Safeway Grape Soda

   This may be my last generic grape soda for a while... as much as I love them I’m kind of tired of reviewing them so often.Who knows, maybe I’ll move onto orange.Anywho, today’s entry is Safeway Grape Soda (purchased at Kroger).This is another free drink from a co-worker, which I love getting.If I knew all the drinks I’d get for free by just reviewing them, I might have reviewed electronics instead.

   The can art is simplistic, which is always a plus with me.I’m not really fond of the fact that the Safeway name is clearly visible on the can, I’d much rather them title it something besides “grape” and remove the store label.The ingredients are chemicals, which is why I’m not going to even bother listing them.Something I did learn though is that it takes Red Dye 40, and Blue Dye 1 to make this particular shade of purple.Here goes the test.

   First off there is way too much burn for me in this drink.I can feel it on the roof of my mouth, my tongue, and even under my tongue.I’m all for a little kick with my drinks, but this is too much.When an “All Natural” drink has some burn, I usually savor it... unlike a “chemical” drink where I just associate the burn with chemicals.Grape sodas should have some sort of smooth taste to them; this one has way too much tingle.Past the actual feel of the drink, it’s your generic grape soda.It’s a little weaker on the grape flavor, but that may be because your mouth is more concentrated on the previously mentioned feel.Safeway Grape Soda isn’t a bad grape soda, I’ve just had several better.If given the opportunity, just get Grapette.

~A

Oogave Grapefruit Soda

   Mike's review on Oogave Key Lime was so good that I decided to take the full plunge into Oogave, and get a flavor I normally wouldn't... grapefruit. Grapefruit soda's don't really appeal to me, so take that into consideration during this review. I don't think that Mike particularly likes them either, so I just went ahead and decided to review it.

   I will say that Oogave gets points instantly from me for having a different bottle cap for each beverage. I know that seems stupid and small, but I like it when people change up their bottle caps for different flavors, even if (in this case) it's just the color. My other favorite thing about this bottle is the tiny Esteban's Seal of Approval on the bottom right of the main logo. I'd love to have a shirt with that on it for some reason. That'd be on one side of the shirt, with the Oogave logo on the other... instant gold.

   Upon opening the bottle I take a whiff, and notice some solid citrus scent, almost orange, but not quite. I guess that's sort of what a grapefruit is most like though... sort of an orange. Wow... I can honestly tell you the flavor surprised me a lot. My feeling toward most grapefruit sodas is marred by the fact that they are usually sour/bitter much like a normal grapefruit. This soda has zero bitterness in it, making it good for even someone that would hate grapefruit.   Some might say "doesn't that mean if I love grapefruit, I'd hate the soda?"  Not necessarily, you'd have your grapefruit, the flavor would just be more subtle.  I would like for it to have a little more flavor though, as I have to search for it on occasion. There is little to no bite to this at all, as it's very smooth. It's also not overly carbonated, so those of you who don't like a lot of carbonation would enjoy this beverage. The more I drink, the more recognizable the grapefruit flavor becomes, which means I probably should have up-ended the bottle before enjoying. Still though, it's not an over powering flavor. Overall a good job by the people at Oogave.

~A

Oogave Grapefruit, and Twist the Bottle Cap Iguana

Boylan's Root Beer

   You may remember when I last reviewed a Boylan's product, Boylan's Grape Soda.  Now whether or not you remember that, or just read it, you know I was disappointed by it.  This could have been because I hyped it up so much in my head that it couldn't live up to my expectations, or because it was just average... I really don't know which.  Either way I'vedecided to give the Boylan's brand another try with Boylan's Root Beer.  I won't really go into the bottle art like I normally do, it has the same classic style as always.  As with previous Boylan's brands they have a solid list of ingredients, and that is worth mentioning again.

Carbonated Water, Cane Sugar, Natural and Artificial Flavors, Caramel Color, Natural Yucca Extract, Citric Acid, and our old friend Sodium Benzoate which preserves the flavor.

