  Just promise you’ll come back.

Long story somewhat shorter, I never found out the actual flavor of Almdudler, but I’m going to stick by my citrus to apple flavor assessment and recommend that you try it.  There is a bitterness that takes residence within my mouth as I take sip after sip.  It’s not going away, even if I wait a few minutes between consumption.  This bitterness, even though I’m not a fan, does keep the beverage from being too sweet.  I’ll take slightly bitter over nauseatingly sweet any day.  Such an odd experience.  The flavors are so familiar, but just different enough that it seems fresh.  If I had to classify it as a soda though, I’d probably say bitter apple.  Doesn’t that sound delicious?  Bitter Apple soda?  Yes, yes it does sound delicious.  There I answered for you.  Almdudler on the other hand is bitter apple soda plus, and the plus is really a minus in my opinion because something just isn’t working for me.

~A

Fentimans Mandarin and Seville Orange Jigger

If I had a list of my top ten favorite bottle caps, Fentimans would be near the top.  Perhaps it’s my love of dogs, but the image of this great wolf like canine on the cap brings a smile to my face every time I see it.  What this hound is guarding is a bottle of Fentimans Mandarin and Seville Orange Jigger.  Now most of us are somewhat familiar with the taste of a mandarin orange.  If you’ve ever had a clementine or tangerine, those are both examples of the mandarin family.  Now I actually had to look up what a Seville orange was.  The Seville orange, or bitter orange, is known for its tart taste and has its oil used in perfumes and the like.

Two oranges entered this bottle and they’ll both emerge, but hopefully I will be the victor.  Cane sugar also entered this bottle, along with fermented ginger root extracts and of course carbonated water.  I’m a little nervous on how “bitter” this might taste, but I suppose there’s only one way to find out.

After upending this bottle it dawned on me how much the liquid inside looks like egg yolk.  The aroma, on the other hand, is very much that of orange juice.  Ok, so two of your ingredients are oranges, it’d be terrifying if it didn’t smell like orange juice.  Let’s see if I’m about to have a midday breakfast beverage.

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Twist has eaten all varieties of orange.

While the initial flavor is not completely of my liking, I can definitely see folks enjoying this.  Four or five air bubbles rush to the back of the bottle each time I put it to my lips, creating a sound that can only be described as “blorb”.  In simple terms, Fentimans Mandarin and Seville Orange Jigger tastes like a somewhat fermented, somewhat bitter orange juice.  Even though I feel it can be hastily described as I have just done, each sip though is complex enough that I want take another and try to figure out all aspects of the drink.  There are hints of ginger throughout and the flavor doesn’t stay the same for any amount of time, it’s constantly changing from the first bitter bite to the eventual sweet orange sensation that sort of rests on my tongue.  Low carbonation allows for all of these changes to occur unhindered by potential raucous bubbles.  It’s such a great beverage, but I just don’t like the taste.

We’ve reached a point where I’m going to have to explain myself and the rating I’m about to give Fentimans Mandarin and Seville Orange Jigger.  This is a wonderful beverage that I think everyone should try.  The folks at Fentimans have my respect for creating it and all of the amazing changes that occur when you consume it.  All natural ingredients, a wonderful bottle, and of course one of my favorite caps of all times should make for a great score, but it doesn’t.  This is one of the times that I honestly think my opinion of this beverage is too low, but I can’t change how it tastes in my mouth so the score will also be lower than I think it deserves.  With that said, give it a shot.  Perhaps your taste buds will appreciate what mine could not.

~A

Something Natural - Strawberry Peach

ThirstMonger has once again sent me a beverage for review and it comes in the prettiest little bottle I’ve ever seen.  Something Natural Strawberry Peach is a sparkling water that comes in a shapely blue bottle and includes a friendly looking bird.  If I had to guess, I’d say the bird is a sparrow, wren, or finch, but then again I’m no ornithologist.  With a quick glance at the ingredients I notice that Something Natural lives up to its name with completely natural ingredients.  The sweetener is a double act of cane sugar and stevia which is a show I’ve seen delivered with success.  Just looking at this bottle is brining my mind a bit of peace after a long day of work.  I may keep this one for the collection, but not before reviewing it of course.

I picked the strawberry peach flavor because it seemed that would translate better for sparkling water than the other flavor I had at my disposal, black cherry.  Once I cracked the bottle open I was surprised to get as strong of an aroma as I did.  Both the strawberry and peach scents went straight to my olfactory glands and made their presence known.  Perhaps this sparkling water will be more soda like than I first anticipated.

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Twist apologizes for the fuzziness of this picture

Something Natural Strawberry Peach really is a calming beverage.  Holding the bottle and drinking from it almost feels vacationesque and the flavor you get is quite nice as well.  Without consulting my site I can tell you immediately that this is the one of the best sparkling waters I’ve ever had.  The strawberry peach flavor is true and unwavering with peach being the lead in the play.  The stevia’s known aftertaste is lost amongst the carbonation and cane sugar.  It’s not a sugary beverage by any means, but it’s sweeter than most other sparkling waters I’ve had.  My biggest criticism will come from the aftertaste and it’s hard to single out Something Natural in this instance.  All sparkling waters have a dry, somewhat bitter aftertaste to me that nudges me out of the experience.  Now I’m sure many look forward to this aftertaste, but I’m not one of those people.  Something Natural Strawberry Peach does indeed have this same dry, bitter aftertaste that I’d rather it not have, but it’s what I’m working with.

