Champ's Cola

We’ve got an odd situation today.  I have a can in front of me that’s identical (except the name) to Quinabeer.  It’s red and has “Champion George Prince” on it flexing.  Seriously how many other cans of soda would look like this?  

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So much flexing.

My concern is that Champs Cola (btw I’m reviewing Champs Cola today) is just a rebranded Quinabeer.  If that’s the case then I’m going to be a little sad.  If that’s NOT the case then I’m going to be perplexed as to why an exact labeling doppleganger (minus the name) was created.

It smells like a bubble gum cream soda so I’m starting to think this is the exact same beverage.  That’s ok, I’ll still review it.  That way if someone (you) searches for Champ’s Cola they have an entry to find.  

Who knows, perhaps I’ll forget what I thought about it before and rate it differently.  I seriously hope that I don’t, but I’m not going to read my Quinabeer review until after I’m done.

Ok, so it’s a bubble gum cream with a hint of orange soda to boot.  It’s this orange kicker that makes me not dismiss it immediately as a bubble gum monstrosity.  I’m not big on the bubble gum if you haven’t concocted that thought yet.

Even though the orange is pleasing to my pallet the bubble gum is just too overpowering for me to really get into this soda.  That’s unfortunate for Champ’s Cola as I think expounding on the citrus flavor could really make this go a long way.  That’s kind of a cocky thought, but I’m a “Jerk” so it should be expected.

All in all, Champ’s Cola aka Quinabeer aka Champ’s Cola, has the makings of being excellent, but the ratios just aren’t quite there.

~A

This was given to me by Rasslin’ Jakit

Jupina

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I like this picture more than I should

Just when you think you have nothing to review someone goes to the Grand Cayman Islands and grabs you a soda.  Three sodas to be exact… well two sodas from Grand Cayman and one from Mexico.  The one in question today is Jupina, with a tilde over the “n” although I’m not really sure how to do that.

The labeling of Jupina involves a picture of a pineapple upon a pineapple background.  There’s a lot of pineapple involved here so let’s go ahead and assume that’s the flavor.  The ingredients show that this can has 50 grams of sugar in it.  That my friends is a bunch o’ sugar.  Other ingredients listed are standard artificially flavored soda fare.  Let’s crack the can and give it a go.

It smells a little bit like an orange pineapple mix, but I’m still thinking this is primarily a pineapple soda.  Trust me when I say I’d prefer it be orange/pineapple.  I’m not sure why you wouldn’t trust me on that, or why I even needed to say “trust me”.

That is not the color of a pineapple soda.  That is the color of a cream soda.  I’m now officially worried.

I’m no longer worried.  This is a pineapple cream soda and I’m 100% cool with that.  Pineapple cream isn’t something I’m used to, but the combo works out nicely.  In the case of Jupina though the cream outweighs the pineapple.  

This heavy cream taste keeps the pineapple’s bite at bay.  Not that a pineapple is a very violent fruit, but it’s not as tame as Jupina makes it seem.  Reaching the end of the sip you’re tapped by the grenade like fruit.  Honestly I’d compare it to someone accidentally shoulder checking you in a crowded venue.  It’s a little unexpected, but as long as you’re not a complete jerk you’ll quickly forget about it.

I can honestly say that Jupina has exceeded my expectations as a soda.  Perhaps if I could read the Spanish language I’d know it was pineapple cream, but I feel I enjoyed it more being a surprise.  

If I could change any aspect of it I’d add a bit more pineapple taste to give the end a little more violence.  The smooth cream start and bumpy end would be a nice ride for a soda to give.  

This soda was given to my by Rasslin’ Jakit

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

Bibita Aranciata

I have no idea what’s in store for me.  In front of me sits a bottle of Bibita Aranciata which has a woman making kissy faces at a glass of, what I can only presume is, Bibita Aranciata.  I think Paoletti makes this beverage as it’s another word on the label.  The ingredients suggest that this is a carbonated orange juice type beverage which would explain the amount of sediment I see floating in the bottle.  When in Italy…

It certainly does have a citrusy scent, or would that be a scintrus?  New words aside the aroma that arrived at my nostrils was somewhat inviting.  I’m looking forward to my carbonated OJ in hopes that its better than Orangina.  That’s not to say Orangina was bad, I’d just like this to be better.

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One of Twist's middle names is Paoletti... no relation.

It’s tingly on my lips and has a brisk citrus taste.  The carbonation is small, but fierce which helps with the sharpness of the orange flavor.  Oddly enough it doesn’t remind me at all of a sparkling orange juice.  It’s more in line with a citrus soda that happens to have orange juice in it.  This allows the flavor to be crisp, light, and somewhat refreshing.  

Upon taking a larger swig the orange juice flavor seems to also have a grapefruit side-kick as there is just a touch of bitterness to each sip.  Now by reading the ingredients we know that there isn’t any grapefruit in here.  I’m just telling you what I taste.  

On another surprising level I didn’t even notice the copious amounts of sediment I saw earlier.  I figured at the very least they would alter the mouth feel, but alas they did not.  So I guess I became a little smarter today.  Bibita Aranciata is a sparkling citrus beverage from Italy and one I would recommend you try.