  That stellar list of ingredients seems like it would go well into a root beer.Ok... with the first sip I can tell you it’s a good root beer, there’s no denying that.It’s not that clean of an after taste though.Honestly I think its’ a bit too creamy to have a clean aftertaste, but that’s ok.To use root beer that most people drink in comparison, this tastes like a Barqs/A&W mix.It has a bit of a bite, but the aftertaste is more A&W.Now I’m not saying that this beverage is of the same quality of the mainstream brands, far from it, I’m just giving you something to compare them too.If offered this root beer along side the mainstream brands, I would take this one every time.Boylan’s root beer has one odd aspect about it.When you place the bottle to your lips, as soon as you start to drink... for a flash of time it has the essence of a regular beer.Some of that burn that some beers have exists in the product, if not for just a brief moment.Now take that for what it’s worth as I rarely drink beer... I could just be crazy.Mike has tried Boylan’s root beer as well, but says it tastes a lot like birch beer.The root beer/birch beer argument is one that we’ve shelved in the “Can’t Talk About” warehouse, along side soccer ties, Indiana Jones: The Temple of Doom, and pizza toppings.

~A

Dry Soda Co. - Lavender Soda

  Today’s installment caught my eye while I was perusing the drinks at HEB.Lavender Soda.Now, when I think of lavender I think of bathroom spray, or hand soap, or something you plug into the wall to make the room smell good.All of those things deal with smell not taste.Oddly enough the reason I bought Lavender Soda is because I like the smell of Lavender, and I was hoping it would translate well into taste form.As I looked at the Lavender Soda I noticed that the flavors of Rhubarb, and Lemon Grass were sitting next to it.While rhubarb is an actual food, I figured that lavender was my best bet.

The packaging is very nice, simple, and pure.It’s a clear bottle with very few words on it, making the soda look very sophisticated.In fact the website tells you ideas of foods to pair with their sodas.Lavender Soda apparently goes well with - Mini Muscovy Duck Burgers with Sharp Cheddar, Caramelized Onions and Huckleberry Ketchup.The site also tells you how to prepare such a meal, which is very nice of them.I don’t cook that well, so fortunately they also say that it’s also ok to drink it with no pairing at all.This is a relief to me, but I’m still going to do half of the review with a pairing... corndogs.Most any soda should go well with corndogs, so we’ll give it a go.

Upon opening the bottle I notice no lavender smell, but once I put my nose to the top and strongly inhale I get a sense of it.It smells quite nice actually.My first impression of this is a flavored sparkling water.I guess that’s a fair assessment as it’s a clear liquid.I had a feeling the “Soda” labeling in it was pretty liberal, so no surprise there.While it says it’s sweetened with natural cane sugar, there can’t be much in there as it’s not sweet at all to me, if anything it’s a little bitter.Don’t be scared off with the phrase “a little bitter”, as I don’t like bitter things and I’m having no problem at all drinking this.It’s just not a sweet beverage, a lot like tame seltzer water.The lavender does not translate into taste I’m sad to say.If someone were to give me this in a cup, and told me to guess the flavor I’d say a berry, but I wouldn’t be able to guess one because of how lightly flavored it is.As a standalone beverage it’s ok, but not flavored enough for my liking.Now for the corndogs.

Mmmm all beef corndogs, nothing says America like Lavender Soda and corndogs.With a bite of corndog recently leaving the premise of my mouth, we’ll take a swig.Well the good news is that food takes away most of that slight seltzer taste, so I can see why they’d have food pairings.If I was given a choice of drinking it solo, or with a food, I’d have to say with food is the better way to go.Overall, it’s nice that a company tried to make a fancy soda, but to me this is still just flavored sparkling water.Which is fine as it meets our requirements of a non-alcoholic carbonated beverage, but still don’t put the word soda on it.In this day and age the word soda holds different connotations than it did back when “soda water” was used... respect that.

~A

Grapette

   I've gotta say, when I first laid eyes upon Grapette I didn't think it was a store brand soda.  After further investigating, I realized that it was Wal-Marts version of grape soda.  I looked around for the Sam's Choice grape soda, but I couldn't find it, so I assumed that Wal-Mart had put all of their eggs in the Grapette basket... I was only partially right as the Grapette website reveals.

