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.
