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

Flathead Lake Black Raspberry

Montana’s Legendary Soda, Flathead Lake, is known around the parts as almost being an above average soda.  For whatever reasons it never seems to be able to touch that rung of the latter and ends up falling off before it can achieve greatness.  Today’s Flathead Lake soda flavor is black raspberry.  I’m quite happy with this flavor selection as it is the superior taste when compared to its fake blue counterpart.  So there you have it.  Flathead Lake soda is average, but this flavor is one of my favorites.  Who will win out?

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There's some kind of copyright infringement here, but I'm not sure who the guilty party is.

A delicious candy grape aroma rises from the bottle, which is odd since it’s a blackberry soda.  If I pretend hard enough I can make myself believe that I also smell the blackberry, but I can’t.  Hopefully I’ll be able to taste it.

Ok, so the taste is a bit grapey as well.  I’m going to go ahead and promise never to use the term “grapey” ever again.  Let’s move on, shall we?  Thankfully the second half of my experience does indeed taste like an artificially delicious black raspberry full of sugar and chemicals.  Still though, if someone were to give me this soda in a glass I’d assume it was grape, that can’t be good for the Flathead Lake flavor department.  Even though the flavor is mostly wrong it’s still a very tasty soda and the blackberry aftertaste is rather pleasant.  If anything I might label this as a grape/raspberry hybrid and go from there.  The carbonation level for this confused liquid is small, but tingly so it never really gets in the way.  All 43 grams of sugar are accounted for as you’d never mistake this for something healthy.  This level of sweetness makes Flathead Lake Black Raspberry ride the line of “drink with meal” and “drink for dessert”.  Flavor confusion aside this is probably my favorite entry from Flathead Lake.  Great job, guys!

~A

Sof Drink Grape

It has been three years since the kool kat on the Sof Drink label has visited my home.  Today this Jamaican feline finds himself on a bottle of Sof Drink Grape and I’m happy to see him.  I just got through traipsing around a cemetery so I’m a bit thirsty from all the walking.  Thankfully my tongue knew exactly what it wanted when I opened the fridge.  It wanted to be reunited with grape soda and the kool kat was the perfect door man for the job.  Even though Sof Drink Grape claims to have the original Jamaican flavor (of what I’m not sure) it still uses HFCS in its production.  Currently I’m a bit too thirsty to care and while I should be drinking water to quench this thirst my willpower isn’t strong enough to do so.  So let me dive into this grape soda and see what happens.

A grape soda without any real scent… that’s a first.  At least I think that’s a first, I didn’t really feel like researching the previous sentence so I suggest you just trust me on it.  If I place one nostril over the mouth of the bottle and inhale deeply I begin to smell a candy grape aroma, but it really is quite faint.  Something tells me the flavor will be much more powerful.

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Twist things this drink is grape.

Well that’s fun.  Sof Drink Grape tastes like a melted grape popsicle with some added carbonation.  I could honestly stop writing the review at this point, but only one sentence of description might not look so hot.  It’s a very thick grape soda in the fact that it grabs hold of all the pores of my mouth and refuses to let go.  Even after the velvet curtain of syrup falls the actors on the stage stay there to be crushed under its weight.  The carbonation is the only thing keeping this beverage from being an Otter Pop that never found the freezer.  Alexander the Grape has been poured into a bottle and someone ruffled his hair up a little.  While this aspect makes it a very sweet drink it’s not so sugary that your question if you should continue consumption with each sip. 

I’ve already made the popsicle comparison twice now which shows that I really didn’t have any more in my sleeve.  This shows me that I should just stop and you just trust that the comparison is all you need to understand what Sof Drink Grape is.  It’s a tasty, thick, grape soda that tastes like a popsicle.  There I go again.

~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!

Party Pop

It’s a little after midnight and I wasn’t even sure I was going to write a review today, but apparently I am.  My wife and I live with three animals so the house is rarely quiet.  It’s so rare that when you couple a silent house with darkness it becomes a little creepy.  I snuck downstairs, as to not wake the puppy, and blindly reached into the refrigerator.  What greeted me was a fairly creepy site in itself.  Two oddly drawn children stare at me from the label of this bottle of Party Pop.  Well technically the little boy is staring at me and the little girl is infatuated with the previously mentioned boy.  I don’t know what Party Pop is, but from the label alone it claims to be “The Original Foamy Soda”.  I’m going to go ahead and call that a lie without even researching it.  Other words listed on the bottle are “sangaria”, “cheers!”, “non-alcoholic”, something written in a foreign language, and weirdest of all… “kids”.  Over the ingredients I find out that this is an apple flavored soda, so it shouldn’t be terrible because “kids”.  For as strange as Party Pop is, it’s made with HFCS so it’s not off-the-rails bizarre.  The time has come for me to try “The Original Foamy Soda” known as Party Pop.  Since the “kids” seem to love it, hopefully I will too.

I think the foreign language that’s on the bottle, and now I see on the cap, is Japanese.  For the record, this is bottled in California.  Such an odd soda.  It smells like apple juice.  I’d go into more descriptive terminology if it smelled any different than apple juice, but it doesn’t.  Apple anything isn’t listed as an ingredient.  No apple juice, artificial apple, natural (apple) flavor, mock apples, how ‘bout them apples, there’s nothing about apples.  Fantastic.  I hope this blows my socks off, because that would just complete this peculiar experience.