All in all though, Something Natural is a solid beverage with good flavor presentation and a great ingredient list.  If you’re into sparkling waters I bet you’d love it.  Now if sparkling water isn’t your thing, I’d still probably give this a try to make sure your opinion is validated.

~A

Mate Colada

You came here expecting to read a review about Mate Colada, didn't you?  Instead you are now slowly realizing that the review is included within Popcast Episode 34.  I hope you're happy.  No, really I do.  Here, I"ll tell you what we rated it... but you need to listen to get the nitty gritty

~A

 Mate Colada Review!

Mr. Q. Cumber

I’ve never liked cucumbers unless they’d been modified to the point of pickles.  Recently (within the year) I got the chance to try a cucumber soda and I really enjoyed it.  I can’t remember the name, but it wasn’t nearly as delightful as Mr. Q. Cumber.  See what they did there?  Other than put this soda in an adorable bottle they gave it an adorable name.  Mr. Q. Cumber soda is an all natural sparkling cucumber beverage.  The ingredients are rather adorable as well:  Sparkling filtered water, cane sugar, citric acid, and natural cucumber flavor.  That’s it.  Water, sugar, citric acid (a natural preservative) and cucumber.  How can you beat that?  Now here is where we find out if ThirstMonger.com did me a solid by sending me this adorable bottle.

As it should, Mr. Q. Cumber smells exactly like a cucumber.  There isn’t a sugary mask that makes this seem like the drink will be cucumber candy.  It holds the aroma of a freshly cut cucumber… a word I’m getting tired of typing.  Now I see why it’s called M. Q. Cumber, they became annoyed with the word cucumber as well.  This very accurate scent frightens my taste buds a little bit as they think they’ll be eating an icky pre-pickle.  Oh well, 7 ounces isn’t too much to handle.

Haha.  The drink literally made me laugh out loud, or LLOL for those wanting to refresh their 90’s internet abbreviations.  Immediately my mouth is struck with the cucumber taste that I shouldn’t like, but I do.  If I were to let this just sit in my mouth it seems like the cucumber taste would never vanish.  Yet, as soon as I continue the ingestion process my mouth is filled with large fizzy bubbles that wash away the majority of the taste and leave a refreshing coolness in their wake.  I genuinely like this soda.  It’s simple, but works on many different levels.  With four ingredients they’ve turned a flavor I normally don’t like into a very interesting soda that I’d happily buy multiples of.  The smaller 7 ounce size is perfect as well.  I’m not sure I’d want a full 12 ounces of this, but 7 ounces makes you wish you had 12.  It uses the Far Side/Calvin and Hobbes logic of going out while you’re on top.  Make them want more without giving them more, that way they’re less likely to tire of you.  I don’t understand why I like this soda when it clearly shares the taste of a vegetable I do not like.  Folks always say that cucumbers are refreshing.  While I don’t agree with that statement I will say that Mr. Q. Cumber is as cool as the other side of the pillow.

~A

OH Q. CUMBER = CUCUMBER.  GENIUS!

Dry Vanilla Bean Soda

The last time I reviewed a Dry brand soda I wrote the following thoughts.

When I drink Dry Soda I almost feel like my palette isn’t complex enough to fully comprehend it, and then I see them suggest quail as a pairing… and I sigh.  Dry Soda Juniper Berry, and Dry Soda as a whole it seems, is not for someone who thinks they love soda.  Juniper Berry, much like lavender, is so complex it’s intimidating.

You see how confused I was to the intricacies of the flavor?  I’ve passed numerous flavors of Dry in the super market/grocery store/foodery and every time I don’t feel as if I’m ready.  That quote is from a review three years ago.  Three years have passed with me fearing that my pallet was too immature.  My main supplier that is not a company, Dustin, didn’t realize I had this fear… or if he did felt it was time I conquered it.  So sitting in front me is Dry Vanilla Bean Soda.  It’s snazzy looking with it’s clear on clear appearance and simplistically modern logo.  On the back I see that it has four ingredients: purified carbonated water, cane sugar, natural extracts, and phosphoric acid.  I find it amusing that it doesn’t say that the extracts are from; I would hope they’re from vanilla beans or something that would make sense. 

Just for fun, and to psyche myself out, I looked up what I should pair this with.  Apparently roast chicken, summer salads, white fish, fresh fruit, and panna cotta are what is recommended.  I have no idea what panna cotta is, but the internet assures me it’s a dessert of some sort.  Well I don’t have any of those in front of me, but I did have sushi for the first time about 2 hours ago.  That’s good enough, right?

Upon opening the bottle I’m pleased to say that I actually get a hint of delicious vanilla.  It holds a very sweet flavor in its aroma, but I know Dry Sodas are known for their subtlety, so I know this may be some sort of trick.  Let’s find out together, shall we?

Almost instantly the first taste that hits my lips is that of club soda.  My brain panics and starts to have flashbacks of soda review confusion.  Before my brain can begin hyperventilating a new sensation reaches my taste buds.  The cool vanilla bean strides into town, noticed, but not making any noise.  The closer he gets the more I appreciate his being there.  As the drink finds its way to my stomach the cool vanilla bean vanishes as well, only to repeat his calm stroll when I put the bottle back up to my mouth.  Each sip is exactly like the last as Dry Vanilla Bean Soda does not build upon itself.  It’s clean, it’s quick, and it’s quite refreshing.  Perhaps where I went wrong with Dry in the past was trying to enjoy flavors like Lavender and Juniper Berry when I hadn’t even attempted a more normal Vanilla Bean. 