~A

This beverage was purchased from World Market

Sodafruit Pashun Froot Soda

If a bottle of soda could talk then this bottle in front of me would have an epic tale.  It started in New Zealand and boarded a wooden box with three of its friends.  This wooden box toured the world for about a month and a half before arriving at my doorstep.  Who knows what adventures it had out on the open seas, gallivanting with pirates and the like.  Upon opening said wooden box I was happy to see my new friend, a bottle of Sodafruit Pashun Froot Soda.  A particularly fun name that allows you to say the words in reverse order and still have the same beverage.  Exciting to try this new (not on the market yet) soda from Sodafruit I has no hesitation that I’d love it.  Then I saw the seeds. 

The seeds of a passion fruit are obvious especially when they reside in a delightful orange soda.  They look like a smaller version of a watermelon seed measuring about ¼ of an inch in length.  I asked the CEO of Sodafruit about this off putting look and he assured me that the best flavor he can make with a passion fruit involves the seeds.  Not being a soda maker I must trust this judgment, but I still researched it.  Passion fruit seeds are incredibly good for you, so while my tentativeness still lingers my fear of death has quelled. 

Why should I worry?  Why should I care?  This is from Sodafruit, one of my favorite makers of soda products.  They’ve never steered me wrong before, why would it now?  The ingredients listed are Carbonated Water, Cane Sugar, Passion Fruit Pulp, Lemon Juice, Spices, and a preservative that keeps it from fermenting.  See, nothing to worry about.

Interestingly enough I have no personal knowledge of the singled out flavor of a passion fruit.  A quick look into our database shows me I’ve never even had a passion fruit soda.  I’ve had sodas that use passion fruit in combination, but never just a passion fruit.  The time is ripe to try one.

Since there is a fair amount of pulp and seeds involved with this beverage I’m going to upend it prior to opening.  WOW, it’s like the tropics punched me in the nose.  An overwhelming aroma of passion fruit charges from the mouth of the bottle.  Immediately inviting my taste buds to the party it’s holding inside.  There’s no reason that I should show up fashionably late to this soiree.

Oddly enough, Twist isn't the seediest character in this picture

It’s like I’m biting into a fruit.  Since I’ve never had a passion fruit I can only assume this is what one tastes like.  When “passion fruit pulp” pulp is your third ingredient it’s a safe bet your soda tastes like passion fruit.  Flavor aside, it’s the reaction this has with my mouth and the feel of the beverage that is reminding me of enjoying a tropical fruit.  A dash of carbonation adds to the citrusy punch of the added lemon juice.  This zesty sensation keeps the soda from feeling too heavy or syrupy, allowing you to go back for more without it feeling overly heavy.

 As far as the seeds are concerned, the majority of them are content to sit plainly at the bottom of the bottle.  Occasionally one swims up to go on its last hurrah and it’s at this point I’m not sure if I could chew them or just swallow them whole.   Swallowing them whole seems to be the best bet for me, but if you decided to chew that wouldn’t create an issue for you either.  Now that I’m nearing the bottom of the bottle the seed to liquid ratio is tilting toward heavy seed.  This caused the mouth feel of my last sip to be a bit bumpy, which I could definitely see being off putting for some.

Now here’s where I ask myself would I rather a lower quality passion fruit soda if it meant taking out the seeds?  No, I wouldn’t.  Sodafruit Pashun Froot Soda may be a bit off putting to look at, but it’s excellent in all aspects.  Perhaps a few less seeds would bump up the score to perfection, but like I said earlier… it’s a work in progress.

~A

This soda provided to us by Sodafruit

Canada Dry Hot

So normally I'd just link you to Episode 46 - The Popcast Spectacular and call it a day, but we spent nearly $10 on this 3oz can so I figured it was worth giving a written review to.  Actually YOU spent nearly $10 on this can because we bought it with your donations!  Thank you so very much for donating so that we can review international beverages such as this!

Just so you're aware this review was written after we recorded the Podcast, but is written using my memory of the situation.  The rating used will by mine (Aaron) and everything below this paragraph will be accurate to my initial opinions of the soda at hand.

I think what called us to Canada Dry Hot other than the fact that it's a Japanese soda, is that it seems like a really good idea from the get go.  Hot ginger ale just works well within the logical portions of my mind.  The fact that Coke did a ton of research to allow cans to be heated without issue makes me believe that there was a market that agreed with my mind.  The last time a market agreed with my mind we got burnable CD's and I think we all know how successful that is.  Oh, you didn't know I invented that technology?  Well I didn't, but as a kid I had the idea so that counts for something... be it less than .001%.  

This isn't the time to talk about what could have been, it's the time to talk about what's in front of me.  I have a tiny can of soda with Japanese writing all over it.  All I know is that this can contains Canada Dry Hot Ginger Ale.  To prepare this liquid within this can for consumption we've taken a few steps.  Normally there would be a heated vending machine on the street and we'd just pick out what we wanted and drink it.  Since "normally" is in Japan we're going to have to heat this up through our own methods.  We got a pot of water boiling on the stove and we're going to remove it from its heat source.  Now we shall place the can in the heated water until we become too nervous to let it sit any longer.  Perhaps we'll drape a towel over it as well because we're terrified.  