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Twist could steal her away in an instant.

WHOA ALL THAT FOAM!  Kidding.  It is a little foamier than your standard soda, but I’m not sure I’d make it a marketing point.  Perhaps if I still had my youthful innocence I could see myself pouring this into a glass and pretending to drink beer.  That’s exactly what this is, by the way.  This is kid beer.  It’s the color of beer, it develops a head like beer, and it’s called Party Pop like beer.  It’s “kids” beer.  Anywho.  It tastes like an apple soda that didn’t quite make it. 

The carbonation level is light and fizzy, fun some might say.  On the other hand that apple juice scent I was picking up earlier isn’t quite as honest.  There is an apple flavor being represented here, but it’s constantly haunted by a bitter ghost.  Before the apple flavor even hits the bitter ghost resides in my mouth chasing all of good flavors away.  The good flavors that do stay have to walk through said ghost, thus tainting their once tasty skins.  Slimed if you will.  What I’m about to say isn’t 100% accurate, but it’s the best comparison I can think of at this time of night.  Party Pop tastes like it’s 80% Apple Juice and 20% beer.  For some reason I capitalized “apple juice”, but not beer.  No idea why, moving on.  This beer/apple juice hybrid obviously isn’t working for me, but it’s not horrible.  Actually I take that back.  With each sip I try the bitterness builds on itself making Party Pop less “pop” and more “mistake.

This kid on the label with his cocked party hat is really starting to bother me.  It’s like he’s bragging about gaining the eye of the girl next to him.  Like he’s gloating to me that she’ll never be mine.  Dude you’re like 10 at the most.  I could take you out with one punch and I’m a weak 30 something.  Whataya going to do?  “Kids”.

~A

Vacation in a Bottle - Pomegranate Berry

Today’s offering from Thirst Monger comes in a very serene bottle emblazoned with a picture of the sun setting over a great body of water.  Vacation in a Bottle, or as the kids call it ViB (pronounced Vibe), is the name of the beverage and the flavor is Pomegranate Berry.  I already feel as if I’m going to enjoy it.  I’m not usually one for full bottle art, but the more I stare at this sunset the more I just want to kick back and relax.  Being the ad guru that I am, I already see something they could improve upon… their slogan.  Currently their slogan is “Drink. Chill. Be Happy!”  While this is all well and good why not switch up a few words and make it “Chill. Drink. Be Happy!”?  Chill would take on a double meaning at this point and ultimately it would just work better.  If they take my advice I expect a nice crisp Benji headed my way. 

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Twist is on Step Two of the ViB three step program.

ViB is caffeine free and uses cane sugar as a sweetener.  There’s a whole host of other ingredients, so if you’re interested, look them up.  As you know I’m concerned with the taste and I’m tired of waiting.

This beverage is in an aluminum bottle which is something I wish drink manufacturers would migrate towards more often.  I’d much rather drink out of an aluminum bottle than a plastic one.  I’m sure cost comes into play here, but in my world it doesn’t, so get with the program other companies!

A somewhat easily identified pomegranate aroma flows from the large mouth of the bottle.  There is indeed another berry scent blended in, but it seems vague in nature.  I noticed my mouth started watering though as soon as I took a whiff.  At least I know the scent has created some positive ViBs for my mind.  You see what I did there?  I took the name of the soda and used it somewhat incorrectly in a sentence.

Vacation in a Bottle – Pomegranate Berry is a bit sweeter than I thought it would be.  The ingredients list 10 grams of sugar per 8 ounces so I thought it might be a little short in the sweet spot.  I was wrong.  The sweetness plays well with the pomegranate and berry flavors.  At this point I’m going to stop referring to the generic berry flavor since the pomegranate is clearly the lead actor in this play.  Carbonation is fast and light, but powerful.  It feels like a miniaturized version of the same carbonation you’d find in a Coke brand Coke.  Overall I’m quite pleased with ViB. 

The flavor is strong enough to keep me from forgetting that I’m drinking a soda, but the mouth feel is light enough that it doesn’t seem like I’m drinking straight syrup.  There is a point in each sip though where I get a quick taste of artificial.  I’m not saying that anything in this is artificial, but just be warned that the initial flavor doesn’t flow through 100%.  With that said, I’ve already finished the bottle and would drink another, so it obviously didn’t bother me too incredibly much.  All in all Vacation in a Bottle – Pomegranate Berry was a good experience.  It did many things right and few things wrong, if you see some I recommend giving it a shot.

~A

Flathead Lake Strawberry Orange

It’s 9:00 in the morning, which is usually way too early for a soda review.  Last week though was lacking in said reviews so I figured I’d try to get an early start to this week by writing one in the A.M.  When I opened my fridge I tried to find the most breakfast like flavor and Flathead Lake Strawberry Orange was the most obvious at hand.  After pondering it for a moment I realized that strawberry orange isn’t exactly a common flavor, yet it seems like the two would pair fairly often in the soda world.  The two should create a tart yet sweet sensation that’s fun for the whole family.  I’ve never been particularly impressed with the ingredients of Flathead Lake sodas so we’ll just hope it delivers big on flavor.  That’s what this is all about anyway, right?

