7UP

I didn’t think I’d be writing a review of 7UP, but here we are. Back in 2011 I reviewed Retro 7UP, the cane sugar sweetened version of what I’m about to drink. Since 7UP, in it’s most common state, is filled with HFCS it felt needed to included on the site. Is this considered stat padding? Perhaps… but it’s different enough to count, just like you. There, don’t you feel motivated now?

Opening the can created a thunderous crack, much more so than any cans I can remember opening in recent memory. The scent that wafts out is a familiar one, more crisp lime than lemon but so bright a smell that it’s hard to not just call it citrus. Let’s drink, shall we?

A somewhat sticky lime/lemon taste immediately coats my mouth. Through no fault of it’s own I remember being sick. You see, 7UP was the “go to” cure all for an upset stomach in my house as a kid, often paired with a sleeve of Ritz crackers. So while 7UP is by far and away my favorite of the mainstream lemon/lime sodas, there is also the curtain of sick nostalgia that weighs it down.

The sips begin with a sharp burn on the back of my throat, and after three or four a burp is summoned burning just a little bit more skin off the ol’ uvula. The lemon and lime play nicely together, sharing my tastebuds equally. The aftertaste is sticky, but pleasant. It mirrors the initial flavor of the beverage instead of being some fun house mirror version of it. All in all I still enjoy the occasional 7UP and often keep it stocked in my fridge along side the Dr Pepper. Are they the fanciest sodas around? No, of course not, but they hold strong in my own personal culture.

~A

Original New York Seltzer Lemon and Lime Soda

Got myself another tiny bottle of fun. Fun in this case comes in the form of a Original New York Seltzer Lemon & Lime Soda.  Last time I enjoyed a tiny bottle of ONYS I had the bizzare experience of drinking a clear root beer.  Today’s flavor, like all their others, is represented in a clear variety but Lemon & Lime is a flavor that is most often clear.

Ingredient wise this 10oz bottle houses carbonated water, cane sugar, citric acid, natural lemon and lime flavors with other natural flavors and ascorbic acid.

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I really hope Twist takes care of this hippo somehow.

As I’m sure you’ve predicted here’s where I tell you to be wary of where it says “natural lemon and lime flavors” without actually saying that lemon and lime are involved.  Such a sketchy thing to me.

Scent wise a nice strong candy lime scent jumps out of the bottle.  Like a puppy the lemon aroma tags along, but is smaller than Big Dog Lime.  For those of you who know my flavor preferences you’re aware that this excites me.  #TeamLime

So the flavor is a little generic, but my first impression is that it’s better than Sprite.  Initially lime is the predominant flavor as the smell test said it would be.  This is a more subdued lime taste than I thought it would be, less candied than the scent led me to believe.  

Swiftly the flavor you’re greeted with transforms into the generic lemon & lime taste I expected.  While it’s not as bitey as 7up, of the three big “Lymon” sodas that’s the most similar.  The fact that it’s a seltzer is noticeable only in the finish.  As effectual as a fly landing on your potato salad then buzzing away is the bitterness of Original New York Seltzer Lemon & Lime Soda.  You don’t like that it’s there, but since it doesn’t linger too long it’s easy to forget.

So there you have it, a very generic citrus soda (except for that lime intro) in a cute little bottle.  All in all a good purchase, but I think I’m good with one.

~A

This soda was purchased at World Market

Paulaner Spezi

Video Review from Apr. 3, 2020. Written review (below) from Sep. 10, 2015.

I have a German soda in front of me called Paulaner Spezi.  The flavor, according to the can, is Coffeinhaltige Orangenlimonade mit Cola.  I took and failed German so my best guess is caffeinated orange soda with cola.  It is sweetened with Zucker or sugar if you like and includes Orangensaft which I think is orange juice concentrate.  The label also says that citrus is involved in some way.  So it’s not a complete mystery to me, but this should be a hoot none the less.

It smells like orange juice and cola, so I think I’m on the right track.  The scent is faint, but I bet the flavor won’t be.

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Orangensaftkonzentrat is a fantastic word

The color is a light orangey brown and the taste, and according to Buttons, “starts off dull, gets bright, and then just dulls out big time at the end.”  