 In the late 80s, Grapette International's chairman, Brooks Rice, met Sam Walton, founder of Wal-Mart. Without wasting words, Walton told him, "I want Grapette in my stores." Rice explained that although he couldn't provide the use of the brand names in the United States, he could offer the flavors that once made the famous brands. Rice also personally pledged that some day, he would fulfill Walton's request to have Grapette and Orangette in his stores.

Soon, Wal-Mart was using some of the authentic Grapette Company flavor profiles in its Sam's Choice line of signature sodas. These flavors fit perfectly within the Sam's Choice brand, offering innovative, quality products at a better value than the leading national brands. But it always felt like something was missing — specifically, the famous Grapette and Orangette brand names.

In early 2000, Grapette International was able to purchase the U.S. rights to the Grapette and Orangette trademarks, finally reuniting the flavors with their brand names. Now the third generation of founder Paul May's family has given Wal-Mart what Sam Walton requested almost twenty years earlier.

In 2005, Sam's Choice Grapette and Sam's Choice Orangette became available exclusively in Wal-Mart stores nationwide. The drinks' quality is reinforced by their nationally-recognized brands at an exceptional value to the consumer. We invite you to enjoy Sam's Choice Grapette and Orangette today — Thirsty or Not!

   So as you see, Grapette has been a part of Wal-Mart for a while... it was just recently that we have the official Grapette name, and flavor.  One thing from the Q and A portion of the website that bothered me.

Q: Is Sam's Choice Grapette the authentic Grapette?

A: Yes. Grapette International, Inc. is part of the original Grapette Company formed in Camden, Arkansas in 1939, with use of all the original formulas.

Using these formulas, Sam's Choice Grapette and Orangette have the same great flavor profiles of the sodas you remember.

   Looking at the ingredients on the side of the can I see words like, High Fructose Corn Syrup, and Potassium Benzoate.  Without looking I can safely assume that High Fructose Corn Syrup was not part of the original sweetening.  So that lie bothers me.

   Well now, with all of the history out of the way, here goes the test.  At first look I really enjoy the can art it's displaying.  It's retro, and thirst provoking.  I say that because, when I read "Enjoy Grapette Grape Soda" I really want to drink it.  Maybe I'm easily swayed, but oh well, it's time to drink either way. 

   Wow... I can say that I'm impressed.  It's got a good grape taste, and a slight kick to it.  It doesn't leave too much of an after taste either.  In fact after the initial bite it slowly fades away to be quite smooth.  The cost of Grapette is quite cheap, and it should be readily available at your local Wal-Mart.  Other than the lie (or what I am assuming is a lie) that they use the original formula, this is easily a top 3 grape soda.  My favorite of all time is still Mighty Grape, but that's mostly because of it's association with my childhood.  I haven't had Mighty Grape in over 15 years, but I hope to find it.  Any who, I digress... Grapette is my favorite store brand soda to date, and I highly recommend it.  I really wish that other stores would try and go the route of Wal-Mart when it comes to their sodas (I know they don't have the money Wal-Mart does, but they could still try a little harder.)  Since Grapette was such a success I will also review Orangette, and their Keg Style Root Beer in the near future.

~A 

MTN Dew Live Wire

   We always like it around here at the Soda Jerk labs when someone gives us a drink to try for free. This week's installment is somewhat mainstream. From the Mountain Dew line, I have been given Live Wire. This will be the first 20 oz. plastic bottle I've reviewed, so I guess there is some history here. The packaging used is your basic Mountain Dew style; although, I do notice that it isn't "MTN DEW" but "Mountain Dew," so apparently they don't care as much about relabeling their other flavors. By the way, under the words "Live Wire" is the statement, "DEW sparked with orange." I don't know how you wouldn't guess this, given the bright orange color of the drink. I can't, off the top of my head, think of another flavor of drink when the color is orange.

    Anywho, here goes the test. It's a pretty sharp initial taste, with a slight burn. That is quickly dissolved by a candy-esque flavor that finishes off the experience. It's like a sweeter Sunkist Orange soda taste, which to me is the superior drink. There is hardly any, if any, original mountain dew flavor to be had. It's not a great drink, but it's not a horrible drink... in my opinion it's pretty average. I guess this should be a given, seeing that it's a branch of a mainstream drink line. While Code Red and Original Mountain Dew would be my top choices in this drink line, if someone offered me this, I wouldn't refuse them.