As we're waiting I'm in a permanent flinch phase.  I know that Coke has designed these cans to be heated, but my brain still finds this to be so out of the ordinary it's worried.  Ok, ten minutes seems good.  Removing the can with a pair of tongs we're ready to crack 'er open, but need a pair of gloves to do so because of the heat coming off the can.  It's incredibly weird seeing steam come out of a soda can as I pour it into this mug.

The aroma that I'm experiencing is wonderful.  It smells like a light apple cider and makes me wish for a few more weeks of winter.  When I'm greeted with a bouquet like this I often pretend I'm in the comic strip Calvin and Hobbes.  Their winters always seemed to be so much fun and I could almost feel the warmth of the fireplace.  Sadly though I only have this mug to enjoy, so I best get to enjoying it.

It's always a treat when the aroma accurately represents the taste.  Science probably says it should happen more often than not, but to me it seems to be about a 50/50 shot.  For the record our heating time and method worked flawlessly.  This is a fantastic sipping temperature and I wouldn't change a thing about it.  Each tiny sip I'm taking is filled the same light apple flavor I inhaled.  The spices used coat the back of my throat causing the slightest of burns, but adding to the overall effect of the beverage.  Only when I pull the can away does the ginger ale make itself known and it does indeed taste like a hot Canada Dry.  Thankfully the initial flavors seep into every second of my drinking experience, improving even the aftertaste.  Placing my face over the mouth of the mug builds a smile on my face and an anticipation of what is to come.  Another sip taken takes me on the same winding path of apple, spice, and finally ginger ale.  It's a combination that would be difficult to find error in as it creates its own nostalgia for a beverage I've never had before.  

While the carbonation seemed plentiful at the pour, like the world in The Neverending Story it has all but disappeared.  We're left with a single grain of sand to rebuild from and that is plenty considering what it has to work with.  

Canada Dry Hot will probably go down as the highest rated big name soda we've tried to date.  Would I spend $10 more dollars to get a second can?  I  might, but that's still nonsensically expensive for what it is.  Hopefully one day this product will make its way to America or at least become cheaper to get our hands on.

~A

Your donations brought us this beverage

So much Japanese

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.

Sodafruit- Boysenberry Soda

With my “sick mouth” fully gone now that I’ve been to the dentist I believe it’s time to start up the reviews again.  My smell-o-meter is functioning at a near peak level of 70% (peak for me is probably around 80%) and I’ve got one last bottle of Sodafruit to hopefully enjoy.  Today’s version of Sodafruit is Boysenberry Soda.  I chose to review this last because the last 30 years of my life have left me with little information on the taste of boysenberries.  The closest I’ve had to actual boysenberryies are dewberries, black berries, and raspberries.  Since a boysenberry is the child of a few of those I listed I feel that I can still give an accurate taste assessment, but you won’t be seeing the sentence “this tastes exactly like boysenberry” at any other point in the article.  Before I begin I’d like to list the ingredients of Sodafruit Boysenberry Soda because they are worth mentioning:  Carbonated water, cane sugar, boysenberries, lemon juice, citric acid, preservative (202).  Now that you know we’re dealing with some top notch ingredients (sans mystery preservative) I’ll continue.  Onward!

Before I opened the bottle I upended it and saw a large amount of seed/pulp floating around.  This may be a rather intense texture situation or I won’t notice the pulp at all, either way I’m excited.  The soda has a robust blackberry cobbler smell to it that’s very rich on even a scent level.  While I know this usually equals greatness I’m a little concerned about how rich Sodafruit Boysenberry is going to be.

The first thing I notice is that its mouth feel is a bit thicker than your regular soda.  Not V8 thick by any means, but its viscosity is a bit higher than Soda-X.  Sodafruit Boysenberry is also a bit harsher on the throat than Apple Crumble and Strawberry were and I think that’s to be expected due to the tart nature of the fruit used for flavoring.  The taste is rich, much like biting into a juicy dew/blackberry as the sweetness overcomes how sharp the soda’s flavor is about halfway through each gulp.  Much like when I reviewed the strawberry soda, the pulp I was worried about becoming a distraction has done nothing but blend into the background only to be seldom noticed. 

While delicious on many levels some might find this a bit too rich for their liking.  Each drink coats your mouth in boysenberry goodness, but it can feel a bit heavy at times.  If I could change something about it I’d maybe make it a bit lighter with a touch more fizz.  I know that adjusting the carbonation levels on a soda like this can be tricky, but I’m not dealing with science in my requests… I’m just waving a magic wand around without care.  Oh look at that, Stephen Moffat has gone back to writing individual episodes of Doctor Who instead of running the series and I’ve brought back Surge.  Now that I suddenly have the need to change a few things I’ll leave you with a sentence that you could have read instead of this review. 

Sodafruit Boysenberry Soda is full-bodied soda with a succulent taste that permeates every crevasse of your mouth and while it isn’t syrupy a nudge toward the lighter/fizzier side wouldn’t hurt.

