Pearl Vanilla Rooibos
/Don’t call it a comeback I’ve been here for years. I’m rockin’ my peers, puttin’ sodas in fear.
Even OG Twist came back to see what the fuss was about.
Yes, I’m listening to Mama Said Knock You Out to help me feel inspired. I felt uninspired to write and now Ladies Love Cool James and I gotta shake off that funk. What better way to shake off the funk than from a soda sent to me by a soda company. Pearl soda company to be specific. They wanted a review from me, The Soda Jerk, and now after a 3 month intermission they shall get their wish. I do apologize for the wait, but wanted to make sure I could give them the attention they deserved.
Pearl is an unique company in that they sell soda in syrup form. Apologies, it’s not just soda, it’s Tea Soda. You see Pearl is a tea company first and a soda company second. What that means to me is that they care about ingredients. For example, today I’m going to try their Vanilla Rooibos (Classic Cream for those who couldn't guess the flavor by using Rooibos as a context clue… myself included). This soda has Organic African redbush (rooibos) herbal tea, natural vanilla extract, water, citric acid, and a touch of cane sugar.
The ingredient list alone should make you want to try it, but I understand the hesitation some of you might have with a tea soda. While you may be filled with hesitation, at least you’re reading this review to see how it ends up. Be right back, I need to go make a glass.
Ok, so I carbonated cold filtered water to mix with the Pearl syrup. It said to use ice as well, but I’m not one to use ice in my drinks. The smell is that of an herbal cream soda, so it seems we’re on the right track. Now time for the important part.
That is certainly a tea soda. I’m not sure why I didn’t think it would taste that much like tea, but boy does it taste like tea aaaaaaaaaand then soda. So with the Vanilla Rooibos you do get the herbal tastes of the African redbush right off the bat. I’m assuming the herbs I’m tasting are African redbush because I have no comparison in my memory to tell me otherwise. These flavors are earthy and I honestly think most any tea drinker would welcome them as much as I do.
After the somewhat bitter herbal taste dissipates it makes way for a smooth vanilla. You’re likely picturing the vanilla you’d experience in a big name cream soda; Vanilla Rooibos does not taste like that vanilla. This tastes like actual, real deal, vanilla. Like from the earth into a glass vanilla, so it’s considerably more subtle than it’s candied brethren. This casually sweet taste lingers on the tongue and only give good memories as to what you just consumed.
The aftertaste is light and has little deviation from the beverage itself.
I won’t speak to the carbonation since this is a beverage in which you choose. For this glass I used a Soda Stream and carbonated until I heard three buzzes as instructed on the machine. That amount seems just fine for what I consumed.
Now I like tea, and I like soda, but that doesn’t always mean I’m gonna like tea soda. In the case of Pearl Vanilla Rooibos I certainly do though. Its ingredient list is simple, but creates a fairly complex taste. Drinking it even makes me feel a little fancy, and who doesn’t like to feel fancy? All in all you should at the very least pick up a sample pack of Pearl. 1oz of syrup is all you need to make a drink and the sample pack houses four 2oz bottles, one of each flavor they make. Now that writing again we’ll be making our way through those syrups in the coming weeks. Hopefully they stack up as well as the Vanilla Rooibos.
~A
This soda was supplied to us by the Pearl Soda Company