~A

Hill Country Fare - Black Cherry Soda

Back to the store brand sodas again... and this time we dabble with HEB brand Black Cherry Soda.  Same can art as all of their other soda's.  The person that designs these cans must have no incentive to be creative at all.  So far all of the HEB brand sodas have been remarkably average, so let's just get on with this shall we?

The smell is very light, and it takes quite a whiff to even detect the smell of black cherry.  Drinking now.... Ok, this is smooth... smooth to a fault... not smooth, watery.  There is no kick to this soda at all.  Even swishing it around doesn't create any extra carbonation.  It's not that it feels flat, it's that it feels like it has no carbonation at all, until you burp.  The black cherry flavor is also pretty weak, no where near the quality of an IBC brand or greater.  To me it feels like HEB wanted to make a black cherry soda, but then realized it might cost a little more than other sodas to make, so they skimped on the flavor.  Don't let me lead you to believe that this tastes badly, it tastes ok.  If you don't like a lot of carbonation or flavor in your soda, and you're a fan of chemicals... then this is the soda for you.

~A

Hansen's Creamy Root Beer

Ok, so we've now done two higher end Root Beers back to back.  My choice was Hansen's Creamy Root Beer.  I picked it because in large print on the front of the can it says "NATURAL CANE SODA" as well as "With Real CANE SUGAR".  So obviously they are very proud of their ingredients.  Well since they're so proud of their ingredients let's take a look...

PURE TRIPLE FILTERED CARBONATED WATER, CANE SUGAR, CARAMEL COLOR, NATURAL SPICES OF WINTERGREEN, BIRCH, ANISE, SASSAFRAS, TAHITIAN VANILLA EXTRACT, CITRIC ACID.

Well then, that's quite the impressive list of ingredients.  Let's give it a taste.  It's got a sharp beginning (or a bite) much like Barq's Root Beer, if you're a fan of that.  It doesn't foam up very much, which is a strike against it in my book.  I prefer my Root Beer to have some sort of head to it.  The ending taste is smooth, but not Virgil's smooth (nothing is Virgil's smooth as far as I've seen).  The bottom line is this is a good root beer... but in my opinion not worth the high cost unless you're just looking for an all natural root beer that's cheaper than Virgil's.

Purchased From: HEB

Cost: 6 pack will cost you around $4.50

~A

Hill Country Fare - Pineapple Soda

Sticking with the class of store brand sodas we move on from HEB brand grape to HEB brand pineapple soda.  The packaging is much of that like the grape, with the difference being a color scheme change. 

Upon first taste of this soda it gives you a crisp pineapple taste, with a little too much carbonation burn following it.  Although it doesn't taste as syrupy as pineapple juice, it does coat your mouth in a pineapple blanket after each sip.  Of course there isn't any real fruit juice in each can, since it's produced by a store. (it would be nice to see a store brand soda do such a thing though)

Overall it delivers exactly what you'd think a store brand pineapple flavored soda would.  It's a bit too sweet for me to consider making it a regular drink of mine.  If I'm thirsty and happen to have anything else in my fridge, I can see myself drinking the other most of the time. 

On an amusing note, the following is printed on the side of the can:

WE HOPE YOU ARE SATISFIED WITH THIS PRODUCT.  IF NOT, WE WILL CHEERFULLY REFUND YOUR MONEY.

Maybe it's just me, but I find humour in picturing someone returning this single can of pineapple soda.  The 1950's style store clerk behind the counter smiles at them, then gets 40 cents, and hands it to the customer... never breaking gaze.

~A

Hill Country Fare - Grape Soda

It seems that we start a lot of these stating that we haven't written in a while... so I'm gonna avoid that. I love grape soda, and I'm always open to trying new ones. I have a theory about them as well. I think that the cheaper the grape soda, the better it tastes. Couple that with the fact that we're trying to do beverages with a lower cost this year, and you have a review I'm happy to do. Hill Country Fare - Grape Soda is the store brand grape soda from HEB. It comes in 6 packs with those rings you should cut up to keep the dolphins and birds alive.