~A

This soda supplied to us by Sodafruit

Twist spend 7 years on Knott's Berry Farm

Sodafruit - Strawberry Soda

I even licked Twist to get the flavor off of him

So the last review I did was for Sodafruit Apple Crumble and it blew me away.  Today we take another look at Sodafruit, but this time the cards aren’t in their favor and here’s why.  Apple is one of my favorite flavors of soda… strawberry is not due to the fact that strawberry soda is usually over sweetened to the point of being sickly.  I’m not saying that there aren’t good strawberry sodas out there; I’m just saying that there aren’t many that agree with my palate.  Hopefully my concerns are nullified due to Sodafruit’s simple ingredient list which is as follows:  Carbonated water, cane sugar, strawberries, lemon juice, citric acid, and preservative (202).  With an ingredient list as simple as that (minus the preservative of course)  I’d say Sodafruit Strawberry Soda has a decent chance of setting itself apart from the sticky sugary soda I associate with strawberries.  Onward!

Upon opening I get a very natural smelling strawberry scent and understandably so since there are bits of strawberry floating around in the bottle.  The scent also reminds me of one of those real fancy strawberry lemonades you might get from one of them sit down eateries, the kind you don’t get free refills on.  There’s only one way to figure out if my nose is telling my tongue the truth… well there’s probably a few, but drinking seems the best at the moment.

That’s damn good.  The natural strawberry taste shines through like gangbusters and it’s been sweetened to just the right amount.  A light fizz is ever present keeping the drink fun with every sip.  I find myself licking my lips to get every last bit of flavor I possibly missed during the initial swig.  The floating strawberry bits I mentioned earlier are noticeable, but unobtrusive.  If you’ve ever had natural strawberry lemonade with chunks of strawberry you know that despite its name strawberry doesn’t play well with straws as it keeps getting stuck within them creating “lemonade rage”.  If you were to consume Soda fruit Strawberry soda via straw you would have no such “rage”.  Since I’m on the topic of strawberry lemonade once again I must mention that the lemon juice used in the making of this soda can be seen in the shadows if you look hard enough.  If you’re a fan of Seuss then just picture the strawberry soda as Horton while the lemon juice sits atop the clover he protects with his life. 

With that last analogy being average at best and my Sodafruit Strawberry Soda bottle sadly empty it’s time to wrap up.  Sodafruit Strawberry is a wonderful experience of natural strawberry taste.  While noticeably sweet it’s not so much that you’ll regret coming back for more as the light carbonation keeps you interested.  I have no problem saying that at this point in time it’s the best strawberry soda I’ve ever had.

~A

This soda supplied to us by Sodafruit.

A “Twist’s Choice” Recipient

Sodafruit - Apple Crumble

Twist is mostly fruit juice

Now that my vacation is over it’s time to take a break.  Take a break from Dublin Bottling Works soda that is!  While I still have 6 or so more DBW flavors to go I recently received 3 bottles from Sodafruit that require my immediate attention as they’re made from an upstart brewer in New Zealand.  If you remember our reviews of the Hotlips brand of sodas I have a feeling that Sodafruit will be similar in taste and quality.  The ingredients of Sodafruit Apple Crumble are as follows:  carbonated water, cane sugar, apple juice, lemon juice, spices, and preservative (202).  While I’m not a fan of numbered preservatives, since I have no idea what they mean, I’ll stave off judgment until consumption.  I especially like that the nutrition label separates the amounts of cane sugar and fruit sugar.  The label itself is very simplistic, but it’s a simplistic soda so I honestly have no beef with this.  So there you have it.  Sodafruit is from New Zealand and seems to favor simple ingredients.  Why did I write a paragraph on a description I could have done in a sentence?  Onward!

I actually swore when I smelled this soda for the first time.  It smells like Apple Crumble.  It doesn’t smell like chemicals made to smell like Apple Crumble; it straight up smells like Apple Crumble/Pie.  If you’re an avid citizen of the Carbo-Nation then you know that Reed’s Spiced Apple Brew is my favorite beverage of all time due to its apple pie aftertaste.  Will Sodafruit Apple Crumble fall in the same delicious category?  The hype has started to build.

Apple Juice soda with a dash of cinnamon to boot!  Sodafruit Apple Crumble has a low level of carbonation that allows me to easily brush the bubbles aside and really taste the apple.  Speaking of the apple, the apple flavor in this is amazingly honest.  Sodafruit Apple Crumble is apple juice 2.0.  It may not have the nutritional values of apple juice, but it’s improved on the taste.  I do wish the “spices” were a bit more prevalent in their taste although the amount that’s used is still plenty to alter the flavor pleasurably.  I’m surprised at how refreshing an apple crumble flavored soda can be actually.  I was expecting a sweeter concoction that sat a little heavier in my mouth, but throughout the drinking process was delighted to find a lighter soda with a fairly clean finish.

 Overall Sodafruit Apple Crumble is one of the best sodas I’ve ever had the pleasure of drinking.  It doesn’t unseat Reed’s Spiced Apple Brew as my favorite, but its simple ingredients, refreshingly light mouth-feel, and glorious flavor have made me a fan for life.

