Coco Libre

Product Type:Functional: Protein Drinks and Supplements; Container: 11oz Plastic
BevNET Review: The Vanilla flavor of Coco Libre’s Protein Coconut Water is definitely one of the stars of the brand. Like the other flavors, it has a coconut water base, 20g of protein (from milk protein concentrate and whey protein isolate), added vitamins and minerals, and is sweetened with stevia and erythritol (the coconut water adds some natural sugar). But it’s the vanilla flavor that is the real standout, with a very fully body and creamy texture that can go toe to toe with just about any vanilla protein drink we’ve sampled. That said, we’re huge fans of what’s inside the bottle. In terms of packaging, they’ve gone with an 11 oz. plastic bottle that features a shrink sleeve label. As with many of the protein drinks that we test out, this one suffers from having an overly busy label that’s attempting to communicate all of the benefits and nutrients contained in the product. There’s a lot competing for the eye, and, ultimately, we think that they need to figure out how to describe this product in a more succinct way. While the current design is certainly far from the worst protein drink we’ve ever seen, some tweaking could easily make the product look much cleaner. Overall, a very solid flavor for the Coco Libre Protein Coconut Water line. Reviewed on: 4/3/2013

Product Type:Functional: Protein Drinks and Supplements; Container: 11oz Plastic
BevNET Review: Chocolate, which is a ubiquitous flavor for any protein drink brand, is the first flavor that we sampled in the Coco Libre Protein Coconut Water line. It has a very pleasant, but rich, chocolate flavor that certainly tastes like the cocoa that is promised on the front panel. It’s admittedly a little hard to taste the coconut water in this blend, especially as you continue to drink the product and the chocolate and stevia mask it. However, coconut water from concentrate is indeed the first ingredient and, if nothing else, it adds electrolytes and natural sugars to the product (the drink is also sweetened with erythritol and stevia). Regardless, this is a very nice tasting product. Beyond that, the product is loaded with 20g of protein (from milk protein concentrate and whey protein isolate) and also includes a blend of 22 vitamins and minerals. The formulation has 140 calories, 6g of sugar, and 2.5g of fat. While we can’t comment on the makeup of this blend, it’s certainly a filling and satisfying product to consume. Visually, we feel as though this is the strongest looking SKU of the line. We say that simply because the cholate and protein aspects of the drink are immediately identifiable, which makes this drink’s core purpose and flavor easy to grasp while panning a shelf. We do, however, feel as though the coconut water and the protein could be visually tied together in a better way. The coconut water definitely feels like somewhat of an afterthought in that sense. Still, this is a great start and definitely a solid protein drink.Reviewed on: 4/3/2013

Product Type:Functional: Protein Drinks and Supplements; Container: 11oz Plastic
BevNET Review: If you came to the Coco Libre Protein Coconut Water line looking for things that resemble Coco Libre’s coconut water products, this is definitely the place to start. Aside from the slight visual cue of having the same green accent color that’s on their coconut water labels, the flavor of this particular variety is definitely something that has heavy coconut water influence. While it follows the same formulation as the other SKUs with coconut water from concentrate as the first ingredient, it’s the almond flavoring that ultimately helps accentuate the coconut water flavor in this product. It also seems to do a nice job of masking the added stevia and erythritol sweeteners. All in all, it’s a pretty enjoyable flavor that they’ve created. Nutritionally, this product has the same added ingredients as the other flavors: 20g of protein (from milk protein concentrate and whey protein isolate) and a blend of 22 vitamins and minerals. As we mentioned earlier, the design and packaging of this flavor are definitely the strongest of the bunch since it’s a more clear extension of what Coco Libre has already created. Plus, there’s a contrast of color with the almond images that works better than the contrast provided by the vanilla beans on the Vanilla flavor (the Chocolate and Coffee flavors have an added image that uses the same color as the flavor’s accent color). Still, we’d try and pair down the text on the front panel (e.g. the vitamin callouts -- the consumer can flip to the back for that information) to make it have a more clean and polished feeling. Overall, a unique flavor that’s definitely worth a try. Reviewed on: 4/3/2013