Afterparty is a hydration and recovery beverage that comes in original and sugar-free formulations. While Afterparty is not positioned as an energy drink, the visual and flavor similarities to products in that category will be challenging for the brand, not to mention the lack of real success in the “recovery” or “hangover” categories.

Cocotein is a coconut water-based beverage that touts whey protein isolate as its key functional ingredient. While we've seen a few similarly positioned products on the market, it's certainly a niche category. Nevertheless, Cocotein is a well-executed beverage.

Arin is a brand of Thai-inspired drinks that made its U.S. debut at the recently held 2013 Summer Fancy Foods Show. The line-up includes a black tea, a hibiscus drink and lemongrass-infused beverage. While the company did a good job with the formulation of the drinks, branding and packaging is a significant issue.

A finalist in the recently held New Beverage Showdown 5 at BevNET Live Summer '13, Jin+Ja is a non-carbonated beverage made with fresh ginger, cayenne, water, sugar, lemon juice, green tea and mint tea. Positioned as a product with a variety of use occasions, Jin+Ja is nicely formulated and features some pretty solid packaging.

The introduction of Zola Coconut Water with Espresso follows the launch of a number of coconut water and coffee blends seen over the past year. In the case of this product, Zola has done a good job formulating a balanced beverage in which the coffee does not overwhelm the coconut water, something that offers a distinct point of differentiation from competing products.

Overcrowding, and not enough differentiation between products. In recent years, we'd be talking about the energy category (which still fits the bill), but today, the same can be said about the coconut water space. And in the case of Just Coco, a new line of coconut waters from Brazil, we have to ask: why would consumers purchase this brand over whatever they're already drinking?

In the midst of thriving demand for lemonade comes Limonitz, a line of sparkling lemonades that are sugar-sweetened and USDA Organic certified. In our review of the company's mint-flavored variety, we find the product to be a very straightforward and enjoyable beverage, and one that definitely seems like a nice approach to the organic soda set.

Based out of the Finger Lakes region of New York, Red Jacket Orchards markets a line of cold-pressed juice blends, most of which use apple juice as a base. The products, which require refrigeration, are quite good, but land in a seemingly strange white space between shelf stable and “raw” juice products...

Last month, Bruce Cost Ginger Ale added a can package to its line of ginger ale drinks. Admittedly, there’s something psychologically different about not being able to actually see the…

Launched in July, Seattle-based Vital Juice markets a line of cold-pressed, high pressure processed (HPP) juices and nut milks. The company sells a substantial number of products with 15 varieties,…

In a bid to attract a wider set of consumers, BluePrint recently unveiled a new line of 10 oz. bottled juices that the company will launch next week as an…

Boasting that its juices are "TRULY RAW," Seattle-based Strawberry Moon does not pasteurize or high pressure process any of its products. While the juice blends, which have a three-day shelf life, are primarily sold on the company's website, Strawberry Moon does have some retail distribution, and, from our perspective, will need to make some significant changes to its packaging if it wants to scale its business.

Brewed and bottled by Portland, Ore.-based Townshend's Tea Company, Brew Dr. Kombucha is a line of kombucha products that come in five varieties. We definitely enjoyed the three flavors that we sampled and like the stubby bottle package that the company uses for the drinks. However, we do recommend an adjustment in how some of the products are named...