~A

This soda supplied to us by Sodafruit

A “Twist’s Choice” Recipient

Smart Peach

Today’s entry comes all the way from China courtesy of my good friend DeeAicht.  What I’ve got in front of me today is a Coke brand called Smart and fortunately two of the three words listed in English on this bottle identify the flavor as “Peach Flavor”.  I’m sure I could have figured it out with images of peaches exploding from the word “Smart”, but it’s nice to be reassured.  You may remember when Mike went to Epcot he reviewed Smart Watermelon as part of the Club Cool review experience.  If not I’m sure I linked it somewhere in the previous sentence.  A Peach flavored soda from China sure seems like a pretty good way to cap off the week, let’s find out if I’m right.

There is a peach scent, but it’s buried deeply underneath a vague citrus aroma.  I really had to search out the smell of peaches and there’s still a pretty good chance my brain just made one up so I would continue on with my life.  Now I’m kind of curious as to what this will actually taste like.

Well fortunately I’m not a cat because, as with every review, my curiosity got to me and I took a sip of the soda.  I’m happy to say that there is no citrus taste and that the peach flavoring is enjoyable.  A light carbonation brushes against my tongue, followed by a rather realistic impersonation of a peach.  After the gulp had been taken the taste intensified like it was challenging me to take another swig.  I’ve had a few peach sodas in the past and this one is the lightest of the bunch in terms of flavor and mouth feel.  It is of note that with each drink Smart Peach builds on itself becoming less and less clean, but it’s not something that would keep me from recommending it to anyone.  As with any soda that wanes in this manner I must still deduct points because who only cares what the first half of their soda tastes like if it degrades over the consuming period.  All in all Smart Peach is an alright peach soda that you probably won’t ever see unless you make your way to China.  If for some reason you find yourself in this situation feel safe in your selection if you happen to pick up a bottle from the store.

~A

Chinese is one of the several languages in which Twist has mastered.  All dialects by the way.

Fanta Orange with Sugar

Well I’m still scraping by on drinks to review due to my laziness of doing that thing where you get in the big steel box and direct it to one of those large boxes where people find the different sodas.  So today we’re once again relying on my local foodery, a place I’m treating like a dog treats a bone in the yard.  Gotta save it for later, don’t finish the bone, gotta save it for later.  Today’s scrounging has brought me in contact with Fanta Orange.  “Big whoop” you might say and if you did I’d probably chuckle at you.  This isn’t your ordinary Fanta Orange, this Fanta Orange hails from Mexico which means… wait for it… yes it’s sweetened with real sugar.  I’m pretty sure most of us are vaguely familiar with Fanta, but if not here goes the sentence summary.  Fanta is the brand Coke uses for fruit flavors.  Heck you might even remember the Fanta Girls asking if you “Wanna Fanta?  Don’t you wanna?”  If none of that rings your doorbells don’t worry, it’s just orange soda.

After using my trusty vintage “Colorado County Federal Savings and Loan Association” bottle opener I’m greeted with the familiar scent of orange soda.  It’s not over powering, it’s not amazing, it’s faint and it’s orange.  Moving on.

Immediately I’m impressed by the light mouth feel this sugar sweetened beverage gives me, but that’s the finish and around here we start from the beginning.  Upon first consumption of Fanta Orange my taste buds are greeted with sweet orange flavor.  It’s similar to your basic orange candy, but slightly less powerful in taste.  The orange essence sits flatly in your mouth for a few seconds before the bubbles set in before coating your tongue with light fizzy bubbles.  Throughout the entire experience though there’s the very subtle hint of cardboard.  It doesn’t ruin the taste by any means, but it’s most definitely present.  Now this “cardboard” taste might only be in my world as I’ve noticed that it’s present in many of the orange sodas I’ve tasted.  Frostie, while I like it a lot, is the strongest example of that.  With all that said Fanta Orange is still a pretty good orange soda, but nothing you need to seek out.  If you’re already a Fan of Fanta (I really hope that’s been an advertising campaign of theirs) then try and find yourself a bottle of the Mexican version.  If you’re just “alright” with Orange Fanta then I’d say go ahead and stick to the HFCS version because it’s not worth the extra effort to find this.

~A

Twist invented soda flavored stamps back in the 70's, but no one wanted to buy from an iguana... pity.

IVI Carbonated Orangeade

I honestly couldn’t tell you what I’m reviewing today.  It’s sitting here right in front of me, but I can’t pronounce it even if I tried.  You see, today’s drink is from Greece and it’s called hbh Carbonated Orangeade.  The only reason I know it’s carbonated orangeade is because the “English” side of the bottle tells me that, but those are the only words in English I can spot.  The label, other than being 98% Greek displays numerous fun images like an MP3 player and a guitar in an orange tint.  Using a Google Translation I check out their website and see that hbh Carbonated Orangeade is sweetened with sugar and also includes 20% orange juice.  I also found out that it can be called IVI Carbonated Orangeade as well.  I’m going to use that from here on out just to help out the search engines.  Thanks website!  Heck they even have a Youtube video on here showing you how it’s made.  Maybe I’ll check that out after this review.  As for now, I have a somewhat less mysterious soda to drink.