With that said, I’m not thrilled with Dry Vanilla Bean, but at least I feel like I can understand what it’s trying to do.  I don’t really like the initial club soda taste and the kid inside of me yearns for a stronger vanilla flavor.  Dry Vanilla Bean soda makes me want a full on sugary cream soda and that’s not because Dry Vanilla Bean is bad, but because it’s not my preference. 

So here we are at the end of the review.  The score will be exactly the same as the previous two Dry entries, but I feel my fear of understanding this soda has been conquered.  Thank you, Dry.  I’ll take that part of my life back now!

~A

Um, don't cry, dry your eye And here comes Twist with a bag of french fries.

Maine Root Sarsaparilla

Well here we go again with a bottle of simple root beer… sorry, sarsaparilla.  It’s bold that a company would sell both a root beer and a sarsaparilla as many cannot tell the difference in taste between the two.  Apparently Maine Root is so bold as to do just this.  Both root beer and sarsaparilla are flavored with the sarsaparilla root, but root beer tends to be more complex in the additional flavors.  So that’s why I consider sarsaparilla soda (I’m getting really tired of typing out sarsaparilla) a “simple root beer”.  This beverage in front of me is all natural which already starts us off in the right direction as I prepare to huff it.

It does smell of root beer, but with a stronger birch aroma than you might find in its sudsy brother.  I’m curious to see if I’m right in assuming that it won’t be as creamy either.

It’s not super creamy, but the mouth feel is fantastic.  A tantalizing amount of fizz is present throughout the entire sip.  Bubbles quietly creep on to my tongue and increase in ferocity as the drink wears on.  The birch flavoring allows me to somewhat easily identify this as a sarsaparilla instead of a root beer.  I’m happy to see that some effort went into this soda and the word “sarsaparilla” wasn’t just stamped on the side for kicks.  A sweet caramel taste sticks to the tip of my tongue as each gulp is vanquished.  It’s this taste that is left in my memory each time I pause between sips.  Again I can’t overstate how exciting the bubbles feel.  Ok, so I can easily overstate how exciting the bubbles feel… and probably have, but really guys, c’mon, the BUBBLES! 

Sadly, as I continue to drink this soda the flavor begins to build upon itself in such a way that the original experiences are pushed to the back so that this new group of experiences can stand on the stage and scream.  The sweetness begins to compound upon itself, stealing the show from the caramel, carbonation, and birch.  All in all Maine Root Sarsaparilla is an above average soda, but all good things must come to an end… this one about three fourths of the way through the bottle.

~A

I always feel like a gold prospector when I say the word "sarsaparilla"

Oogave Loca Diet Cola

In front of me I have a soda made by one of my favorite companies, All-Natural Oogave.  On the same note, I have a soda in front of me that contains an ingredient that I’m not all that fond of, stevia.  Here’s the twist.  The company I love used an ingredient I’m not thrilled about and now all I can do about it is review the can of Loca Diet Cola in front of me.  First off our history with Oogave is well documented.  They were one of the first believers of this site and supplied us with many a tasty beverage.  Heck they’re the only company we’ve done a “company review” on (there was supposed to be more of those, but we got lazy).  So as I said before, we like Oogave.  Now for my beef with stevia.

Stevia, if you are not aware, is a natural sweetener that is very low cal.  Stevia is a great alternative to sugar in diet beverages, but for me and many others it leaves a disheartening aftertaste.  Any beverage I’ve ever had that was solely sweetened with stevia has not been in my good graces.  Never fear, stevia fans.  Once upon a time we stumbled upon a beverage that was “split sweetened”.  It used both sugar and stevia and the results were fantastic.  It seems that sharing the duties with a delicious sweetener was right in the wheel-house of stevia.  Fortunately Loca Diet Cola deals with stevia the awesome way.

Loca Diet Cola uses both stevia and agave nectar (an Oogave staple) to tastify their soda.  This results in a 10 calorie cola which may still leave you skeptical, but hopefully I’m about to sway you to the positive.  Aside from the sweetener, Loca Diet Cola is an all-natural beverage, but if you’re a fan of Oogave like we are that shouldn’t surprise you in the slightest.  Even though I’m a fan of their products I too still have my doubts that this diet cola is going to knock my socks off in the taste department.  I guess there’s only one way to find out.

A noticeable cola scent rises from the mouth of the can.  It doesn’t have the “chemical scent” that many diet colas have and for that I mark down a point in the “nice” column.

The first sip reveals that I will not be partaking in that dreaded stevia aftertaste today, so good for you Loca Diet Cola.  Now that my fear has been quelled I can focus better on the task at hand.  Each sip I take includes the following:  Cola flavor, club soda flavor, cola flavor.  I’m not really sure what’s happening in the middle there, but the cola flavor kind of ducks out for a second and I’m left with a curious experience.  I don’t find Loca Diet Cola as rich as other colas in taste, but that may be by design.  If I were to do a blind taste test on this beverage I could tell you that it’s a diet cola, but a good diet cola and that’s good because those are so far and few between.

