Brew Dr. Kombucha

Announced in July, Brew Dr. Kombucha’s latest product launch is also its first to include CBD. The Tranquil line includes three flavors in 14 oz. glass bottles: Ginger, Berries and Herbs, all of which contain 25 mg of CBD. 

Much like Brew Dr.’s other kombucha products, the base here has a tea-forward flavor profile that’s been enhanced with fruits and/or herbs. The three varieties are smooth tasting and have only a touch of fermented flavor, which is, at least in our opinion, always a good thing when it comes to kombucha. There’s a moderate amount of sweetness, with each bottle having 12 grams of sugar and 60 calories. 

All three of the flavors were quite enjoyable. Ginger has notes of lemon and ginger and is a nice play on one of the most popular kombucha flavors. Berries features notes of hibiscus, raspberry and blueberry and has the most tart flavor of the trio. Finally, there’s Herbs, which has mint, rosemary and sage in the mix and is floral and fresh tasting. 

One other important thing to note across the three flavors: you can’t taste the CBD and thankfully this product doesn’t have the dry-mouth problem that we’ve found in many of the CBD sparkling waters. They’ve clearly taken care to make sure that the CBD, which comes from Oregon-based East Fork Cultivars, does not impact the enjoyment factor of these beverages and they were definitely successful.

As mentioned above, Tranquil is packaged in a 14 oz. bottle, the same format as Brew Dr.’s flagship kombucha lineup. The label, which sits around the body of the bottle, has a hierarchy that starts with a callout for the 25 mg of CBD. From there, you’ll find a Brew Dr. logo, the Tranquil logo (the largest element on the label), and a few lines for the flavor name and the core ingredients. 

To us, this label is a bit busy and not as clean looking as Brew Dr.’s other products. However, for a brand that is mainly selling products that don’t have CBD, we definitely see the need for CBD to be front and center here so that consumers know what they are purchasing. To that end, we do like that they’ve created a specific sub-brand rather than just slapping on “+CBD” or something similar. 

Overall, Brew Dr. has done a really nice job of executing Tranquil. This is very much a no-compromise product, which isn’t something that we can always say about CBD beverages.

While the use of cans (in this case 12 oz. cans) isn’t a brand new thing for the kombucha category, there’s definitely a growing tide of brands making the leap into this package format. There’s a somewhat obvious comparison to craft beer, which experienced a bit of a boom thanks to cans. Several kombucha companies, including Brew Dr., are already calling for this to have a similar effect on the kombucha category.

As for what Brew Dr. has created, it is, to cut to the chase, the best executed effort that we’ve seen from any kombucha company. The packaging and the formulations are spot on.

But more importantly, this innovation, which seems simple on the surface, really changes the consumption experience. The difference between drinking from a wide mouth opening on a can and the smaller opening of the bottle is actually quite big. The flow of liquid is better, which makes for a more crushable product across all four of the flavors. This is especially noticeable when you try one of these flavors side by side with its glass counterpart. Furthermore, the aroma is much more pronounced, which is definitely a good thing for a kombucha product like Brew Dr.

From there, the products are about as close to perfection as any products that we’ve sampled this year.

This starts with the liquid. As mentioned earlier, these formulations are really well executed. While they aren’t new formulations (you’ll find the same flavors in their glass-based lineup), they are incredibly enjoyable.

For our palates, the Mint Lemonade (spearmint, peppermint, lemon, and green tea) and Clear Mind (rosemary, mint, sage, and green tea) are our top two -- and we think that these are a bit more mainstream. Love and Ginger Turmeric are close behind and probably play to the more experienced kombucha consumer a bit more. But all four are quite crushable.

On the outside, we really like the design that they’ve created. The look is consistent across all four flavors and features a Brew Dr. Kombucha logo placed above the flavor name and its particular flavors. Each flavor also features an accent color, which makes for easy identification. It feels extremely approachable and practical compared with the more serious look on the apothecary style amber glass bottle.

If there’s anything that we might change -- especially if it’s a broader base that they are after -- it would be to make the flavor names a bit more consistent. Specifically, there’s a big gap between a conceptual flavor like “Love” and the completely matter of fact “Mint Lemonade.”

In the end, we’re back right where we started: we feel as though this is a potentially game changing launch for Brew Dr. Kombucha.

Brew Dr. Kombucha, a rapidly growing kombucha player based in Portland, Oregon, has recently added two new flavors to their lineup of organic kombucha: Mango Habanero, which is a seasonal offering, and Mint Lemonade.

Let’s start with the Mint Lemonade. This variety is made with sencha, guayusa, peppermint, spearmint, lemongrass, lemon verbena, lemon balm, and lemon thyme. It’s light, refreshing, and crisp in its finish -- and the mint flavor is spot on, although , the “Lemonade” doesn’t really come through. Regardless, this is one of those products where the quality of the ingredients really delivers when it hits your palate -- and it definitely seems like something that was created with the mainstream in mind.

Next, there’s the Mango Habanero. This stuff is sweet and spicy, with the spice of the habanero building as you drink the product and then lingering afterward. It, too, uses a base of sencha and guayusa, although you really cannot taste the tea flavor once the spice takes over. This seems like a really nice seasonal offering, especially since it’s a bit of a sipper.

One thing that’s interesting about these two products is that they have slightly different labels. The Mint Lemonade has a small callout for “Tasty new flavor!” and uses the same layout as their other core flavors. On the other hand, the Mango Habanero has a bit more color in its label design, a slightly different type treatment, a very small “Summer Seasonal” callout, and the logo is centered. What’s the point? Simple: we feel as though they could make this a bit more intuitive. This might seem like a small point, but it might be helpful to consider among seasonal offerings or additional line extensions.

All in all, Brew Dr. Kombucha has done a really nice job with both of these products. They are certainly worthy extensions that live up to the rest of their line.