The dull he speaking of is a somewhat bitter orange/cola mix that swishes past your tongue.  This quickly transitions into a burst of citrus cola that refreshes and then disappears just as suddenly.  Sadly what you end up with is the taste equivalent of an empty room with a chair in it. It’s sad, it’s a little bitter, and you don’t want to stay in there very long.

It’s a roller coaster with one good drop, fun but ultimately disappointing.  The mild bitterness of the final taste dampens your excitement for another swig.  

All in all an interesting beverage that I might give a try if I were in your shoes.  If you aren’t bitter about bitter than perhaps you’d enjoy it a bitter more.

~A

This soda was purchased at World Market

MTN Dew Dewshine

Well I’m a few weeks behind the hype, but I finally have a bottle of Dewshine to review.  I’m not really sure what it is or what it’s supposed to taste like, but it’s a clear Mtn Dew product that resembles moon shine so of course I’m all in.  

Dewshine is made with real sugar!  To that I say thank goodness, because I didn’t feel like sweetening yet another beverage with my imagination.  The fact that it says “real sugar” and not “cane sugar” makes me believe they used something along the lines of beet sugar.  I don’t really care either way as it still tastes cleaner than corn syrup.

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Pictured: Potential wrapped in disappointment

Emblazoned on the bottle is a label that looks as if it’s made of old paper, complete with tattered edges.  The Mtn Dew logo kind of takes away from the “olden times” feel the rest of the bottle gives off, but I suppose it needs to be on there somewhere.  

Let’s find out exactly what I’m getting into here.

After removing an amazing bottle cap, complete with iconic hill billy, a citrus aroma jumps up and punches me in the face.  It just misses smelling like a cleaning product and lands squarely into enticing my taste buds.

That’s not what I thought this was going to taste like at all.  Oddly enough the first thing I notice is the finish of the soda.  It finishes like a Sprite, having a bit of carbonation burn on the back end complete with a syrupy mouthfeel.  Since Sprite has one of my least favorite soda finishes I’m already a bit disappointed in the product.  Perhaps if I pay more attention to the first half of the sip I’ll find more to praise.

The initial taste I perceive is a sweetened lemon lime.  The sugar is heavy enough that it dulls the flavors of each of the citrus fruits.  I keep wanting to stop this review and say it tastes like a sweeter version of Sprite with less carbonation.  That doesn’t seem fair to the product though.  Actually, you know what.  If that’s what it tastes like then that’s what I’m saying.

Mtn Dew Dewshine tastes like a less carbonated, yet sweeter, version of Sprite.  It’s still a good drink, but the similarities to Sprite make me sad.  This is a special edition soda.  This is supposed to be something special yet all I can do is hang upon the fact that it reminds me of another product.  Such a shame.  Pick it up if you like Sprite.  Perhaps if I fill the bottle with my tears it’ll be better.

~A

This soda was given to my by Wrastlin’ Jawhit

Another Time Soda Fountain - Lime Phosphate

Ok, now that I’ve had my first phosphate (cherry) I feel much better using The Soda Jerk moniker.  The next drink I’ll try from Another Time Soda Fountain will be their Lime Phosphate… mostly because I just like lime flavored things.  Where I think handmade cherry sodas are good, I think the potential for handmade lime soda is through the roof.

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Oh MAN is that green!  The only thing greener is the face of the patron next to me… because it’s green with envy.  Ok, I lied.  No one is sitting next to me, but if they were I’m sure my statement would ring true.

The scent is strong enough to know that this will taste like lime candy and I’m 100% ok with that.  I probably look like a nut smelling all of the drinks that are brought to me.  Then again I’m also the only person in here on any piece of technology and no one other than my waiter has paid me any mind.  He’s a pretty great waiter by the way, very attentive.  I wish I was better with names so I could remember it.

Wow, that’s a much more violent flavor than the cherry.  I’d rather be dead than red.  I want to be seen in green!  This is straight up carbonated lime candy and I’m happy to say the flavor is strong enough to make my throat feel a little scratchy, which is just the right amount of power to give a soda.  Carbonation levels are perfect, making each sip an absolute joy to take part in.  With each sip the soda overtakes my taste buds more and more to where all I can taste is lime between sips.  

I can’t really call it an aftertaste as it now permeates my being.  It is an all-taste as it’s has bonded with me forever due to its strength.  Thankfull the all-taste has the exact same flavor as the soda.  I want to drink more of this, but I know if I did I’d be too full to write anymore reviews here and I’d like to write at least one more.  