The carbonation level in Loca Diet Cola is great as the bubbles are staying strong throughout, racing around my teeth and gums.  It’s this racing speed that surprises me as many Oogave sodas are lower in carbonation due to the agave nectar not getting along with the C02 molecules… more or less.  Apparently the addition of stevia allows those molecules to attach a little easier and create the very fun mouth feel I just experienced. 

Overall, Loca Diet Cola is a good diet soda and one I would recommend to anyone out there that either drinks diet beverages or is considering switching to diet beverages.  In a world where diet sodas are usually a chemical stew it’s really nice to see an all-natural, organic entry into this market.  Go Oogave!  Googave!

~A

Who you tryin' to get crazy with ese? Don't you know I'm drinkin' loca?

JOIA Pineapple Coconut & Nutmeg

When ThirstMonger said this week’s beverage was going to be JOIA, I honestly had no idea what would be coming in the mail.  When I opened the box I found six oddly delightful flavored sodas that I honestly can’t wait to try.  Since my fridge is full of soda as it is, I took a chance and picked the best two sounding flavors that were to be chosen from when chilled.  Upon opening my ice box again Joia Pineapple Coconut & Nutmeg was the winner and I cannot wait to try it. 

JOIA lists itself as an all-natural soda which is very pleasing to both my eyes and my tongue.  Looking at the ingredient list I’m impressed even further as I see pure cane sugar, real pineapple juice concentrate, and natural flavors of pineapple, coconut, nutmeg, cocoa, etc.  There’s other ingredients that are equally natural that I’m leaving out, but these are the ones that I’ll be tasting so I figured them important enough to mention.  The JOIA bottle design is very tranquil and reminds me of something I might be handed on a beach vacationing somewhere.  I’m not big on beach vacations, but I am big on fancy tropical drinks… perhaps I was just given an easy way to induce enjoyment.  I picked JOIA Pineapple Coconut & Nutmeg because those three flavors just sound like that need to be together, like they’ve been buddies all along playing behind the school.  Hopefully my initial thoughts won’t lead me astray. 

A delightful aroma containing all three of the listed flavors oozes out of the mouth of the bottle.  It’s not an overpowering aroma, but it certainly isn’t playing around.  I suppose it’s time to follow the directions on the side of the bottle and “Drink Instinct”.

Just as I suspected the flavors act as if they are old chums, each complementing the other.  Pineapple comes in as the base, setting the stage for its friends.  Coconut comes out and tells a light joke to get everyone chuckling and nutmeg works the lights determining the mood of each sip.  If one were to be considered strongest of the three it would have to be pineapple, but nutmeg and coconut aren’t far behind.  The Nutmeg adds a somewhat bitter taste to each sip, but the undertone of sweet pineapple helps me forget it by the end of my swig.  The carbonation level of JOIA is a slight, sharp fizz that grazes all parts of my mouth.  It keeps my tongue interested and tells my hand to continue picking up the bottle.  I’m not hugely fond of pineapple sodas so some of my bias may show in the rating, but JOIA does a good job with the natural juices and flavors they have on their palette.  While I enjoyed JOIA Pineapple, Coconut, and Nutmeg I’m sure it won’t be my favorite of the JOIA brand.  I can’t wait to find out what that will be.

~A

Twist says "You'll enJOIA it." Then he cried tears of sorrow for such a pun.

Unfiltered Fresh Ginger: Ginger Ale by Bruce Cost – Pomegranate with Hibiscus

Ok, it has happened.  I am about to review the longest named soda I’ve ever seen.  Keep in mind at this point TheSodaJerks.net is home to nearly 500 reviews and this is by far the most obscenely long name we’ve come across.  Fresh Ginger: Ginger Ale by Bruce Cost – Pomegranate with Hibiscus is what’s in front of me and it will hence forth be called Bruce’s Pomegranate.  The first thing I noticed about Bruce’s Pomegranate is the amount of sediment sitting at the bottom of this bottle.  There are large chunks of something… like terrifyingly large chunks.  Some of them look are small dog treat sized and it’s frightening.  I’m now looking at the ingredients to see what this could be and I’m pleased to see it uses pure cane sugar as a sweetener.  It also seems to include brewed hibiscus with filtered water.  Maybe the large chunks are bits of hibiscus?  After consulting the website I’ve now learned that these large chunks are ginger and upending this bottle a few times should re-mix the formula I’m about to consume.  For the record this didn’t make me feel any better.  Smell time.

A floral yet lemon scent wafts out of the mouth of the bottle.  While the bird sizes pieces of ginger may still frighten me the aroma has calmed some of my nerves and pushes me to take a sip.  It does smell a bit like a cleaning solution, but since Bruce’s Pomegranate uses fresh lemon juice this can be excused.  Taste time.

That’s certainly the very definition of a natural ginger ale.  The burn hits the back of my throat almost immediately and I welcomed it.  What I can only assume is the pomegranate adds a slight twist on the normal ginger flavor with the smallest amounts of fruit sensation.  I’m not sure there are many flavors out there that could go toe to toe with this level of ginger and come out the victor.  I honestly have no idea what to look for in the way of hibiscus flavoring, but I can tell you the pomegranate is not alone.  There is a tiny friend of pom that rushes past on occasion adding a bitter aftertaste to every few sips. 