I’m not sure how carbonated this is supposed to be, but it has little to none.  I’m going to go ahead and attribute this to the long distance it travelled being shaken all the way.  Hopefully the taste will still be delightful enough for a good review, but I will definitely factor in that it might actually have carbonation if consumed directly from the store.

Ok, so there is the slightest touch of carbonation, which tells me that IVI Carbonated Orangeade usually has more.  As for the taste, I really like it.  The orange juice and orange soda mixture is done perfectly combining the best of both drinks beautifully.  The sweetness of the orange soda leaves your mouth very pleased with what it’s consuming, but the orange juice almost tricks your brain into thinking what you’re consuming is healthy.  As I was trying to figure out how many grams of sugar are in this (39g btw) I found that IVI Carbonated Orangeade is a Pepsi-Co product.  I thought that website looked pretty fancy for it not to be attached to one of the big two.  I’ve tasted carbonated orange juice before when I reviewed Orangina and I must say that IVI Carbonated Orangeade is the better of the two.  Now you’ll probably find Orangina a bit more easily in the states, but if for some reason you travel to a place that has them both, maybe Santa Paula, California Citrus or Ganzhou, Jiangxi, China… you should probably chose the IVI.  While I truly enjoy this beverage I’m going to stop drinking it because I’m not really sure when, or if, it has expired.  If it hasn’t expired then it’s a fantastic beverage that will fulfill any want or need for oranges you might have… minus vitamin C of course.  Now if this bottle of IVI Carbonated Orangeade has indeed expired then I’m not sure my tongue could stand to see what it tasted like “fresh”.  For now though I’m going to grade it on the flavor and mouth feel I just experienced.  Know that this rating is probably lower than it deserves, but until I crack open a brand new bottle it’ll have to work.

~A

Nothing is Greek to Twist.

Chubby Orango Tango

As you may have noticed this year, primarily… well only from this site, the newest trend going on is that orange sodas now represent the feeling of winter.  Put it up there with crisp cool air, family, and ice skating.  Today’s festivities allow us to open another bottle of Chubby, this one with the interestingly named flavor of Orango Tango.  Today the mascot on the label, who I assume is named Chubby, just seems to be standing there smiling at me.  He’s a rather friendly looking fellow.  If you don’t feel like reading previous Chubby reviews I’ll give you a quick rundown.  Chubby is a drink from Mexico sweetened with sugar and tends to be very average in taste while being overly sweet.  Let’s find out if Orango Tango walks along this same path.

Chubby Orango Tango smells like a fun fizzy orange as the bubbles jump up to grab my nose.  Hopefully they’re welcoming me to the drinking experience and not trying to warn me of my impending doom.  That might be a Twilight Zone episode, but I’m going to chalk it up as an original idea.

Bleh.  Chubby Orango Tango has very little carbonation so I’m now in fear of whatever was jumping up at my nose making me think it was fun bubbles, or fubbles.  There is an orange taste thankfully, but it’s one masked in the shroud of cardboard as so many mediocre to bad orange sodas are.  When I say something tastes like cardboard I’m not using that as a blanket statement that it tastes badly.  This actually tastes of cardboard, like you licked a packing box of some sort.  The only thing Chubby Orango Tango has going for it is that the aftertaste reminds me of generic orange candy that you might find in a Piñata.  I can’t recommend this to anyone.  You could go to the store and pick up a Sunkist, chemicals and all, and it would taste much better than Chubby Orango Tango.  I’m going to throw an artistic fit now and claim that this soda has brought me such banal flavoring that I’m too distraught to continue this review.

~A

Twist is ashamed to be this close to mediocrity.

Chubby Tutti Frutti

It seems like just last week when I first tried Chubby brand beverages.  Oh yeah, it was!  Today’s 250 ml. bottle is full of Tutti Frutti flavored Chubby brand soda.  I have higher hopes for the Tutti Frutti (already annoying to spell) flavor soda because it’s has a wider spectrum of what it should taste like than say blueberry.  The little chubby mascot on the front of the bottle is playing either tennis or racquetball.  I’m not sure if either have anything to do with Tutti Frutti, but I’ll still give it a shot.  Remember Chubby brand sodas use cane sugar for sweetening so we’re already starting off on the right foot.  Let’s proceed, shall we?

Mmmmm, that smells like delicious cherry, orange, strawberry, sweet, sugary goodness.  So in short, it smells like red kool-aid.  I’m literally salivating at the prospect of trying this beverage in front of me that could taste like red kool-aid.  Enough with the smells.