This lime phosphate is so much better than the cherry that I’m questioning if I liked the cherry as much as I said I did.  It’s colorful, powerful, flavorful.  That’s three things it’s “ful” of and consuming it in this environment only makes it taste all the better.

~A

This was purchased at Another Time Soda Fountain in Rosenberg, TX

MTN Dew Baja Blast

I don’t even know what to call Mountain Dew anymore.  Is it “Mtn Dew”, “mtn dew”, “MTN DEW”, or are we supposed to pretend the can still says “Mountain Dew”?  Either way my fridge was running low on soda to review so I grabbed a can of MTN Dew (my personal interpretation of what’s right) Baja Blast.  

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Baja is one of Twist's many middle names

For some reason my brain thought it’d be best if I chose the 24oz can.  I have no idea why I thought that much MTN Dew would be appropriate for me, but here we are.  For those not in the know MTN Dew Baja Blast was a flavor that was only found at Taco Bell for the longest times.  Then a few months back they released it into the wild for a limited time.  MTN Dew fans went nuts.  At the time it happened I took notice and probably thought, “I should pick up a really giant can of that one day for review”.  Well now you’re here reading that review that was thought of so long ago.

Look on the side of most any mainstream soda and you’ll get the same ingredients as Baja Blast.  It’s a combo of caffeine, HFCS, Artificial/Natural Flavors, chemicals, and colors.  Ultimately it’s supposed to embody a “tropical lime flavor” according to the can.  Hopefully they’re right.

Well it smells like lime MTN Dew so I can’t be too angry at that.  Even though I just started walking the trail I’m quite pleased with the scenery.

Wow, this might be a top three MTN Dew flavor for me.  It does have an oddly smooth and candy like lime taste, but it doesn’t seem overly sweet to me.  The well known original MTN Dew flavor is hidden behind the foliage of the lime, making the journey feel safe.  This isn’t the dangerous Code Red (my favorite MTN Dew flavor), but it’s different enough to feel new.  

I’ll be honest, I opened this comically large can thinking I’d dislike this flavor.  MTN Dew is hit or miss for me and I fully expected this to whiff.  It’s amazing this soda doesn’t taste like crow.  It doesn’t have a heavy syrup feel to it, the carbonation isn’t overly strong, the flavor isn’t overpowering.  It’s a really easy soda to drink.  As with most things there are a few negatives.

First off the taste builds on itself a little awkwardly.  It’s like my tastebuds are anticipating each sip now so the initial tastes are more enjoyable than the later ones.  There is a bit of an aftertaste as well.  It’s not unpleasant, but it doesn’t fall into the category of good either.  While it does taste different from original MTN Dew it’s still a fairly safe alteration of it.  That’s not a huge knock against it, but I do wish the lime flavor could be featured a bit more prominantly.

So there you have it, a handful of good things and a couple bad, some of which might be nit picky.  All in all though I enjoyed my time with Baja Blast.  Code Red and Original Dew are still one and two, but at least now I have a solid three.  So here’s to knowing my top three Dew flavors and to MTN Dew for always taking chances.

~A

This can was purchased at good ol’ Wal-Mart

Sprite LeBron’s Mix

There are two entities on this earth I trust to make a delicious special edition soda, the video game industry and basketball players.  Fortunately today’s entry is from the latter.  Sprite LeBron’s Mix is basketball’s own LeBron James’ own personal mix of Sprite.  I didn’t catch any commercials for this, but I picture him in a lab coat with goggles holding test tubes or something at the Sprite laboratories.  

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Twist also took his talents to Miami before returning home. He was arrested.

All of that potentially imagined lab work resulted in a “Lemon-Lime Soda” that is “Natural cherry and orange flavored with other natural flavors”.  The word natural is so nice they worked it in twice.  Let’s see what else is in the bottle.  Carbonated water, high fructose corn syrup, citric acid, sodium citrate, and a dash of sodium benzoate for luck.  Man, LeBron really knows his stuff.  If only Hotlips or Swamp Pop had gotten a hold of his soda making prowess.  Enough chit chat, time for reviewing.

