Marketed as a brand run by "a couple of guys in Austin brewing tea that is all about Texas," Texas Tea is a new line of RTD teas that come in eight varieties. Packaged in familiar 16 oz. glass bottles, the teas are have a nice and marketable taste, but we feel as though the brand could use some help in connecting with the consumer (especially ones who don’t have ties to Texas).
Gazpacho Alcaraz is a high pressure processed (HPP) beverage that is billed as “the drinkable salad.” It uses a blend of tomatoes, water, cucumbers, green peppers, onion, extra virgin olive oil, red wine vinegar, garlic cloves and sea salt. From a flavor perspective, it’s very like a gazpacho, with a tomato heavy flavor that’s absolutely delicious.
Cleveland-based Garden of Flavor produces a line of cold-pressed juices and juice cleanses and recently introduced three new juice varieties that contain added probiotics. While we think the company has done quite well with the formulation of the juices, we do think that the labels could be improved upon as some consumers might be confused as to which varieties contain added probiotics and which do not.
UCE Juice Taro Twist is a 45 percent juice-based beverage that is enhanced with caffeine and sweetened with fruit juices and stevia. All in all, it’s a decent tasting juice cocktail product that is probably best described as caffeinated fruit punch. Unfortunately, however, the branding has us somewhat confused as to what this product is and where it fits in the market
Suja Bliss is the most recent addition to the company's “Classic” line of high pressure processed juices. This particular blend is a bit of a departure from the other products in the line, starting with the fact that it is made with banana and a slightly thicker body that’s closer in style to a smoothie than a juice.
Gravity Apple Cider Vinegar Drink is a blend of 30 percent apple juice and two teaspoons of apple cider vinegar. The product, which is also sweetened with xylitol and honey and enhanced with vitamins, tastes very much like apple juice. This is a different approach than other apple cider vinegar drinks that we’ve sampled (yes, there are a few out there), which tend to be much more forward in their vinegar flavor.
The premise of Organic Gemini’s Guarana Energy is seemingly straightforward and simple: blend coconut water (from concentrate) with a caffeinated punch of guarana extract. The resulting product has the flavor and hydrating abilities of a traditional coconut water and the caffeine equivalent of a cup of coffee. To that end, this USDA Organic beverage is enjoyable and fills what seems like a logical niche in the coconut water category.
Happy Tree Maple Water is a high pressure processed (HPP) beverage that, as the name might suggest, is made using water sourced from maple trees. While this is one of several products that are coming to market as part of what appears to be an emerging trend, Happy Tree is definitely the best maple water that we’ve had to date.
Balance “Cleanse” is a product that takes one of today’s emerging functions -- albeit one that is typically synonymous with juice -- and applies it to bottled water. To accomplish this, the company has added a variety of extracts that were inspired by Australian “bush medicine,” including papaya, she-oak, bottlebrush and bush iris. None of these ingredients impact the flavor, which is certainly a good thing in terms of the drinking experience.
The Strawberry Lemonade flavor of A Game is a mainstream-oriented sports drink that features sea salt, honey and B vitamins. From a flavor perspective, it’s not that far off from being a traditional sports drink flavor; it’s almost like a cross between lemon lime and fruit punch flavors.
Wai Koko's new Coconut Infusions line comes in four varieties with each packaged in an 8.5 oz. slim can. Featuring two citrus-enhanced flavors, Island Citrus and Lemon Lime, as well as its original coconut water and a new mocha-flavored variety, the company has created a sub-line that is polished and attractive.
Amid its sprawling booth at the recently held Natural Products Expo West, Califia Farms sampled new single-serve varieties of its Iced Coffee line. Made with a blend of almond milk and coffee, the line comes in three flavors: Salted Caramel, Cocoa Noir and XX Espresso. From our perspective, Califia has once again proven adept at creating great tasting formulations with reasonable sugar and calorie content.
Bucha’s Yuzu Lemon flavored kombucha is the latest addition to the company's line of USDA Organic certified beverages. From a flavor perspective, it’s quite mild and it lacks the vinegar like flavor that you’ll find in many other kombucha products. Instead, it has a flavor that’s better described as a carbonated tea.
Last year, Live Soda Kombucha underwent a very well-designed and well-executed rebranding, landing the company a BevNET Best of 2013 award for Best Product Revamp. Recently, Live Soda added two new flavors, Orange Cream and Sparkling Ginger, that build upon the company's efforts to reach out to broad range of consumers in both natural and mainstream.