I feverishly chugged half the bottle down with the anticipation that it would be a carbonated red kool-aid soda.  While I wasn’t disappointed in the flavor it is not red kool-aid soda.  Chubby Tutti Frutti gives you the initial cherry/strawberry flavoring you’d expect with just a touch of carbonation.  While this is all fine and dandy like sour candy the finish is where this beverage falls short of what it could be.  The mid-taste to aftertaste portion of this particular type of Chubby tastes like a cherry cough drop.  It’s not sorta like a cherry cough drop, it doesn’t remind me of a cherry cough drop, it tastes exactly like a cherry cough drop (Halls to be exact) without the medicinal qualities.  So in short here’s what you get.  You get a red kool-aidesque slightly carbonated beverage that tastes like a cough drop 50% of the time you’re consuming it.  Is it terrible?  No, not at all, in fact I finished the bottle just fine.  Is it better than Chubby BlueBerry?  Yes, yes it is.  While Chubby Tutti Frutti might not be the best example of a fruit punch soda, it does have enough positive qualities to warrant its rating.

~A

Faux Fact: Twist founded Wimbledon

Chubby BlueBerry Blast

I’ve got a Chubby.  Now that the name of the drink has been said and the most obvious joke in my arsenal has been played, we can move on like the intellectual citizens we are.  Today’s drink was supplied to me by Double Abeyta and its full name is Chubby BlueBerry Blast Soda.  Chubby beverages apparently come in a short 8.45 Fl. Oz. (250 ml.) bottle adorned with a chubby cartoon character.  There is no “story of chubby”, or “facts about chubby”, or even a name for the chubby cartoon character… although I’m assuming his name is Chubby.  This is a product of Trinidad & Tobago so this is fortunately sweetened with sugar.  The rest of the ingredients are chemicals, but at least we can rely on good ol’ trust worthy sugar.  I’m a fan of blueberry soda so let’s move this review in the appropriate direction.

Chubby BlueBerry Blast smells like shampoo.  It’s a fruity smell, but it’s a shampooey smell as well.  If I use my imagination I can pretend to smell the scent of blueberry candy… this calms my thoughts.  On to the drink!

While it does taste a bit like a fruity shampoo might, I’m happy to announce that shampoo is not the dominating flavor.  This subtly carbonated beverage also tastes like chemicals flavored to resemble blueberries.  Herein lies the problem with Chubby BlueBerry Blast… it doesn’t taste like blueberries at all.  This tastes like a hodgepodge of blue candies blended together with little care what the end result was.  I’m also sad(?) to say that the more I drink it the more this does indeed taste like I’m drinking shampoo.   Maybe if Chubby BlueBerry Blast was marketed as a drinkable shampoo I’d give it more “props” as the kids say.  Who am I kidding the kids don’t say that anymore, nor am I old enough to use the phrase “as the kids say”.  With its impossible to ignore soapy flavor I wonder what would happen if I combined Chubby with bland boringness of Neurogasm.  Someone with a lower brow than I can write that joke… I’ll just sit back and laugh at it.

~A

Twist used to have hair until he willed it away.

Schin Guarana

SCHIN!  Looks like a sound effect of some sort doesn’t it?  It’s almost a bike.  It also could be a misspelled body part.  Today though, Schin is a soda… and its full name is Schin Guarana to be more specific.  We’ve dealt with Guarana before, but just as a reminder here’s what it is.  Guarana is a climbing plant commonly found in Brazil that is especially good at producing caffeine.  The fruit of a Guarana plant produces about twice the caffeine as a coffee bean while being approximately the same size.  Now you have something to mildly impress your friends with.  Who am I kidding?  They’re gonna stop listening right after you say “Guess what I learned yesterday from this soda review site.”  Schin Guarana, from here on being called Shin, is indeed a Brazilian beverage brought to me by The Coolest Man on the Planet.  The can art that surrounds the liquid known as Schin would make Willy Wonka proud.  It’s resembles the colors you might find in a tie-dyed shirt… without the tie portion.  Schin does use real deal sugar so I’m happy to see that on the label as well.  Enough of this blibber blabber, on to the drinking!

Upon opening this 350ml can I get very little aroma at all.  Maybe if I knew what Guarana smelled like I could identify it, but I don’t so I’m sorry.  The only scent I do detect is that of bubble gum.  It’s not your pink bubble gum standard smell, but I can’t describe it in any other way.  If I practically inhale the beverage through my nostrils I can also pick out the scent of red delicious apples.  Again, maybe Guarana smells like bubble gum and apples… I have no clue.  Let’s move on to something I might be a bit better at.  Drink on.

Well that’s odd.  Schin’s carbonation level is lower than I expected it to be.  While many drinks go for the “numerous tiny bubbles to make your tongue burn” technique, Schin goes for the “less giant bubbles that just kind of fumble around” technique.  The taste I am greeted with is one of gum and apples.  It’d be crass of me to say that’s all that I can taste, but the flavor is more complicated than the words I can use.  I honestly think this is probably what Guarana tastes like.  I really need to become more familiar with Guarana (a word I’ve never typed so many times before in my life) so that I can better assess situations like this.  Schin is a tasty drink with a somewhat tasty aftertaste.  This is a bit sweeter, and fruitier than I like my sodas but I can see why it’s so successful.  I’m not sure you should pick up multiples of Schin if you saw it in a store though.  Perhaps just one and see if your love grows from that single seed.  That single Schin seed.