The can art is very generic, as it should be. The words "Artificially Flavored" are in a font that is equally as large as the word "Soda." They do not care that you know how un-natural that their soda is... and I appreciate that. This soda tastes like grape Dimetapp with some carbonation. It's got a fizzy mouth feel to it. My throat burns a little bit due to the carbonation, but it's not annoying by any means. The after-taste of grape soda lingers in your mouth a while after you've finished as well. I could sum up this review in one sentence. "This tastes like most any generic grape soda." I didn't do that just so you would know how much I enjoyed generic grape soda to begin with.

~A

Tab

---

To bust into year two of The Soda Jerks, not only do we have a soda which both of us reviewed, I decided to do something out of the ordinary and review a drink which is:

a. Name brand

b. In a can (although it’s happened before)

c. Diet

That’s the big one. Diet. Honestly I thought if a diet soda was going to be reviewed that it would be, what else, a Virgil’s product, but no, I decided to try the granddaddy of them all, Tab.

Anyone who watches The Sarah Silverman Show knows that Tab is delicious, or at least sarcastically delicious. This is one of those things that every soda sommelier, professor of pop or cola connoisseur has to try once in their life.

It’s actually not that bad, although it’s 99% chemicals. This is probably the best diet soda I’ve ever had. Note that best diet soda doesn’t mean it’s anything great, it’s just the best of the diet sodas I’ve had.

I really don’t know what else to say. Tab is something you have to experience yourself. The best way I can describe it is Diet Coke but not anywhere near as awful. It’s cheap and still readily available so go get yourself one for funsies.

-Mike

Natural Brew -hand crafted- Outrageous Ginger Ale

I've been neglecting my postings for a bit too long now... so it's time to play catch-up. This week we start with Natural Brew *hand crafted* Outrageous Ginger Ale. Since that's a really long name, I'm just gonna call it Natural Brew Ginger Ale, or NBGA, from here on out.

I used to think I liked Ginger Ale. I liked Vernor's, Canada Dry, and Schweppes was even ok. Then I started trying stuff with real ginger in it, and I quickly realized I wasn't a fan of the 'real ginger' taste. I can honestly say that I have spotted NBGA on the shelf at my local store, and wanted to purchase it. The bottle I'm about to review was given to me from a friend.

Here goes. Ok, I don't like this. It kind of has a sickly sweetness about it, with the ginger burn that normally follows. This is something I would politely pretend to enjoy, and slowly pour it out in the process, while the person wasn't looking. It's just a bit too sweet for me, but not in a good way. The burn doesn't seem to be as much as previous ginger ales, but normally that doesn't hit full affect until at least half the bottle is consumed.

All in all I think I'm done with 'natural' ginger ale drinks for a while. There is obviously a market out there for them, I'm just not part of it. Give me my Vernor's any day, over these specialty drinks.

~A

Virgil's Special Edition Bavarian Nutmeg Root Beer

This is it... this is the current Holy Grail of Root Beer for me.  This is... Virgil's Special Edition Bavarian Nutmeg Root Beer.  This cost me $4.25 a bottle online to buy... but it had to be done.

The flavor does not disappoint.  It's got the greatness of Virgil's Root Beer, with a kick of nutmeg in it.  You know how some things say "Now with *ingredient*" but you can't taste it?  You can most definitely taste the nutmeg in this.

Another high point is the fact that the water used in this is from a well in Bavaria, considered one of the most pure sources of water in the world... that's freaking cool in my opinion.  Put all of this together in the best bottle I've ever seen anything in, and you have a winning combination.

I'm going to have to agree with Mike on this one though.

~A

I’ve never officially reviewed Virgil’s Root Beer, pretty much because one of us would take care of one beverage at a time, however, being that it’s a new year of The Soda Jerks, this will be our first beverage that we both review.

First of all the bottle. I mean, look at it. This is obviously the real deal here. Can you believe I’m going to give points to a drink for being “fun to open?”