A fun fruit punchesque aroma simultaneously greets my nose and excites my brain for the flavor that may be contained within this glass prison.  The bright red-orange color of the soda itself is also rather inviting as the beads of condensation roll down the neck of the bottle.  If I was to rate this on just appearance and scent then Flathead Lake Strawberry Orange would be doing very well.  Of course all citizens of the Carbo-Nation know that those two are only part of what makes a soda great. 

I immediately can tell that if this were fizzier I’d like it a lot more.  There is indeed a created flavor that begins to taste like strawberry/orange yet it takes the exit to cotton candyville somewhere near the end of each sip.  This is made even more noticeable by the amount of carbonation used in the beverage as I said less than three sentences ago.  While the carbonation levels are not low by any means, if the fizz levels where higher my tongue would be focused on the tiny explosions happening on it rather than the vague sugary flavor this soda eventually becomes.  The vague sugary flavor isn’t terrible, mind you.  I just wish that the initial strawberry/orange combination had been strong enough to last throughout each swig.  Flathead Lake Strawberry Orange is still a good drink in terms of taste, look, and scent.  Thankfully, there is no terrible aftertaste, but the velvet curtain of syrup fall on the stage that is my mouth.  All in all this soda starts off quite tasty, but the soda itself is its own undoing.  Like so many sodas before it the flavor can’t support the weight of all the drinks taken prior.  This causes the soda drinking experience to go from enjoyable to consuming liquid sugar just to finish it.  It’s this aspect that makes Flathead Lake Strawberry Orange an average soda.

~A

Twist keeps asking for a pair of tiny sunglasses.

Jack Black's Orange Stash

I always appreciate an orange soda that uses cane sugar and orange juice (concentrate most times).  I really appreciate it when the picture on the bottle uses a pirate theme and calls it an “Orange Stash”.  In case you’re the type not to read the title of these reviews, today’s article is on Jack Black’s Orange Stash.  If I’m to believe everything I read on this label, this is only the second time this particular flavor has been available.  I’m hoping that the fact it’s an orange “stash” and not an orange soda gives me a unique beverage to try, but something tells me I may be disappointed.  Let’s find out together… as a family.

Comedy abounds in the world of Jack Black sodas.  Under the bottle cap reads the following:  “Once you have Jack Black you won’t switch back”.  JOKES.  With that said the orange scent I was expecting to come off the top of the bottle isn’t there.  If I take a strong whiff I can begin to identify the scent as orange.  Hopefully the flavor won’t be as hard to find.

The orange in Jack Black’s Orange Stash isn’t as intense as I’d like it to be, but with that said it’s a tasty treat for my tongue.  It’s not as sugary to me as your standard orange soda and this allows for the orange flavor to be enjoyed for a longer period of time.  The carbonation isn’t overly strong either which once again accentuates the star of the show, Orange.  Even though I just stated the carbonation level isn’t that high it does still have an aspect of fun to it.  It’s a light fizzy sensation that runs quickly from here to there in my mouth.  All in all Jack Black’s Orange Stash is a pretty good beverage.  The orange flavoring, while not a perfect replica, is more natural tasting than your standard orange soda.  I’m sad to say, but the downside to this soda is that it’s kind of boring.  Sure it’s a tasty beverage, but there’s not much about it that will make me want to recall it if I’m ever asked for an orange soda recommendation.  If given the option I’d drink multiple bottles of this, but I wouldn’t really cry if I ran out.

~A

Twist is the Dread Pirate Roberts

Rocket Fizz Watermelon

Ok, so remember that entire week where I didn’t post a single review?  Forget it.  This week is a new week and at the very least you’re going to get a review about a watermelon flavored soda by Rocket Fizz.  As we all know (and if you don’t just fake it) Rocket Fizz is the soda that features fun flavors and is sweetened by cane sugar.  Another globally known fact is that I don’t like watermelon, but usually enjoy watermelon flavored items.  I’m not really sure how this concept works in the real world, but it does.  In case you forgot due to lack of reviews, here’s the part where I tell you it’s time to open this bottle and get to drinking.

If the pink coloring of the soda wasn’t enough to show me it’s supposed to taste like watermelon, the aroma certainly did.  Since I don’t particularly like the taste of watermelon, this beverage smells kind of gross to me.  Again, I’m not exactly sure why I tend to enjoy watermelon-esque things, especially when their scents are often off-putting.  Perhaps there is some kind of magic at work here.  Here’s to watermagicon!