The carbonation levels are lower than you might think while still being noticeable to the overall experience.  Meanwhile the back of my throat has caught fire and here is where I realize that I’ve grown as a soda drinker.  When I started this site a natural ginger ale would scare me off with the level of pain it could cause to my mouth.  Now I appreciate a good burn although I would compare Bruce’s Pomegranate to more of a ginger beer due to the flame being set so high.  With the last few sips disappearing into my stomach what I think is the hibiscus flavor is making a push towards the front.

 I’ve started consuming most of the sediment and honestly I didn’t even notice I was doing it.  With a final gulp this ginger ale is finished.  While an all-natural ginger ale at heart the pomegranate/hibiscus combination added a little something to the drink overall.  Heck, even the lemon juice was present at times.  It may be a bit too harsh on the throat for some, but if you’re a fan of ginger ale at all then I recommend you pick this up. 

~A

Whenever we go out. The people always shout.  There goes Unfiltered Fresh Ginger: Ginger Ale by Bruce Cost- Pomegranate with Hibiscus... Dah dah dah dah, dah dah dah!

Flying Cauldron Butterscotch Beer

Those of you who are fans of the Larry Potter books will be familiar with this delectable treat.  Today’s entry is from the Flying Cauldron on Dragon Alley… Butterscotch Beer!  I’m sure you were jealous when Larry, Jon, and Calliope enjoyed this brew in the Four Broomsticks, The Hogs Shed, or the previously mentioned Flying Cauldron.  Be jealous no more, because the Flying Cauldron has broadened its sales region to include us Huggles… that’s humans to you non fans.  There’s even a brief history on the back of the bottle.  It reads:

Since 1374, the Flying Cauldron has been making this magical brew for under aged wizards or wizards who are young at heart at their brew pub in Hogsbreath England.  The recipe has changed little over the centuries.  It has the perfect combination of spells and quality natural ingredients.  Add a scoop of vanilla ice cream to create our Giggle Potion.

Then it’s signed by one Reed’s Inc.  I must say that their inclusion of the Giggle Potion is highly irresponsible as you may know with the wrong dosage you could easily laugh yourself to death which is no laughing matter… after you die… from laughter.  Well I won’t be creating any of the dangerous Giggle Potion today; I’m just going to drink this straight out of the bottle.  Upward!

Remember that candy jar your grandparents used to keep all their butterscotch in?  As far as you know it was filled with butterscotch for its entire existence.  That’s what this brew smells of… a very potent butterscotch aroma hits you in the face like a troll.  Since butterscotch is one of my favorite candies, hopefully this will be one of my favorite sodas.  Accio-Butterscotch Beer!

Liquid butterscotch.  The review is complete.  Buy all of it.  No, I mustn’t do that to my readers or my editor Rita Skeeta would hang me with a wizard rope or something.  Seriously though, this tastes like liquid butterscotch.   When it first hits your tongue, as I’ve now said twice, you get the taste sensation of butterscotch except the flavoring of the brew isn’t quite as rich as the candy.  I’m curious if that’s because it’s in liquid form.  The flavor seems watered down a bit, but I’m unsure if it’s even possible to achieve 100% butterscotch flavoring in a liquid with this viscosity.  Let’s see how much sugar is in here.  Wait… what black magic is this?  There’s stevia in this brew and I didn’t even catch an aftertaste?  I see that it’s also sweetened with 30 grams of cane sugar, but I would never have expected stevia.  At least they were smart enough to not sweeten with the sweetener that shall not be named. 

Butterscotch Beer carbonation levels are medium and it isn’t really noticeable until midway through my sip then it ramps up just a bit as the beverage completes consumption.  Thankfully it’s not a very heavy beverage so this “Reed’s Inc.” did a good job in what I believe would be a difficult task.  If I had to compare it to a Huggle beverage it would most compare to a rich cream soda that you’ve dropped several butterscotch in.  Maybe those of you who hate wizards, or wizardists as I call you, should try that approach instead of making trouble in Dragon Alley… OH WAIT, you can’t even go to Dragon Alley!  Incendio! 

So a big thanks to the folks at the Flying Cauldron for creating this soda.  Your spells were on point and though you endangered millions by leaking the Giggle Potion recipe I’ll buy from you in the future.

~A

One of Twist's middle names is Advada Kedavra

Virgil's Dr. Better

For those of you who are new to the site let me give you a small slice of history pie.  I’m from Texas and being from said state makes me very biased to Dr Pepper.  I’m sure you’ll find many a Texan who couldn’t care a lick about Dr Pepper, but you’ll find more that do care than any other state.  With that said I’m always skeptical when I find a Dr Pepper rip-off as I immediately think it won’t be good as the original.  Doc Zola was the only product that equaled or surpassed Dr Pepper, but today a new challenger emerges… Virgil’s Dr. Better. 

As you may know Virgil’s Root Beer is the drink that gave me the idea to start this site because of how awesome it is.  Virgil’s brand sodas are among my favorites so to see one trying to topple the great Dr gives me mixed emotions.  Another note is that in talking to other soda companies I know of at least one other that planned on making a product called Dr. Better, so while I like the name I’m aware that it’s been thought of before.  Hopefully the company that didn’t get to this product name first still tries to produce a Dr Pepper flavored beverage because I’d really like to try it.  With all that said it’s time I try this “Dr. Type soda” (as the back of the bottle says) and see how it fares.  Ok, one final gripe.  It really shouldn’t be written as “Dr. Type soda” since it’s trying to somewhat replicate Dr Pepper which has no period after the “r”.  Honestly it should be a “Dr Type soda”, but I’m just being picky at this point… moving on.