Immediately this smells better than regular Sprite.  The orange aroma jumps out immediately and attacks the ol’ olfactory gland.   I’m having a harder time finding the cherry.  Hey!  You in the back with the sophomoric mind.  Quit snickering.  Anywho, I’m having a harder time finding the cherry, but hopefully it’ll be there in taste.  Let’s find out.

Oddly enough I taste more of the cherry than I do the orange.  Both of these tastes, as natural as they may be, seem artificial to me though.  That’s not to say this isn’t good.  Sprite LeBron’s Mix is better than original Sprite yet worse than Sprite Remix.  Of course there are a lot of sodas worse than Sprite Remix.  The guy that gave this to me said he felt it tasted like Surge cut with Sprite.  I can definitely see where he came to that conclusion, but I’d need to taste more orange to completely agree.  

The carbonation level seems to be on par with Sprite, perhaps a little too carbonated.  The syrupy mouthfeel of Sprite is lessened to some degree, which is nice.  All in all though this tastes like cherry Sprite with some orange and smells like orange sprite with some cherry.  The more I drink it though the less natural it tastes so I’m going to stop now.

~A

This soda was given to me by Wrastlin’ Jakito

Bundaberg Lemon Lime & Bitters

Wow, my posting schedule isn’t very consistent at the moment is it?  Perhaps I need some bitters to get me back to being healthy in my writing.  Thankfully I used the term “bitters” to seamlessly transition to the name of the soda I’m reviewing today.  Bundaberg Lemon Lime & Bitters is what’s in the fancy green bottle in front of me and I’m looking forward to kicking off (13 days late) 2015 with this review.  

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Twist is bitter about bitters

Bundaberge Lemon Lime Bitters is a collection of cane sugar, spices, lemon juice, lime juice, and a few other ingredients not excluding some bitters.  In fact the front of the label says it’s made with aromatic bitters...which we all know are the best kind for soda.  Of course, we know that.  Now we should all nod knowingly at one another to confirm that we know that.  After a quick pause in this knowledge we’ll continue the review.

So, scary thing.  When I opened this bottle it didn’t fizz at all yet the first ingredient is carbonated water.  The aroma that flows out is that of lemon lime with a definite backer of unidentified spices.  I’d be excited to move forward with this review, but part of me thinks the soda is flat and I’m not sure I want my first review of 2015 to be a dud.  Sigh, oh well.

Good news everyone, this soda isn’t flat.  It’s a very small, neat fizz, but it’s definitely there.  The carbonation seems to add just enough texture that each sip is fun to experience.  Thankfully the lemon lime flavor is present as well.  That last sentence understated the lemon lime flavor quite a bit so let me try again.

I’ve had a lot of sodas and lemon lime is usually one of the more boring ones to review.  Bundaberg Lemon Lime & Bitters doesn’t fall into the boring category as it is a top 3 all time lemon lime soda.  It’s incredibly easy to discern the lemon flavor from the lime.  Normally when these two brothers are together people just assume they’re conjoined twins and call them lymon.  Not in this bottle they aren’t.

Lemon and Lime each have their own distinct flavor and it harmonizes well.  Each burst of citrus I’ve consumed is wrapped up in the bitters that Bundaberg has added.  Of course this does make the drink lean toward bitter a tad, but the 40g of sugar offset that quite nicely.  Instead of focusing on the bitter aspect of it I find myself trying to pick out all the spices used in the creation of this soda.

The spice aspect is something I haven’t experienced with a lemon lime soda before.  Well, perhaps I have but I just can’t remember it at the moment.  Either way it adds another level to an already good soda.  You have lemon, lime, and then a full cast of supporting characters that make the play even better.  Sure if only one of them were on stage you’d question the director, but the way they work together is wonderful.

The only weakness I can identify is the way it feels after I take a sip.  I would think a beverage like this would have a drier mouth feel, but it’s not.  Instead each sip ends with a bit of a syrupy feel (not too heavy though) that scuffs the overall experience.

With all that said, Bundaberg Lemon Lime & Bitters is a fantastic soda that I would recommend anyone try.  For those that like lemon lime, or fancy sodas, or spiced sodas, or citrus sodas in general… this one is for you.