Nope.  I’m not fond of this.  The taste is somewhat accurate as my memory reaches back as far as it can to pull up the file labeled “watermelon taste”.  Best I can tell though, this tastes more like a candy watermelon than the actual fruit.  So technically it’s a watermelon flavored soda that tastes like a watermelon flavored candy that tastes like watermelon.  I’m thinking my brain is just outright rejecting this idea entirely.  Each sip I take begins with a hopeful thought which is quickly run over by an overly sweet, syrupy, watermelon wave.  The carbonation can’t even save it as my brain can’t concentrate on the bubbles due to the disgusting flavor.  I’m going to stop the review here.  It’s a little premature, but you don’t need to listen to me berate a beverage because it’s based on a flavor I normally don’t like.  I don’t like watermelon and this soda tastes enough like it that I don’t like the soda.  If you like watermelon (a word I’ve now typed a ridiculous number of times) then maybe you’ll like Rocket Fizz Watermelon, or maybe you’ll think it’s too sweet… because it is.

~A

Twist is just happy it's not the devil's fruit known as cantaloupe

PJ's Crystal Beach Sparkling Loganberry

Anyone out there have any sort of idea of what a loganberry is?  I certainly don’t.  Thirstmonger sent me a bottle, of what looks to be a delicious, loganberry soda.  I didn’t really feel like doing any research on what loganberries are, thankfully the label sensed this and told me.  Apparently the loganberry was discovered in the 1880’s and is a cross between a red raspberry and a blackberry.  Zero things sound bad about that, so obviously I’m excited about trying this sugar sweetened beverage.  As an added bonus this bottle of (I guess including the name would be helpful) PJ’s Crystal Beach Sparkling Loganberry soda has a decent amount of Vitamin A, B6, B12, and E.  A quick glance over the ingredients also teaches me that actual loganberry juice is used in the making of this beverage as well.  Well color me intrigued.

The red raspberry is the dominating scent, although you can tell its sweetness is muted a little bit by the blackberry.  Frankly, Crystal Beach Sparkling Loganberry smells delightful and reminds me of a tasty sno-cone/snow cone/sno ball/shaved ice.

Crystal Beach Sparkling Loganberry is so effervescent that it’s still fizzing in the back of my throat and I love it.  The flavor isn’t quite as tart as I thought it would be.  Sweet seems to be the defining characteristic of the loganberry.  Granted this is a loganberry with 42 grams of sugar in it so I’m sure the taste is altered just a bit.  All the same, the fruity taste of red raspberry with hints of grape and blackberry has coated my mouth in an enjoyable curtain of flavor.  Remember when I said it smelled like a sno-cone?  I really hope you do because even the slowest readers should have read that sentence two minutes ago at most.  Crystal Beach Sparkling Loganberry tastes like sno-cone soda.  It’s like they took the juice at the bottom of a sno-cone and carbonated it to a fun level.  Like I said, this is quite the sweet soda so it may not be for everyone.  I would place this soda in the “treat” category instead of the “enjoy with food” category. 

Now of course there is some critique that must be present with the praise.  In the case of Crystal Beach Sparkling Loganberry we’ve already touched on one potential negative for some of you, the sweetness.  I won’t be addressing that any further.  The other issue I have is that the taste is a bit muddled.  “A loganberry is a muddle red raspberry and blackberry” you say?  Why yes it is, but this flavor does not seem to be made by nature.  A berry is crisp and tart which is what Crystal Beach Sparkling Loganberry is missing.  If this beverage were tart in the slightest I’d drink it until I died, but instead of being perfect it’s merely tasty.  See, it’s not that bad of a problem.  It just kept it from being outstanding.

All in all, Crystal Beach Sparkling Loganberry is a very fun soda to drink.  The variety in the fruit flavor, the insane carbonation, and the delicious coating it leaves in your mouth are all things you should be looking forward to if you try it.

~A

Twist prefers the more intense Wolverineberry

Barton Springs Soda Company - Orange Cream Soda

I’m always pleased when my great state produces delicious products and even happier when those products happen to be soda.  Today I’m giving the city of Austin a chance with their Barton Springs Soda Company – Orange Cream Soda.  The label is simple, but nice to look at.  In fact it almost looks like they made it at home.  The color of the soda is a natural looking orange; not to be confused with the ridiculous orange color that sodas like this normally are.  If you end up wanting to make some Barton Springs Orange Soda for yourself at home here’s all you need:  carbonated water, sugar, natural flavors, citric acid, and a bunch of Benzosorbosucra-lates.  Ok, so the last ingredient is really an amalgamation of words listed.  Still, this is from Texas and I’m excited to see what my home has produced.

Even though “Orange Cream Soda” is listed as the flavor, the scent that reaches my nose is that of tangerine sans cream.  I’m really quite curious how creamy this beverage will actually be.  I suppose I could taste it.

Fortunately for all involved in this process the flavor is indeed orange and the creaminess does exist within the same realm of reality.  With my first sip a burst of orange flavor cascades along my tongue, waking up every taste-bud it rushes over.  The citrus taste seems stronger due to the carbonation involved, but is unmistakable nonetheless.  Now the cream that is promised on the label comes late to the game.  After the citrus rush begins to subside an almost artificial creaminess takes its place.  I won’t say that it tastes bad, but there’s something a little off about it.  In fact the beverage seems to weaken a bit with each sip I take.  The sugary sweetness of Barton Springs Orange Cream Soda begins to take over and ruin the party for both the orange flavoring and the cream finish.  The orange flavoring begins to be shoved in a corner behind big brother Sweetness, while the decent job Cream was performing has turned into an over the top mess.  Frighteningly enough, I’m only halfway through with the bottle before the sugar invasion began.  Sadly I’m going to surrender and stop drinking at this point.  Someone with a sweeter tooth than mine might enjoy this, but I’m out.