The smell to me is less of a “Dr. Type soda” and more of a “Mr. Type soda”.  All that the previous sentence means is that it doesn’t smell as strongly as Dr Pepper does when you first open the can/bottle.  Mr. Pibb is the weaker flavored beverage and its scent translates that.  I’m sure that Virgil’s will back up their scent with a more amazing taste though… I mean we’re talking about Virgil’s here, not Coke.  Onward!

There’s a lot going on in this bottle of Dr. Better.  The soda hits your tongue with quite a kick, but quickly backs off as to not upset the entire drinking process.  While the initial flavor tastes more of Mr. Pibb (weaker) as you get closer to the finish it develops the familiar richness of Dr Pepper.  The thing that’s bothering me is the finish and over all mouth-feel of Dr. Better.  While they make a Dr. Better with stevia (an ingredient I’m not sure I’ll ever endorse as the sole sweetener in a beverage) regular Dr. Better uses no such leaf.  It’s sweetened with evaporated cane juice and I’m just now noticing also includes “a touch of prune juice”.  With all that said the finish of the drink, I didn’t lose my train of thought too much there, has a bit of a diet taste to it that I’m not all that thrilled with.  Upon this complaint of mine I will add another, the mouth-feel is probably the most syrupy I’ve experienced from a Virgil’s product.  These two qualities knock Dr. Better down a couple of pegs as a glass bottle of sugar sweetened Dr Pepper would trump it easily.  I’m not completely surprised as this outcome, but I will say I expected better from the fine folks at Virgil’s.  Again, they’re battling a Texans love of Dr Pepper, but those are the breaks on this site.

~A

Twist received his doctorate in keeping it real

Virgil's Clementine

The review you’re about to read is an act of pure selfishness.  A few weeks back C.W. (popular fan reviewer) sent me a review for Virgil’s Clementine and I was jealous.  “I can get you a bottle,” he kindly offered… which of course I was thrilled to accept.  When it came time to post his Virgil’s Clementine review I balked and used one of the other fan reviews I have stored up in my storage facility.  I just couldn’t bring myself to read his review and have the Virgil’s Clementine experience ruined, not in even the tiniest of ways.  So now I sit here about to review Virgil’s Clementine while C.W. review sits in the fireproof vault I keep the other fan reviews.  The bottle sits atop my desk looking so very fresh and vibrant.  The bottle art is just a clementine sliced in half, but it looks good enough to eat.  I saved this out of envy and now I must hope that same envy doesn’t change what could be a magical experience.

The clementine aroma escapes, but has more in common with airport orange juice than with the freshly squeezed citrus.  Is this the jealousy rearing its ugly head, not allowing me to enjoy this beverage to the fullest?  Only one way to find out.

The carbonation slams against the back of my tongue, creating a stage for the following fruit juices to dance upon.  Sadly I can taste a hefty amount of apple and pear (two of the listed ingredients) more than I can the sweet clementines I expected.  To me Virgil’s Clementine almost tastes like an apple juice/orange juice hybrid.  This is truly a soda that allows you to compare apples to oranges in a single sip.  In the early stages of each gulp I’m greeted with a flavor that reminds me of fermented fruit.  I’m fully aware that this drink isn’t fermented at all, but the flavor still exists and takes away from my experience.  I thought this would taste a bit smoother and sweeter than what I’m currently experiencing.  That may be a problem I’m creating for myself though as I may want the flavor of clementine candy, but instead get the real thing in liquid form.  As always the ingredients listed are top notch and that should be rewarded, but today taste rules.  As amazing as it should be Virgil’s Clementine is just “alright” for me.  Now maybe that’s the curse of betraying a fellow soda reviewer, but until  can prove that I’ll just have to stick by my guns.

~A

Twist was even green with... nope, can't do it.

Virgil's Blueberry Pomegranate

Ok, so I’ve got good news and bad news.  Bad news first?  I’m not going to sugar coat it… just gonna say it…I’m out of soda… my stock pile has run dry.  I do have a few on the way, but this ultimately means I must go out and scour the earth for new things to drink.  Actually I enjoy searching for new things to drink so this is sort of a happy time for all of us.  The much anticipated good news is that today’s soda up for review is Virgil’s Blueberry Pomegranate!  You may remember a few months ago a member of the Carbo-Nation reviewed this for us (C.W.) and loved it.  Well fortunately for me he gave me a bottle that I can call my very own.  Virgil’s Blueberry Pomegranate is all natural, 90% fruit juice, and that’s about it.  There are no preservatives, caffeine, or gluten in this bottle… it’s pretty much 100% good stuff.  That doesn’t mean it’s a health drink, but I’m going to go out on a limb and guess it’s healthier than your ordinary soda.  Virgil’s Blueberry Pomegranate is a lovely rose color and dons the traditional Virgil’s bottle cap that sits atop the rest of their beverages.  I must admit the typical Virgil’s bottle cap looks a bit odd on this because I’ve always associated it with cola’s, root beer, cream sodas, and the like.  Maybe that’s just a bit off putting to me, but I’m crazy like that.  Drink on!