Secondly, the water. This soda is made with water from a well in Bavaria. Wow. I mean, really? Talk about fancy.

Whatever is in the water it’s got a very crisp taste, just like the original. I’d say the key difference between this and the original is the nutmeg. It kind of brings out the vanilla flavor most of all.

The other difference is the price. It’s about $5 a bottle. A bottle. As noted we’re moving on to store brand and discount sodas.

I’m scoring this the same as the original because the price balances out the slight advantages it has over the original.

-Mike

~Welcome, a year later

We’ve entered the second year of The Soda Jerks, which is ridiculous to think about. It’s hard to believe that all this started with us curious about a little beverage called Virgil’s Root Beer. Even though others think I’m wrong, I’m still convinced that it’s God on the bottle serving delicious root beer to children. Or cola. Or whatever Virgil’s beverage you happen to have.

Anyway, we’ve had a fun year drinking beverages, and as my cohort has pointed out the thing that sets us apart from other beverage review sites is that we factor in price during the reviews. Not only will we continue doing that, but in...”honor” of the current economic crisis (which I believe was caused by people collecting those damn state quarters, but that’s a whole other issue) we will put more of a focus on store brand and discount sodas.

Also we will have our first “special feature” next month when Mike will do a review live on location of all six international sodas featured at Epcot in Walt Disney World. For anyone who has had Beverly, pray to your respective deity for me.

So on that note, we move on to year two. Our goal is to double our readership to 12.

-Mike and Aaron

Guarana Antarctica

I really don't know what Guarana Antarctica is going to taste like... but it sounds really refreshing. The nice lady that rang this up for me gave it rave reviews, "like a sweet ginger ale" she said. It comes in a green swirly can, and under the name of the drink it reads, "The Brazilian Orginal." I can only assume this is good at the moment, so let us open it up and find out for reals.

Well it is refreshing... and she's right (sort of). The closest thing I've had in flavor to this is Vernor's Ginger Soda. This is made with chemicals, but also has guarana in it. The last sentence should be a bit obvious due to the fact that Guarana is the name of the soda. It's less fizzy than ginger ale, and a little more sweet. The crisp flavor, which hints slightly of apple, is also nice. For some reason when it's in my mouth though, the inside of my lips stick to my teeth; that's a little odd. I don't think this is all that good for the enamel. While I enjoy the flavor, the adverse effects it's having on my teeth is offsetting.

~A

Fizzy Lizzy - Yakima Valley Grape

Ok... in my ongoing search for an awesome grape soda, I think I may have found a strong contender. Fizzy Lizzy. First off, you gotta love the name. The packaging of Fizzy Lizzy is great. With such great quotes as "Fruit & Fizz With Body" or "No Gunk, No Junk, Pure Crisp Filtered" and my personal favorite "Gently SHAKE my hips, Before placing to your lips." This drink is flirting with me and I like it! The back of the bottle reads as such "51% fruit juice + 49% fizzy water. No added sugars" The ingredients are Triple Filtered Water, Concord grape juice concentrate, white grape juice concentrate, lemon juice concentrate, natural flavor, and vitamin C. I'm gonna take this moment to tell you how happy it makes me when a beverage is good for you. This includes 100% of the vitamin C you need in a day. It also has 29 grams of sugar, all from fruit juice. As I said before, I've hyped this up in my mind to potentially being the greatest grape soda ever. Let's you, and me, find out together.

It smells like grape juice, which I guess would be pretty obvious after reading the back of the bottle. Well I can't very well call it grape soda anymore because of the amount of juice. In a sentence it tastes like fizzy grape juice... which is exactly what it is. It seems to have a bit of a fermented taste as well, but nothing over powering. I like the crisp grape flavor that it leaves in my mouth. I like grape juice, but this doesn't leave that mucus feel that straight grape juice would. While the bottle pleased me greatly, the beverage is just above average. I can't criticize them though, they delivered exactly what they said they would. Fizzy water + Fruit Juice = Fizzy Lizzy.