~A

The fact that the soda is orange and from Austin has Twist suspicious

Hiball Organic Energy Drink - Pomegranate Acai

While I’m sure I’ve had an organic energy drink, I honestly can’t remember the name of it.  If only there were drink review site that had a search function!  Hiball Organic Energy Drink – Pomegranate Acia sits in front of me in a rather classy looking can.  The Hiball logo is crisp and simple, making it a pleasure to look at.  If I examine this container a bit closer I see that Hiball Pomegranate Acai uses both organic caffeine and organic sugar in the creation of this beverage.  Just to add to this greatness is the fact that the organic sugar used is Fair Trade Certified.  Since it’s an energy drink Hiball Pomegranate Acai is also chock full of B Vitamins, and other ingredients like Guarana Extract, Ginseng Extract, and others.  Truthfully, my mind is a little perplexed in trying to figure out what this will taste like.  Will it be a fruity sensation or will the energy drink side take over like Mr. Hyde?  Let’s see if I can’t sniff this out.

The can opens without a lot of push, which makes me think the carbonation won’t be that strong.  An aroma of various berries, also known as berrious, makes its way to the opening of the can.  My knowledge is lacking when it comes to identifying pomegranate and acai, so I’m hesitant to tell you that this is what it smells like.  Perhaps a taste test in in order.

My initial reaction to Hiball Pomegranate Acai isn’t a positive one.  Each act in this play seems to be marred by the kid sitting behind me named “Bitter Billy”.  I take a sip and see the first act upon the stage.  A cool refreshing sensation skips across the stage and starts its monologue.  Bitter Billy flicks my ear and giggles.  Pomegranate and Acai walk out in what looks to be a pretty good ventriloquist act, but I can’t concentrate on it because Bitter Billy has started kicking my seat as hard as he can.  The final act shows all of the characters on stage for a rousing final number, I think I even see carbonation dressed as a tiny clown.  It doesn’t matter though because Bitter Billy has taken a lighter to my hair and I’m missing it all.  Hidden behind each outburst of Bitter Billy looks to be a fairly enjoyable energy drink, but I cannot see past this poorly behaved child.  I could finish this beverage if I wanted to, but I don’t.  Even if the crowd starts chanting for an encore I don’t care to be anywhere near that kid anymore.  All the organic ingredients, all of the B Vitamins, all of the class the label shows can’t compete with this one taste factor.  Sad really.

~A

Twist's sugar is always organic.

Flathead Lake Sour Cherry

I’ve made it no mystery that I enjoy sour beverages.  What a terrible mystery that would be. If it was an Encyclopedia Brown book you’d throw it away at the big reveal.  “Turns out Aaron LIKES sour sodas!”… aaaaand in the trash.  Of course something can be so sour it’s hard to enjoy, but for the most part I enjoy most sour sodas, or at least the idea behind them.  Flathead Lake Sour Cherry is what sits in my cup holder at the moment and I’m about to take a dive into it, mouth first.  The color is a delightful dark red, almost maroon, which gives my eyes a hint of what’s to come.  A look at the ingredients shows that I’m about to ingest a bunch of chemicals and “natural flavors”.  Well then, there’s no time like the present to ingest some chemicals!

A rich, cherry sno-cone syrup-esque (double hyphenated word, nice) aroma reaches out of the bottle and socks me in the nose.  Chemicals or not, I’m now a bit more excited to give this soda a chug.

Oh, that’s right.  Flathead Lake soda is seems to always be a little more watery than you’d expect.  Fortunately for Sour Cherry it’s not so watery that I’m going to deduct points, it just took me off guard.  As for the “sour” portion of sour cherry… it’s noticeable, but your cheeks aren’t going to pucker at all.  It’s certainly discernible from your standard cherry soda though.  The bubbles are tight and few in number, yet strong enough to be a part of the drinking experience with every sip.  Sadly there is a bit of a syrup curtain that falls at the end of each act.  This curtain has a pleasant taste, but overstays its welcome with each lowering.  While an encore wouldn’t be a terrible thing, I’d really just prefer if this soda ended on the sour sensation it leaves at the tip of my tongue.  Ah well, someone get Sandman to pull ‘em off stage and we won’t have that problem anymore.  Didn’t think you’d find a Showtime at the Apollo reference in a soda review?  You must be new to the site.  Welcome!

All in all Flathead Lake Sour Cherry is a tasty soda, but nothing to write to Mom about.  Granted I just did write to my mom about it because she reads the site, but I digress.

~A

Twist has been mistaken as the Flathead Lake Monster for years.  He's not it though as he's much, much older.