While the scent escaping form the bottle is light I can sense a whole host of fruity aromas.  Apple is the strongest to me, followed by pear.  Those two seem to barge ahead of any other potential fruit smells and hog most of my attention.  The other scents sit quietly in the back waiting, hopefully, for their time to shine when consumed.

There they are.  Hi guys!  Virgil’s Blueberry Pomegranate has a crisp and fizzy mouth-feel.  The pomegranate really gets to shine throughout the entire duration of the consumption process.  I’m struggling to taste the blueberry as Big Apple and Humungo Pear keep blocking him from my taste buds.  This tastes a little fermented to me, but I know it’s not.  That would normally be a huge turn off to me, but that aspect of the drink isn’t noticeable enough to sway me in a negative direction.  The more I drink this the more I like it.  The flavor never sits idle upon your tongue it feels like the 2nd sip every time.  Obviously it can’t feel like the first sip every time or it would be as addictive as those addictive things kids are always taking as they ruin the blah blah blah and that’s why shoelaces cost so dang much.  Virgil’s Blueberry Pomegranate is an “Anytime Soda”, meaning that this would go well with a meal or drinking is solo.  Ingredient wise this should receive a perfect score, but the lack of blueberry takes it down a notch for me.  I wanted so very desperately for blueberry to have the stage at some point, but the comically large hook keeps pulling him off.  Other than this this was a fantastic drinking experience that I highly recommend to you.  Thanks, Virgil’s.  Thirgil’s.

~A

Twist is also 90% Fruit Juice

Taylor's Tonics Eggnog Fizz

Once again I have a soda in front of me that is Holiday themed, but the holiday season has passed us so this review might seem a little out of place.  Oh well, I’d rather an out of place review than a wasted soda in my fridge.  Today’s review is Taylor’s Tonics Eggnog Fizz.  Even if you like eggnog… as I do, you probably cringe at the idea of an eggnog soda… as I do.  It’s great that it’s all natural and the ingredients include nutmeg, vanilla bean, allspice, and rum flavoring (just to name a few), but eggnog flavored anything is off-putting to me.  Even those eggnog shakes that come around your favorite or least favorite, fast fooderies don’t even come close to tempting me.  Enough stalling, time to drink!  I mean it has been almost 2 months already.

Good news?  It doesn’t really smell like eggnog.  I’d compare the aroma to a very spicy cream soda, which others might compare to eggnog, which puts us back at square one.  I’m not longer afraid of the eggnoggy taste because I don’t believe it’s going to be there.  I feel this will be a lot like Taylor’s Tonics Chai Cola just a bit smoother due to the vanilla.  Time for drinking.

My scent description was almost right on.  While there are the smallest hints of eggnog flavoring, this tastes more like an oddly flavored cream soda to me.  Sorry to say though, I’m not a fan.  Even though it’s an all-natural beverage it tastes like a concoction of chemicals.  The vanilla isn’t strong enough for my liking, but the nutmeg and allspice add a nice flavor.  It would probably help to tell you that I’m not all that big a fan of rum and this does have rum flavors in it and I think that might be where it’s losing me.  The drink contains no alcohol though.  The majority of the taste while consuming gives me negative thoughts.  There are dashes of “yay eggnog soda”, but like lightning those positive memories are removed from my brain.  Sad really, the Cranberry Dream made by the same company was one of the most deliciously unique sodas I’ve ever tried.  Eggnog Fizz tastes like its cousin that no one talks about because you don’t want to create an awkward silence in the room.  Like I said before, maybe a bit more vanilla would help mask the overall flavor of Eggnog Fizz, but I’m not even sure that would help it because of how powerful the taste that disagrees with me is.  Bleh, I’m not even going to finish this.  I can’t even get into a good rhythm to write a well worded review.

~A

Twist invented Eggnog, then un-invented eggnog, then someone came in and made a completely different product.

GolferAID

I know less about playing golf than every single one of our readers combined.  With that last sentence in mind you’ll understand why I was a bit hesitant to take on this review of GolferAID.  GolferAID is tagged as “The World’s Most Advanced Functional Golf Beverage”.  It’s sweetened with 9 grams of blue agave and has 3 grams of supplements.  Heck even on the back of the can it diagrams which ingredients help you with what.  For example it says that Glucosamine promotes joint health, and that Magnesium lessens muscle fatigue.  Bilberries, which I didn’t even know existed, apparently improve your visual acuity and balance.  Of course at the bottom in small print they have the legalese that the statements above haven’t been evaluated by the FDA… if this bothers you then so be it, if not so be it again. 

Ok, so GolferAID is chock full of golfy goodness.  I told the nice man who sent me this that I didn’t really care what it did for my nonexistent golf game.  All I cared about was how it tasted; I mean it is a soda after all.  He assured me that they would “take the Pepsi challenge with our drink against anything out there.”  Those are some bold words for a drink that at a glance I would call a golf energy drink.  Now maybe I’m wrong; this site has only reviewed 300+ drinks and while that seems like a large number on paper I bet it’s not even 2% of all the sodas out there.  So let’s get out on the green and tip back this can of 100% Natural GolferAID and see if it aces or bogeys.  Hopefully for your sake with that last sentence I’ve now exhausted all of my golf lingo

The scent to me is definitely citrus in origin.  Grapefruit is what it most closely resembles, but I’m not completely sure of even that.  Looking for the grapefruit in the ingredients I notice that stevia is also in here… sneaky, sneaky stevia.  Aside from the grapefruit aroma I’m also reminded of a protein shake.  By no means am I saying this will taste powdery and chalky, but the scent of GolferAID isn’t the most welcoming in the world.  On with the drinking!

