We’ve seen a variety of pickle juice products come to market, but none have made it past the initial buzz to become anything more than a novelty product. While there’s obviously a big taste hurdle to overcome for a product like pickle juice, looking at Stu’s Sour Elixir makes us wonder if its predecessors' biggest mistake was in how they branded and positioned their product.
Ito En’s Matcha Love platform includes cafes, powdered products and a two-SKU line of ready-to drink beverages. Coming in Unsweetened and Sweetened varieties, the drinks are made with a blend of green tea and matcha (a powdered whole leaf green tea), and packaged in a small 5.2 oz. can that is both simple and approachable.
Extending its presence in the probiotic drink space, KeVita recently launched a new line of "Cleansing Probiotic Tonics." Made with a base blend of the company's effervescent probiotic base and apple cider vinegar, the line comes in four varieties: Kale Lemon, Red Beet, Turmeric Ginger and Cinnamon.
TreTap’s sparkling line is one of the more interesting uses of maple water that we’ve seen to date. The base of this product is maple water that has been carbonated, and the resulting liquid enhanced with sugar, maple syrup, cucumber flavor, citric acid, and monk fruit (a zero-calorie sweetener).
While we’ve seen many beverage brands go for a minimalist approach, Outpost Cold Brew somehow has managed to take things to a new level. On the 12 oz. long-neck amber bottle, the company places a stark white label, which has a lot of white space and minimal copy... and it works.
The inaugural guide features a range of early-stage and established craft spirits brands, each producing an array of unique, small-batch spirits, from across the U.S. The compilation also includes a broad spectrum of mixer companies playing in the space, showcasing the continuing breadth of variety in the category.
In both formulation and design, TK Hibiscus has taken a minimalist approach to its line of organic, hibiscus teas. TK's label and liquid are both polished and well-conceived, something gives the brand a solid foundation as it looks to grow its retail and distribution footprint.
In addition to a range of pre-packaged meals and snacks, "raw" food company The Squeeze produces a line of cold-pressed juices and smoothies that are not pasteurized, nor high pressure processed. The company definitely has a knack for crafting unique flavor varieties (and names), including its Cold Brew Squeezuccino and PB & J.
Based in Los Angeles, Better Booch produces a line of kombucha drinks that are made with organic ingredients. Available in six varieties, we sampled three and were impressed by each for their mainstream-oriented formulation and flavors.
Blending lemon flavor with Aloe Gloe’s base liquid (a blend of water and aloe vera powder) makes for something that’s pleasing to the palate. And in our opinion, this is far and away the best tasting variety in the Aloe Gloe line.
Based in Southhampton, N.Y, Captains Neck & Co. markets a line of craft sodas that are formulated with natural ingredients and sweetened with sugar and stevia. The drinks come in two varieties: Citrus Mint and Grape & Ginger, each containing 40 calories per 12 oz. bottle. Though demand for premium soda options appears to be on the rise, Captain's Neck might require a few packaging updates to gain wider appeal.
Among the new and intrepid, Coco Cafe is the tallest of the small, while Illy is showing positive growth and also indexing in the refrigerated section with another $3 million or so not included here. Still, it’s a long way to the top.
Made with a USDA Organic blend of water, maple syrup, apple cider vinegar, cane syrup and ginger juice/puree, CideRoad’s switchel starts out with a pretty traditional formulation. It’s definitely not as strong as some of the other brands that we’ve sampled, but it does feel as though it’s something that’s geared towards the mainstream.
In the following video on BevNET Food and Beverage University, Mamma Chia founder Janie Hoffman discusses the process by which she was able to identify and partner with co-packers that could mass produce a beverage that incorporated a novel and often challenging ingredient to work with, which in her case, is the chia seed.