Faygo Original Red Pop

Red pop is a somewhat foreign concept to me.  I understand that it’s a big deal in other parts of the country, but here in Houston I’d be surprised to see it in a local grocery store.  Even though it makes perfect sense I find regional soda love very odd.  What shaped the history and tastes of that region?  Why does Maine love Moxie so much?  Why is red pop a northern thing?  Why is Cheerwine a Carolina thing?  I’m sure there’s a simple answer to all of those, probably mostly based on the origin of the product.  I still find it interesting.  I also find it interesting that red pop, or in this case Faygo Original Red Pop, is just strawberry soda.  Why not just call it strawberry soda?  I’ve had red pop once before, so my venture into this world isn’t completely unique.  I’m hoping that the cane sugar sweetened version of red pop will be even tastier.  Let’s find out, shall we?

The scent of Faygo Original Red Pop is somewhat muted and I must say I’m a bit shocked by this.  When I think of a strawberry soda, I think of an overly sweetened, cotton candy-esque beverage that sits on my tongue for hours after consumption.  This version of red pop, based on the smell at least, seems like it may be a bit tamer to the taste.

I was correct, this isn’t your standard sugary red liquid made to taste like candied strawberries.  Faygo Original Red Pop feels like an adult version of strawberry soda.  Let’s not pretend it’s not sweet, it most certainly is, but the flavor that accompanies said sweetness isn’t trying to impress you.  A well-defined strawberry flavor that leans towards candy a bit more than actual strawberries is the first experience my tongue runs into.  The carbonation gives my mouth a hybrid sensation of both fizzy and fluffy, keeping the experience fun the whole way through.  At the apex of the swig the middle of my tongue experiences a shock of sweetness that slowly vanishes becoming nothing more than a memory.  I don’t really even have time to figure out if that peak of sweetness was in fact too sweet for my taste buds.  Honestly, I don’t care.  I think influx of sugary taste is another reason the beverage stays fun.  If it all tasted like that it’d be overkill and I wouldn’t even try to finish the bottle.  Fortunately, this soda seems to pace itself as it’s being consumed.  Fun carbonation here, quick burst of sweetened strawberry flavor here, smooth mouth feel here… it works.

Faygo Original Red Pop is not strawberry soda and I’m happy to have figured that out, but it’s really hard to explain why it isn’t what it clearly states it is.  Let’s use geometry for example.  A square can both truthfully be called a square or a rectangle as it has four right angles.  No one is going to call see a square and call it a rectangle even though it would be the truth.  Faygo Original Red Pop is a strawberry soda, it’s also Red Pop.  Guess which one it deserves to be called.  I had a hard time rating this, but the more I think about it I realize that I would want more than 4 in my fridge.

~A

Twist is a green pop, but that's a story for another time

Hank's Orange Cream Soda

Without looking I can already tell you the last several sodas we’ve reviewed have all been root beer or cream soda based beverages.  I thought about bucking that trend today, but instead of shocking your brains too much I’ll ease out of the root beer/cream soda genre with a tall orange bottle of Hank’s Orange Cream Soda.  This fancy looking bottle contains a liquid that has two things going for it; the first is that it’s sweetened with cane sugar.  Secondly, Hank’s uses orange juice concentrate in the making of their orange cream soda… something I haven’t seen before.  I’m curious if this will be as smooth as other orange cream or “dreamsicle” sodas since actual orange juice is in play here.  Only in time will we find out. 

Either I’m getting weaker or these twist off caps are getting harder to remove.  Yeesh.  Hank’s OCS delivers in the scent department by giving my snout a tremendous amount of both orange and vanilla aroma.  The dogs wrestling behind me can’t even pry my attention away from this beverage.

Forget what that last guy said about this not being a smooth orange cream.  That last guy was crazy, as this is a very smooth soda.  There is an initial burn on the tip of my tongue created by the enclosed fizz, but quickly it disintegrates into a creamy citrus slide.  If someone were to ask me if I thought this had orange juice concentrate in it I’d probably say it didn’t.  The orange flavor doesn’t really attack your throat like it would in juice form.  Instead it appears in front of you wrapped up in just enough vanilla that you have a hard time figuring out if it’s the real thing or not.  The orange vanilla hug that happens in this bottle continues its embrace down my gullet.  The two flavors are inseparable and work in tandem throughout each sip. 

The finish of Hank’s OCS leaves something to be desired as it develops a somewhat “fake” taste near the end that only worsens until you take another swig, starting the experience back over again.  I’m a little weary of my final gulp seeing as I won’t have anything left to reset the taste.  Perhaps I’ll open this extra People Water I have lying around.  All in all Hank’s OCS is a tasty soda with some shortcomings here and there.  Shortcomings included this should still be in your fridge in multiples.

~A

Twist coined the word "gourmet"

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.

Faygo Original Rock & Rye

Fun fact!  Well honestly it’s less fun and more fact.  We have never reviewed a Faygo beverage on the site.  Odd, huh?  So now that my fridge now has a smattering of Faygo products I figured it’d be a good time to try out a flavor that is a complete and total mystery to me, Faygo Original Rock & Rye.  The only “rock” slang I know is either ice or drug related so I’m pretty sure I’m way off on that one.  Rye is somewhat easily identified, but again not something I’ve ever experienced in a beverage.  The ingredient list doesn’t help much in clarifying the flavor either.  With a brief glance I learn that it’s sweetened with cane sugar and after that the ingredients just slide down a slope of chemical nonsense.  I must assume it is chemical nonsense because all they’ve allowed me to read is “artificial flavors”…oh and of course your friend and mine, potassium benzoate. 