Better than I thought it’d be.  The End.  While I can name several sodas on our site that would destroy this in the “Pepsi challenge” as far as supplemental beverages go it seems to be one of the better we’ve tried.  Of course “lifestyle beverages”, as we call them, do not get a free pass in terms of flavor so we’ll see how well it does in the long haul.  The initial taste is the worst part of your journey through GolferAID.  You’re greeted with a quick bitter slap in the mouth before it fades away creating a grapefruit-esque atmosphere in your gullet.  The carbonation level is almost non-existent due to the fact that they used agave to sweeten.  While I’m sure not being bloated on bubbles is beneficial to your golf game, I think that a bit more fizz to GolferAID would help its overall experience quite a bit. 

It’s sad to say the more I drink it the less I like it.  The flavor left on my lips is a pleasant one, but each gulp is becoming a bit more tasking.  Every sip reminds me I’m drinking what is basically a healthy energy drink.  Sure it has wonderful ingredients, but that doesn’t mean as much if a good taste isn’t attached to it.  I always want beverage companies to succeed in their craft, but on taste alone GolferAID doesn’t do that.  Maybe it’ll help you with your golf game, I’m not here to debate that point.  I’m here to tell you that if given the choice I’d pick a more delicious golf drink… SLICE!  See what I did there was take a non-golf drink with a golf term name and made a joke to tie the article all together.  Genius.

~A

(Note:  This beverage was supplied to us by GolferAID)

Twist was the secret founder of St Andrews

Taylor's Tonics Cranberry Dream

For the last few Christmas’s my best friend Dustin has purchased a basket of sodas for me to review.  We don’t usually exchange gifts until middle to late January and I don’t usually start reviewing them until February.  I tell you this seemingly pointless information because I’m about to review several Christmas themed sodas and I didn’t want you to think that I was slow to the draw.  Today’s soda is Taylor’s Tonics Cranberry Dream.  We’ve reviewed Taylor’s Tonics before and they’re always both unique and powerful.  The flavors aren’t always my favorite, but I always appreciate the amount of effort they put into each one.  Seeing Cranberry Dream in my fridge I figured I’d be consuming a cranberry soda and nothing more.  Looking at the ingredients label I found that I couldn’t be further from the truth.  The ingredients are as follows:

Sparking Water (Infused with Wildcrafted Balsam Fir Needles, Ginger, & Allspice), Evaporated Cane Juice, Coconut Water, Cherry Juice, Cranberry Juice, Natural Douglas Fir & French Vanilla Flavors, Extract of Orange, and Citric Acid.

The usually talkative Twist was even at a loss for words.

I immediately notice two things after reading those ingredients.  The first is that there are an insane amount of flavors in what I thought was just cranberry soda.  The second thing I notice is that this is also flavored with CHRISTMAS TREES!  Honestly I have no idea how tree translates into soda, but I’m excited to find out.  Holding the bottle up to the light I glance at the peach colored soda and remove the festive green bottle cap.

The smell is fantastic.  It smells like a candle store during the holiday season.  The sweet aroma hits your nostrils with such a mixture of scents that you’re nose isn’t even sure where to start.  The ginger, allspice, and vanilla are the most discernible fragrances coming out of the bottle.  I do find it odd that I can’t even smell the titular berry, but honestly this smells so good I don’t even care.  I’m not sure how a scent this interesting will translate to taste… I guess we’ll find out together.

Good news everybody, it doesn’t taste like a tree.  Taylor’s Tonics Cranberry Dream has now surprised me in all three sections of this review.  At first taste the ginger and allspice hit my tongue for what I thought was going to be a harsh ride.  Wrong.  While the two spices made themselves at home on my palate they both gently went to sleep upon arriving.  The cranberry is noticeable, but again not tart in the slightest.  I’m guessing the cranberries are muted by the amount of vanilla in the beverage, which by the way works fantastically well in this soda.  The last few sips I’ve taken did have hints of tree and I must say that I liked it.  Picture yourself outside in the forest… the Piney Woods if you will.  The air is crisp and quiet, the only thing around you are pine trees and that one bird that you can’t quite identify.  After you come to the realization that you’re never going to figure out what kind of bird that is, disappointing your Ornithologist dad once again in the process, you take a deep breath.  The crisp air combined with the surrounding trees coats your mouth with a distinctive taste.  That taste is nature and it makes you feel alive.  That is what the tree taste of Taylor’s Tonics Cranberry Dream likens to.  Even though the orange extract is one of the last ingredients its flavor still reaches your mouth.  In fact I can taste every single ingredient on this label, like identifying instruments in an orchestra… you just have to sit down and really listen.  Well I’m listening and I love what I’m hearing.  Cranberry Dream is one of the most impressive sodas I’ve had since I’ve started this site.  If you see a bottle you should pick it up and listen to what it has to say.

~A

*One addition.  By the time I was finished writing this review I had only one gulp left in the bottle.  I posted the review and then took said gulp.  This gulp had a lot of sediment in it and was not pleasant.  I'm not changing the rating of the soda based on this, but if you do try it you might want to skip out on that last taste.*

A “Twist’s Choice” Recipient