Rau Chocolate: Banana

The Banana variety of Rau is a no sugar added formulation that takes the base high pressure processed cacao drink and adds banana puree to it. From a taste perspective, this is an extremely successful combination. The banana flavor not only adds sweetness but another layer of flavor, which helps to mask the flavor of the monkfruit (a zero-calorie sweetener) and the slightly bitter finish that some of the Rau flavors have. As for the cacao flavor, the banana flavor masks it ever so slightly but there’s still plenty of it. While it’s not exactly a peanut butter and jelly combination, it is pretty addictive. And we absolutely love the flavor of the raw cacao, which tastes earthy and intense. From a nutritional perspective, the product has 120 calories, 6g of fat, 4g of sugars, 4g of dietary fiber, and 3g of protein. Packaging is a 12 oz. square-shaped bottle. This feels like the right portion size for this product. However, the yellow backdrop, which was the obvious choice for a banana flavor, doesn’t work well with the white text that is used in some places on the label. It’s too hard to read and makes critical elements, such as the ingredients list, something that consumers will probably struggle with. Otherwise, the label does a nice job of effectively communicating what the drink is all about and making it feel approachable. Overall, we really enjoyed this product.