BevNET.com Staff

Yes, hemp is growing in use as an ingredient in the natural channel, however, the notorious seven-pointed leaf is rarely used in the branding of successful products. When an image of the leaf is used, there’s really only a novelty buyer out there; it amounts to very low volume target market. And that’s the biggest problem with Cannbis Energy.

Sambazon’s Purifying Cleanse is three-day juice cleanse program that consists of three organic superfood blends each packaged in a 1 L Tetra Pak. Unlike many other juice cleanse beverages coming onto the market, the new products are not high pressure processed. Nevertheless, Sambazon has created an affordable and well-formulated program that could find significant mainstream appeal.

…MINNEAPOLIS, MN. – CocoKefir, L.L.C., producers of Tula’s® CocoKefir™ and CocoYo™, has announced the launch of a new, cobranded coconut kefir product in partnership with Body Ecology, Inc. of Playa Vista, California. The new product will be marketed as Body Ecology® Coconut Kefir, produced exclusively for Body Ecology by CocoKefir and will launch on May 23rd at the Autism One/Generation Rescue Conference in Chicago where Body Ecology® founder, Donna Gates, will be speaking. Like CocoKefir’s other products, this new coconut kefir will contain billions of powerful, living probiotics fermented in raw young coconut water for people who seek to improve

Billed as an “organic beet performance supplement,” Red Ace is — as you’ve probably guessed by now — made with beet juice concentrate. Packaged in a 2 oz. glass bottle, the product contains added guayusa, water, lemon juice and other flavors. All in all, we’re quite impressed with the formulation, flavor and branding.

Watermelon and aloe are just about as perfect of a flavor pairing as there is, so it’s no surprise that ALO Comfort tastes as good as it does. Overall, it’s one that definitely lives up to the standard set by the other flavors.

As winds of change sweep through the beverage industry, more and more CSD companies are realizing that they must adapt to a society ever more focused on health and wellness. Jones Soda is one such outfit and recently introduced a new line of natural sodas made with a proprietary blend of sweeteners. The drinks are quite good, although the packaging could use a bit more emphasis on their low-calorie formulation.

Traders Point Brewhouse’s Cold Brew Coffee comes in two varieties, Kenyan and Sumatra, based on the type of beans that are used in each product. Which one consumers prefer is ultimately a matter of personal preference, but both were made to the same standard. That said, both are top notch, with a thoughtfully crafted formulation and package.

Merging two fast-growing beverage trends – iced coffee and almond milk – Califia Farms’ new line of iced coffee products is well-timed, and very well-executed. The formulation of the drinks is excellent, and with a unique carafe-style package, the company takes an approach that is fresh and unique, which is something that seems to be lacking in the dairy and dairy alternative categories.

POM Wonderful entering the coconut water category is sure to get some buzz, and this product was the starting point for our sampling of its three newest flavors. Overall, it’s a very solid product in both formulation and packaging.

Evolve is Muscle Milk’s new “naturally flavored protein shake” that is geared towards female consumers. All in all, what they’ve put inside the carton is a credible and enjoyable formulation, with 12g of protein, 20 vitamins and minerals, 5g of fiber, and Tonalin, an ingredient that is marketed as helping reduce body fat. We think they’ve got a nice start that, with a few packaging tweaks, could certainly be a formidable offering.

High-end water continues to grow as Smartwater and Fiji strongly outpaced gains for the rest of the category. That said, evian appears to have slowed ahead of new bottle innovation and other varieties that Symphony IRI lumps into the category, like the Vitaminwater family, SoBe and Capri Sun are also showing some share erosion.

Motto is a new brand of sparkling matcha teas made with honey, agave nectar, lemon juice and apple cider vinegar. The brand has done well to hit the ground running with an excellent flavor profile and a minimalist, yet striking, label and bottle.

Natural and organic energy drinks are becoming an increasingly familiar sight these days with a number of new entrants hitting the market following debuts at the 2013 Natural Products Expo West show. One of the companies throwing its hat into the ring is Runa, which markets a range of Amazonian guayusa tea products, and recently launched Runa Clean Energy.

Revive has launched two new line extensions to its brand of kombucha drinks. The company, which is based in Sonoma County, Calif., has introduced Revive Kombucha Gold, a blend of kombucha and coffee, and Revive Kombucha Red, which is made with a hibiscus flower kombucha culture. Aside from a few adjustments to its labels, we think Revive has done an outstanding job with the two new varieties.

Blue Monkey’s Coconut Coffee Drink is a certified organic blend of coconut cream, sugar, coffee and added emulsifiers/stabilizers. It’s billed as a dairy- and soy-free coffee drink, and it features a somewhat light-bodied coffee flavor. Overall, it’s good, but we honestly feel as though more could be done with this product, starting with cutting the calories and offering more variety in flavors.

BevNET is pleased to announce the launch of the BevNET Magazine app in the iTunes and Google Play stores. As the first in the industry to offer a mobile/tablet app for its print publication, readers will be able to view the magazine in digital format on all Apple and Android devices.

INGO has introduced a new watermelon variety to its brand of cucumber-flavored drinks. For a zero-calorie product, INGO Cucumber-Watermelon has, much like the flagship beverage, an extremely refreshing flavor without the use of any added sweeteners.

These days, it seems like there are an endless number of new raw juice brands landing on store shelves with many – if not most – offering an extremely high level of quality in terms of formulation. However, the branding and packaging for some of these products often falls short of matching what’s inside the bottle; this is our most significant issue with o2living and its line of raw juice blends.

Go Energy is a new energy drink that attempts to differentiate itself from competing products via the addition of coconut water and resveratrol (a popular anti-aging ingredient). Unfortunately, the product is pretty underwhelming from a flavor and visual perspective.

Sneakz Organic is a new brand of health-oriented milkshake drinks designed for kids. The first SKU is a chocolate flavor made with a full serving of vegetables, including sweet potatoes, carrots and broccoli and is packaged in an 8 oz. Tetra Pak. Overall, we really like what Sneakz’ concept and its initial variety, which is a nice starting point for additional flavors.

Since our first review of the brand, A Game has made a few significant changes to its formulation (dropped sucralose as a sweetener) and packaging (smaller bottle and labeling tweaks). Combined with a new Cherry Pomegranate variety, we think A Game is definitely headed in the right direction.

Brewbound, BevNET’s site dedicated to craft beer, has released the preliminary agenda for its upcoming business conference for craft brewers. The Brewbound Session will be held on May 2 at the Revere Hotel in Boston and provides an excellent opportunity to learn marketing, investment, and distribution strategies, as well as hear case studies of successful brands in a highly collaborative atmosphere.

Orgain’s Healthy Kids is a new line of USDA Organic certified nutritional shakes that are made with smorgasbord of fruits, vegetables, vitamins and minerals. And as the formulation of the drinks will definitely appeal to parents, the flavor profile and packaging are certain to find fans among young consumers.

These days, it seems like every beverage company has at least one coconut water-infused drink, and Bai is no exception. The coffeefruit beverage marketer unveiled its new Malokai Coconut flavor at the 2013 Expo West show, and we think that they’ve done a great job with the formulation and branding.

Natural soda maker Q Drinks has extended its line of sparkling drinks with three new citrus flavors that the company debuted last month at the 2013 Expo West show. While the new flavors – orange, grapefruit, and lemon – are made with fruit extracts and contain no actual juice, Q Drinks done a stellar job of creating three great-tasting and great-looking products.