Thankfully, beneath the name of the beverage the sentence “artificially flavored cream cola” is a road map for my brain, pointing me in the right direction.  I feel safe in calling this beverage burgundy in color and very appealing to the eye in terms of label art and overall appearance.  It’s a very classy looking bottle albeit simple.  Any wonders I have about the taste are easily ignored when I gaze at the container the soda resides in.  Smell time.

Faygo Original Rock & Rye is easily identified as a cream soda after a quick whiff.  There is also what some might consider a bubble gum aroma also present which turns me of a bit to the soda, but hopefully it won’t translate into the flavor.  It would be such a disappointment if this was just another bubble gum/cream soda.  Taste time.

I’m pleased to report that it’s not your standard bubble gum fare at all.  There is a cola flavor present in the early stages of my sip, but it vanishes quickly and transforms into something more akin to a red cream soda.  Throughout all of this a delightful artificial cherry taste can be enjoyed which will bring up zero similarities to cherry medicine.  It’s very well executed in my opinion. 

Now I’ve listed cola, cream, and cherry as players in this bottle of Faygo Original Rock & Rye, but to call this a cherry cream cola would be an absolute lie.  For one reason or another the flavors feel separated in the bottle which makes for a nice journey.  Dependable, recognizable cola greets you as you start your 2 second hike through your current sip.  He shows you the path you must take and points out the dangers ahead (Fire Tigers and the like).  Just as you’re feeling safe enough to travel on your own the cream gently shows you the exit.  As you approach the exit you look up and realize that cherry has been watching you all along.  You’re a little creeped out with that realization while simultaneously feeling a bit of joy.  The quick fizzing bubbles rush you out the door and you immediately want to see them all again. 

Unfortunately the end of your journey involves the dreaded velvety curtain of syrup that just coats your mouth to the point of wanting glass of water when it’s all said and done.  Faygo Original Rock and Rye isn’t a perfect beverage, but I have to appreciate the trip it takes me on with each sip.

~A

BONUS CONTENT FOR PAID MEMBERS ONLY...wait... we don't have paid members?  Oh well, here's some interesting info from Reader Jim.  Reader Jim, take it away.

Rock and rye pop was invented in Detroit by Anthony Wegener of A Wegener and Son Bottling works in 1885. Faygo did not invent the drink. The pop was reintroduced after the factory closed in the late 1950.s in 1973 in canned form. Under the approval of Mary Wegener the wife of the late Frank Wegener, whom was the son and former president of the company,. He passed in 1973. My family has cans from the Seventies with the label stating "WEGENER'S ORIGINAL 1885 ROCK AND RYE POP"

Twist will accept rye bread as currency

Hank's Premium Highland Berry Soda

Call us the Looney Tunes because we’re back in action… except hopefully this review will at least be as enjoyable as that movie.  If not you can just chalk it up to rust.  Don’t be shocked by the tone of my voice.  Check out my new beverage, beverage of choice.  Hank’s Premium Highland Berry Soda.  It’s not especially clear to me what “Highland” berries are, although I will say the words create a delightful picture of nature surrounded by nature in my head.  A quick look at the ingredients just show’s me that this is sweetened with HFCS and that natural/artificial flavors are present.  All I really have to go on is the deep red colouring of the soda which brings to mind thoughts of raspberry (not the fake blue kind), cherry, cranberry, and perhaps dewberry.  Smell test.

The aroma is faint, but the scent of cherries and cream can be distinguished with a strong huff of the bottle.  Since you all know that I’m a little lad who loves cherries and cream I won’t waste your time talking about it anymore.  Taste time.

Ok, so maybe it wasn’t cherries I smelled.  The slight vanilla taste is definitely present though, making this soda wonderfully smooth.  Best I can tell, Hank’s Premium Highland Berry Soda is a combination of cranberry, strawberry, raspberry, and I guess there’s some cherry in there… but then again my mind could be playing tricks on me.  The way these flavors are grouped together is quite delicate.  Normally there is a player on center stage hamming it up as the rest of the flavors sit as trees in the background.  Don’t worry about them though.  Their parents are still in the audience filming every last second of their tree-dom.  In the case of Hank’s Premium Highland Berry Soda all roles are equally important, even that of the cream.  This equal amount of stage time really makes me think about the individual flavors I could potentially be tasting.  Virtual high-fives to the folks at Hank’s for creating this balanced eco-system of flavor goodness.  The carbonation levels don’t even intrude on the flavor math that has obviously been done.  Light, fizzy, and borderline fun, the bubbles just serve as a wakeup call to the interior my mouth before the actual flavor steps into the room. 

For all that this soda does well it’s not perfect.  The use of HFCS weighs down the end result of each sip I enjoy.  The mouth feel isn’t the heaviest I’ve felt, but it does detract from an enjoyable experience.  On an individual level I’m also not going to gush on and on about the flavors of the berries used in this bottle.  Each berry flavor comes off as somewhat generic to me.  The quality of the ingredients could be improved and with that I think an amazing soda would emerge.  Even though I have some complaints I would still recommend purchasing this soda.  Are there problems with it?  Yes, but the taste is still wonderfully complex without needing an “educated” palate to see all that it has to offer.