~A

Cricket Pomegranate Raspberry Enhanced with Green Tea

Mike enjoyed the Cricket Cola he had so much, and spoke of the Cricket brand so highly, I decided it was time for me to try it as well. I went with Cricket Pomegranate Raspberry Enhanced with Green Tea. The bottle design is great, I really enjoy the style Cricket uses in their products. The label also claims to be "All Natural", and I'm sure you know by now that usually equates to higher ratings in our book. The ingredients are as follows: Sparkling Filtered Water, Invert Cane Sugar, Brewed Green Tea Concentrate, Citric Acid, Natural Pomegranate Raspberry Flavor, and Fruit and Vegetable Juice for color.

That is a very impressive list of ingredients, it may not go to the ends of the earth like Virgil's Root beer, but it doesn't need to. Also on the bottle they make sure you see that there is an equivalent to two cups of Green Tea in each bottle. I personally have no hatred, nor fondness of green tea. It works in some situations, like we are about to see. In others it's a bit odd, like in Steaz Green Tea Root beer.

The mouth feel of this is very light, slightly bubbly, and just enough flavor. You can taste both the Pomegranate and Raspberry very easily. It tastes healthy, and I don't mean that in a V8 kind of way. It's so light, and has just the right mixture of fruit flavoring that it couldn't be bad for you. The green tea flavoring makes an appearance at the end of you drink, a bit strong for me, but still needed. Never does your mouth feel syrupy, which is nice. If I had to make any improvements on it, I'd probably move it a notch or two in a stronger flavor direction. The only problem with that is you begin testing the balance of flavor, and light mouth feel.

~A

Goya Coconut Soda

Time to take a trip to Mexico, and try out an unusual Goya flavored drink. Stepping up to be reviewed is Coconut Soda... let's give it a try.

The first thing I can tell you is that the flavor is very, very light. If you thought you'd be over powered with coconut, you'd be way off base. I actually have to pause for a moment to make sure I even tasted anything. I'm on my fourth gulp and it's only in the aftertaste that I'm even beginning to taste this. It does taste like coconut, but I think even those that hated coconut would be fine with this beverage. The ingredients do not impress me either: Carbonated Water, High Fructose Corn Syrup, Artificial Flavors, and Citric Acid. Are those not the most boring flavors ever? I can say that it is kind of refreshing, but I'd still like some flavor with my refreshment.

The bottom of this beverage begins to taste a little sickly sweet. I'm not sure if the very light flavor has slowly built up in my mouth, or if it's just the bottom of the bottle. Every time I burp I keep expecting some sort of remnant of what I just drank, but no such luck. I would normally write more, but this has no taste, and I can't keep saying that even though I have.

~A

Reed's Ginger Beer

While I was picking up my standard soda's for review this week at HEB, I decided to try some of Reeds Ginger Ale. When I got home, much to my chagrin, I had picked up Ginger Beer. Ginger Beer, as both Mike and I describe it, is like Ginger Ale + Fire. I figured that Reeds might be a bit different, because of the excellent products Reeds puts out.

After getting my first taste I was pleasantly surprised. It tasted like a Ginger Ale, and Ginger Snap, combination with a refreshing value to it. As I continued with the bottle the slight hint of fire began to invade my palate. I got to about halfway down the bottle until it wasn't refreshing for me anymore... then I had to stop. I knew where this road lead, and I wasn't going to go down it.

~A

Topo-Sabores Orange

We have an orange soda for today's review, Topo-Sabores Orange. I've never had a soda from Topo-Sabores, but I do enjoy Jarritos, and it seems to be very similar in style. To be honest with you I bought this because of the Lion on the bottle. My expectations for this are average at best, as it's hard to set yourself apart in the Orange Soda market. Here we go.

I enjoy using a bottle opener to open my bottles, for some reason it just feels kind of 'Old Timey' to me. The smooth bottle top also works better when you're drinking from the bottle. Hey, I was right, this is your average orange soda. It does have a bit of a bite to it, which I enjoy in my orange soda's. I'm going to finish it before finishing this review though, I've learned that many orange soda's get better as you drink them. While I've finished this beverage, it's still no more than a solid orange soda. It's not that sweet, and the carbonation is just right. I am still left waiting for an orange soda to blow me away. Love the lion though.

~A