~A

Faux Fact:  Twist is the official everything of Brazil

Topo Sabores Apple

Who doesn’t love apple soda… well besides Johnny Appleseed of course?  I always figured being around all those apples would eventually make him sick of them.  Sure he helped shape America with all he did involving apples, but I bet he only ate them to keep up his image.  Fortunately Johnny “Appleseed” Chapman isn’t here to review this Topo Sabores Apple soda.  Also fortunately… is not a proper way to start a sentence but… also fortunately I am here to review this bottle of Topo Sabores Apple Soda.  As you might be able to tell by the name, Topo Sabores hails from Mexico and uses delicious cane sugar as a sweetener as well as HFCS just to confuse us.  We’ve done a few of their drinks before so I’ll just add a link here… and maybe here.  Let’s all read about me smelling this soda now. Pop Pop!

The scent coming out of the neck of this bottle is definitely that of an apple, but I will say that it’s also a bit more subtle than I expected.  At first it smells like apple juice only to have the scent change to sweet soda at the last second, almost fooling you into thinking it was healthy.  Drink time.

Very nice.  Very nice indeed.  This apple soda even tastes a bit like apple juice even though the bottle lists no such ingredient.  With each sip I’m greeted with a touch of spice, much like you would experience in eggnog.  Before my mind gets a chance to think too hard on eggnog soda the spice quickly dissipates into a mildly carbonated apple juice flavored soda.  The aftertaste reminds me of a red apple/green apple hybrid.  It is sweet and tart at the same time and lasts considerably longer than any of the other tastes you’ll experience.  As much as I like Topo Sabores Apple Soda it doesn’t actually “wow” me.  This is an above average soda, and I will suggest you buy multiples, but it’s lacking a special something that would set it apart from being slightly above average.

~A

One day Twist will be on a bottle of soda.

Kickapoo Joy Juice

Another beverage given to me by the MMAgician and hailing from Singapore is Kickapoo Joy Juice.  Judging by the green and yellow coloration of the can I’m going to assume this is similar to a Mountain Dew (or MTN DEW) product.  Now on the can and this where it gets weird, are two characters from the now defunct comic strip Li’l Abner.  Character number one is “Lonesome Polecat”.  Lonesome Polecat is drawn how you would think a Native American would be drawn back when Li’l Abner was a comic strip.  That would be from 1934-1977 for reference.  The second character in charge of making this Kickapoo Joy Juice is “Hairless Joe”.  Hairless Joe is a caveman that lives in modern times.  He’s got a giant club, a leopard skin outfit, and even though his name suggests it he is most certainly not hairless.  Now that you know the cast of characters let me tell you what they’re doing on this logo.  Lonesome Polecat and Hairless Joe seem to be sitting in a tub of Kickapoo Joy Juice that has created an explosion so large (a mushroom cloud is visible) that they have rocketed themselves out of Earth’s orbit.  Underneath said picture read the words “Original USA Joy Juice Recipe”.  So at least we know we’re getting the real deal here.  The ingredients are as follows, Carbonated Water, Sucrose, Citric Acid, Sodium Citrate, Stabilizers (what?), Flavouring, Preservative, Colour E102, and Caffeine.  With all that said, let’s try out some of Lonesome Polecat and Hairless Joe’s mixture… which according to the Li’l Aber Wiki page is made in a cave.

As I assumed this is certainly a Mountain Dew-esque beverage, or at least the smell would have me believe that.  If I had to pick a scent which stands out over the other citrus aromas that are escaping the can I’d go with lemon.  Time to hopefully enjoy my 10.9 fluid ounces of Kickapoo Joy Juice!

The top of this can reads “Get That Kick!” and I certainly would have loved to have “Gotten it” but it’s not in the cards for Kickapoo Joy Juice.  Kickapoo Joy Juice, which I enjoy typing out, tastes like a diluted Mountain Dew.  If it were just a diluted Mountain Dew I could probably sign off on it fairly easily but there’s more.  With every drink there’s another flavor, sorry, flavour that sits on your tongue like a fat cat sits on a warm windowsill.  While this flavour isn’t horrible it is unmoving and very noticeable to me.  The rest of your mouth becomes a moderately fun party with each sip and your tongue is the grouchy neighbor downstairs who keeps ruining it through various means… and begin scene using characters from Zelda.

Link - “Hey guys!  Ummmm, no one could really make it to the party today, so I’m glad you came.  Want to drag out the old pop-o-matic bubble for a rousing game of Trouble?”

**knock knock knock** 

“Oh hi officer, what can I do for you?” 

Officer Armos - “We got a call from the Old Man downstairs saying that you were making far too much noise up here.”

Link – “But we were just about to play a bo….”

Officer Armos – “I don’t really care; just keep it down would you?”

Link – “Ok, sorry [closes door].  So where were we?

Zelda – “Actually Link I think Ganon and I are gonna head out.

Link – “…but he’s going to kidna… nevermind.  Just make sure he doesn’t get all feely with your triforce.”

Aaaand scene!  Ok, that example that went on for too long was more enjoyable than the flavor that is still sitting on my tongue.  I guess the best way to describe Kickapoo Joy Juice is this.  Kickapoo Joy Juice is a soda.  It’s nothing special in the slightest but still consumable.

~A

Twist actually starred in Li'l Abner between the years 1943-1945.