~A

On Earth 2 Twist is from the Highlands of Scotland

Sidral Mundet Manzana Verde

We love apple soda.  Apple soda is something we love.  With that said when we first proclaimed our love for apple soda it was suggested that we try Sidral Mundet because we’d love it.  We tried it and we did not love it.  In fact we told folks to steer clear of it.  “You should have had it in the glass bottle!” they said in reply.  While not reviewed on this site, Mike did try it in a glass bottle and formulated the same opinion.  Today is round three and it was given to us by Abel A.  Sidral Mundet Manzana Verde (Green Apple) is what sits in front of me, in a glass bottle nonetheless.  Of all the apple flavored sodas green is my favorite, no… my favourite.  That’s right I love it so much that I have to use the British spelling to convey said love.  The soda itself is a delightful mint green and is very appealing to the eye.  Being a product of Mexico it is of course sweetened with sugar and will more than likely require a bottle opener.  Smell time.

It did require said opener and upon removing the cap a blast of green apple aroma shot out of the bottle.  My faith is building that I may perhaps enjoy this beverage called Manzana Verde… by Sidral Mundet.  Taste time.

This is so much better than regular Sidral Mundet.  The apple flavor is stronger and not watered down.  I can decipher that it’s a green apple soda and not just an apple soda that’s green.  The carbonation is very light and hardly noticeable unless I swish it a bit.  Only after doing so do I notice a hint of bubble brushing against my cheeks.  The mouth feel throughout it was pleasant until I reached the end of my journey and found it to be a bit syrupy.  Even with this somewhat syrupy finale I would still recommend Sidral Mundet Manzana Verde as a drink to grab if you’re in need of some serious refreshment.  Overall I’m very pleased with this beverage and will ultimately recommend you purchase multiples.  Its strong points are color, taste, and carbonation with its only weak point being mouth feel.  Manzana Verde is a very nice entry into the genre of green apple sodas.  If I see it in a convenience store I’m sure I’ll pick one up for the journey ahead and suggest you should too.  Oooh, maybe with some Zesty Salsa Tortilla Combos!

~A

They're having a "green off".  Twist will win.

Pepsi X

Ok, I know I’m late on this one, but according to the date on the can it’s still fine to open and consume this Pepsi X.  If you watched X Factor at all this is the Pepsi flavor that was attached to it and may still be; I have no idea if that is still a thing that exists.  I’m not even going to make X Factor jokes as I honestly couldn’t care less about their tie in.  I am glad Pepsi made a new flavor, the name is dumb (tie in or not), but I always appreciate a new flavor no matter the reason.  Speaking of that new flavor, Pepsi X is dragon fruit flavored cola.  Dragon fruit flavored cola sounds like a horrible idea to me as I can’t think of many fruits that would mix well with a cola flavor outside of cherry and possibly lemon/lime if you’re just into that sort of thing.  Well… maybe apple would to, but that’s about it.  Needless to say my expectations are low for this limited edition soda that all the other soda review sites were talking about 5 months ago.  Let’s give it the old smell test.

It mostly smells like Pepsi, mostly.  One note before I continue describing the aroma of Pepsi X.  My dog is eating his food behind me and it sounds like he’s enjoying the ever loving love out of it.  The noises he’s creating “wolfing” (ha!) down his food is almost making me jealous of his dog food.  Perhaps this jealousy of dog food will help sway Pepsi X’s flavor in my favor.  Back to the review.  It mostly smells like Pepsi, mostly.  There is a secondary player at work here, the dragon fruit of course and I’m surprised to see that it’s represented well enough to appear in the smell test.  I still don’t think it will mix well with the taste of cola, but at least the Pepsi people didn’t just slip in a drop of dragon fruit and call it a day.  Taste time.

That is a peculiar Pepsi flavor.  The very beginning and end of the taste I just experienced is most certainly cola, but the middle is a sweet hodgepodge of flower and spice.  Not being familiar with the actual flavor of dragon fruit I can’t honestly say if it tastes like one or not although I will say that the flavor I was greeted with doesn’t seem like one nature would make on her own.  A second and third sip reveals more and more levels of spice that my first sip didn’t.  It seems as if there’s some cinnamon or nutmeg flavoring throughout, but before I’m able to greet each of them properly a hardy smack to the face is delivered by artificial sweeteners.  The cola aftertaste I first experienced has dwindled down to what seems like a chemical cola bath of tastes.  I was incorrect in thinking that dragon fruit and cola couldn’t mix, they do mix quite well.  I’m just saying that Pepsi X is not the pinnacle of dragon fruit/cola friendship.  Hopefully someone will or maybe already has created a higher end dragon fruit/cola mix.  I’m sure things taste a bit better when their made to taste pleasant instead of promoting a television show.  Dang it… I brought up the tie in again.

~A

Twist was on Star Search, he was one of the many runners up to Sam Harris