~A

This soda was purchased at World Market

Quinabeer

George Prince flexes his impressive biceps on a can of Quinabeer.  I don’t know who George Prince is though.  My brief search led me to more picture of the young Prince George than I cared to look at.  Quinabeer is made by Cawy and other than having a “body builder” on it’s label it resides in a red can.  Now Coca Cola has done a pretty fantastic job of making me associate red and white cans with Coke, so I immediately assume that Quinabeer is a sort of cola.  It probably isn’t, but that’s what 32 years of marketing has done to my brain.  Let’s find out what it really tastes like, together.  Except for those of you who already know.  You be quiet.

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George Prince once claimed a victory over Twist. Perhaps this is why you've never heard of him.

Well this smells like orange soda.  I no longer have any clue regarding Quinabeer.  The scent did make me salivate though, so good on them.

If Big Red had orange flavoring it would taste like this.  A coupling of orange and bubble gum, Quinabeer is truly unlike anything I’ve tried to date and that’s getting harder and harder to do.   Both of these flavors have equal billing in the program and neither outshines the other.  This balance is met with a rather raucous carbonation that sizzles at the end of each sip.  I’m usually not a fan of bubble gum flavored sodas, but the citrus cuts into it enough that I can forgive it.

Now for the bad.  Quinabeer leaves a very syrupy feel in my mouth.  Its flavor just kind of hangs about like a kid who graduated still lurking around his high school.  Sure, maybe he was a great guy when he was a senior, but now it’s just kind of creepy and you wish he’d go away.

Creepy guy aside, Quinabeer does have a combination like I’ve never seen but the flavors involved are just alright.  I’m not going to tell my friends that I tried Quinabeer.  Don’t get me wrong, I consider all of you my friends… but you understand… right?  The fact that the entire time I typed this paragraph my mouth was occupied by the syrupy ghost of George Prince has me questioning my initial ranking.  Ah well, better luck next time.

~A

This soda was purchased at World Market

Cockta

I took November off, so sue me.  Please don’t sue me.  So how should I start December you ask?  You didn’t ask… you probably stopped visiting the site once a review didn’t appear after four weeks.  “Soda Jerks?”  You said, “More like Soda… Jerks!”  Then you high fived the nearest human.  To answer my own question, I think I’m gonna try that old Slovenia favorite, Cockta!  

Cockta originates in Slovenia as stated earlier and was born in the 1950’s.  They wanted to make a familiar drink using local herbs, but original when compared to foreign beverages.  Since I can’t read any of the writing on this bottle I’m just ignorantly assuming this is Slovenian Coke.  

Well dang it.  I didn’t get any Cockta rewards points under my cap.  Nor am I getting any sort of Coke aroma coming out of the bottle.  In fact it smells a bit more syrupy root beer with an odd flowery scent.  Color my tongue interested.

That’s unique alright, but my mind is trying to decide if it likes it or loves it.  Cola flavored Dimetapp.  That’s what Cockta tastes like.  It has an initial cola taste but once I swish it around  in my mouth and consume it an oddly familiar grape mouth feel rises to the top.  

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Twist has rosehips as well, but he won't let me photograph them.

Even though I used “grape” to describe the mouth feel it’s not an primary flavor of Cockta.  Yes, there are hints of a grape soda in each sip, but I’d be wrong to lead you to believe the taste was grape.  I’m going to have to see what’s in this… give me a moment to research.

Rosehip!  That’s what’s causing my pallet to struggle.  It also uses lemon and orange in the makings.  According to the website they use the same 11 types of herbs that originally created the first bottles of Cockta.  They also don’t use HFCS and it’s caffeine free.

All of this creates a really unique soda.  It’s a fruit flavored cola with rosehips.  Now that I know some of the ingredients it makes a little more sense to me.  It still doesn’t completely explain why it tastes like Dimetapp Cola, but who cares.  

It’s a little syrupy and hangs onto my teeth a bit longer than I’d like, though this could be due to the fact that it was delivered to me via plane and is about 6 months old.  With that said I’ll keep the mouth feel critiques away from the score.

Cockta is a lot for my brain to wrap around.  Why did I pick this for my return to soda reviewing?  Perhaps it’s just showing me how new I still am to the soda game.  Perhaps it’s revving up my tastebuds to be on their best game.  Either way I’m glad I had it and I’m glad to be back.  

~A

This bottle was supplied to me by my friend Jibbity D