Steaz Sparkling Green Tea

Product Type:Carbonated Soft Drink: Diet; Container: 12 oz bottle
BevNET Review: Billed as a “sparkling green tea,” Steaz’s Zero Calorie Black Cherry Sparkling Green Tea blows away every black cherry flavored diet soda that we’ve ever sampled. Sweetened with rebiana (stevia) and erythritol, this beverage maintains a sugar-like sweetness but without the calories. Often plagued by bad aftertaste, this blend of sweeteners and selection of flavors hides almost all of the aftertaste, to the point where your palate will likely be completely fooled if you’re drinking this with food. And as far as the flavors themselves go, this product is spot-on with its black cherry flavor, while the addition of Ceylon green tea gives the product a cool note to the product’s crisp finish. On the packaging front, the product has been upgraded, with a hip but polished looking design that still feels like a good for you product. We like the new logo, especially when compared against the brand’s original logo (“Steep”). Aside from this being Steaz’s best effort yet, we think it’s a look that can let Steaz maintain its roots, but also bridge the gap over to the mainstream. Pair that with the product’s extremely enjoyable flavor and you’ve got a product that’s nearly perfect and certainly worth our highest rating.Reviewed on: 10/8/2009

Product Type:Carbonated Soft Drink: Diet; Container: 12 oz bottle
BevNET Review: Again, Steaz hits the nail on the head by delivering really accurate fruit flavor, natural tasting sweetness, and upgraded packaging. By using erythritol and rebiana (stevia) as well as very accurate fruit flavors, which have been aided by elderberry juice, and organic Ceylon green tea, the product has a very enjoyable and refreshing flavor. It’s easy to drink, but still more complex in flavor than other sugar free carbonated beverages that we’ve sampled in recent memory, thanks to the use of green tea. The blueberry flavor is much easier to taste than the pomegranate, which hits your tongue at about the same time as the tea and sweetener, resulting in it getting slightly lost in the mix. Fortunately, it works out okay, especially since the sweetener is clean and natural tasting, while the green tea adds an earthy dimension that’s both very enjoyable and a nice point of differentiation. The use of Fair Trade and Organic certified ingredients is an added plus, especially when it comes to the branding of the product. Speaking of branding, this product has been given a big upgrade with an overhauled logo and package design. It’s much cleaner and more modern looking than Steaz’s prior efforts, having steered away from the health and natural style of the old package. Calling it “Steaz Zero Calorie” rather than “Diet Steaz Sparkling Green Tea” feels more appealing as well, with the green tea now a secondary part of the product’s pitch. That’s likely to help lure in more buyers, especially once they have a chance to taste the product’s very enjoyable flavor. Overall, an extremely well executed product from Steaz that represents a leap forward for the brand.Reviewed on: 10/8/2009

Product Type:Carbonated Soft Drink: Diet; Container: 12 oz bottle
BevNET Review: Steaz's Zero Calorie Orange is an impressive tasting product that shows just how much the Steaz brand -- and zero calorie beverages -- have evolved over the years. Using a Fair Trade certified formulation and lots of organic ingredients, this tea enhanced carbonated soft drink delivers impressive flavor thanks to their use of erythritol and rebiana (stevia) as the drink's sweeteners. As a result, the drink's two primary flavors (Ceylon green tea and orange flavor) shine through, delivering an extremely refreshing flavor that's straightforward and natural tasting. To that extent, Steaz is essentially redefining what a diet orange soda can be, showing that new sweeteners and high quality ingredients can be used in a zero calorie formula. On the outside, the brand has been giving a big visual upgrade, going from its former earthy look to something that's chic and modern. They've given the product a new logo, which uses outlines of tea leaves, and the label’s new white backdrop greatly improves readability and keeps the front panel clean. In addition, the label now features text for some of the health benefits, a mention of the fact that it’s now “naturally sweetened”, and Fair Trade and Organic certifier logos. Noticeably diminished is the use of green tea, which has been moved to the line beneath the flavor name. In our opinion, that’s a smart move, allowing the brand to establish a more succinct and focused pitch by simply calling the product “Steaz Zero Calorie” (rather than “Diet Steaz Sparkling Green Tea” as it used to be known). Overall, this is a really well executed zero calorie product that sets a new standard for zero calorie CSDs.Reviewed on: 10/8/2009

Product Type:Carbonated Soft Drink: Diet; Container: 12 oz bottle
BevNET Review: The Raspberry flavor of Steaz’s Zero Calorie line is an excellent entry, starting with the very accurate and natural tasting raspberry flavor that they’ve used. It’s complemented with a splash of organic Ceylon green tea and a moderate amount of carbonation. Plus, it’s sweetened with a blend of erythritol and rebiana (stevia), which allows the drink to be zero calorie and naturally sweetened. Everything blends together exquisitely, with just the right amount of tart and sweet, followed by a smooth but crisp finish. However, this product’s most standout attribute is the fact that it has zero calories but could be passed off as something that’s sugar sweetened. That should certainly give this product a boost, especially if it’s the mainstream premium CSD consumer that they’re after. And for drinkers who already favor sugar free products, this is a product that will make them question how they ever tolerated artificially sweetened products. On the outside, Steaz is sticking with a stock 12 oz. bottle, but they’ve given the brand a fresh look that’s appealing and well executed. The new logo, which features outlines of tea leaves arranged in a flower like pattern, has a positive and light vibe to it, which is very much in line with what the Steaz brand is all about. They’ve put the health benefits (120 mg antioxidants and B vitamins) front and center in a clear effort to quickly show the consumer that there’s more to it than just the drink. On the other hand, they don’t say anything about the taste (or more specifically, how much better it tastes than other diet sodas), which is what’s ultimately going to keep consumers coming back to this product. Our main point of suggesting this is that consumers might translate the health benefits into a product that tastes worse, not better, than a traditional zero calorie beverage. Minor suggestions aside, this is an awesome product from start to finish.Reviewed on: 10/8/2009