Sprecher Strawberry
/Sprecher is one of those companies that sweeten with syrup (Glucose Syrup) and I never seem to mind. Most if not all (I’m feeling too lazy to go through our archives) of their sodas are robust in flavor and overall experience so I tend to give them a pass. Would they potentially be rated higher if they used cane sugar? Yes, potentially, but it’s hard to fault a soda company that makes such delicious drink. Today’s beverage is Sprecher Strawberry which is apparently one of their seasonal flavors. Instead of failing to be a proper wordsmith I’m just going to use the words that Sprecher has decided to print on the neck of the bottle that explains exactly what I’ll be drinking.
“Sip into summer while enjoying this refreshing strawberrylicious seasonal soda. Fire-Brewed in our kettles with honey, vanilla and other natural flavors for mouthfuls bursting with sweet fruitiness that remind you of warm sunshine, laughter, picnics, swimming and all things good in life!”
Ok, so they’ve now set the bar WAY too high. This soda is going to remind me of “all things good in life”… somehow I doubt it. I’m going to estimate that you might find one or two things during your time here on Earth that reminds you of “all things good in life” if you’re lucky. Of course who am I to say that Sprecher Strawberry won’t remind me of the way my grandmother let me steal pickles of everyone sandwich while she played non-the-wiser. Even if it does remind me of that it will also have to simultaneously remind me that my mom asked me what “happy, sad, medium and bad” had happened during the day… with the accommodating funny voice for each emotion of course. Oh and let’s not forget seeing my wife walk down the aisle towards me. Obviously I’m being overly critical about their word usage, but things like that bother me a little bit and I feel they should be pointed out. I’m a Jerk, the name of the site implies as much. With all that said, if you haven’t given up on this review yet, I look forward to being wowed by yet another Sprecher beverage. Onward!
Opening this bottle was the equivalent of shoving strawberry jam up my nose. It’s such a rich, robust, sugary scent. If I were to smell this while wearing a blindfold I wouldn’t guess it was a soda at all. I now see why the crow sitting in the strawberries on the label has a crazed look in his eyes. He too can’t imagine that this soda is creating such a scent. Enough babble, time to drink.
Wham, bam, liquid jam! Sprechers doesn’t come off as just red sugar fizz flavored to taste like strawberries as so many other strawberry sodas do. It seems that the vanilla, while only lightly tasted, is what might help set this apart. The carbonation levels are medium-high, burning your mouth just a bit with each gulp. I’ve had five sips now and with each one I keep expecting to end up with seeds in my mouth. I’m sure it helps that strawberry juice concentrate is a listed ingredient, but still it’s impressive to me. One of the best parts is that Sprecher Strawberry isn’t overly sweet like most strawberry sodas seem to be. Sure it’s noticeably sweetened (21 grams per 8oz.), but I wouldn’t call it a defining characteristic. The richness of the soda might be too much for some which does take away from some of its awesomeness. Overall though this is one of the best strawberry sodas I’ve had with the only downsides being that it’s not sweetened with cane sugar and the fact that it could just be too much for someone to enjoy. I would like to take the time to say that as much as I enjoyed Sprecher Strawberry it didn't remind me of sunshine, simming, or my wedding day. With all that said though I’d still keep plenty on hand.
~A
Twist has a bachelors degree in strawberries.
