GoodWolf (Discontinued)

Goodwolf Water, which is a line of non-dairy sparkling probiotic beverages that launched in 2017, is back with an updated lineup that includes both a new flavor and new branding. 

The line now consists of four flavors, including Gold, Ginger, Bliss, and Bloom. Packaging is a 12 oz. dark amber glass stubby bottle in place of the original clear glass bottle (which you can see in our original review). Gone is the resealable cap, which has been replaced with a twist off. 

With a black label on top of the dark amber bottle, we’d describe the new aesthetic as dark. This allows each flavor’s accent color, which is the only color used on each label aside from black, to really pop. The branding, which is “Goodwolf Water Kefir” written in an all-caps illustrated font, covers almost the entirety of the front panel and is impossible to miss. The only other element is a band along the bottom which is used to house the flavor name. 

If you want to learn what the flavor is, the product benefits are, or see their wolf logo, you’ll have to turn to the bottle around. While we like the simplicity of the front panel, we don’t think that hiding the flavor description on the back is a good move especially since words like “Bliss” and “Bloom” really give no indication (nor are we sure they serve any purpose) as to what the drink will taste like. 

Finally, the original label had a more prominent plug for the product’s probiotic benefits. This, too, is now on the side of the bottle, which leaves the branding in a position where it’s assuming that the consumer will know what water kefir is. While the market has certainly evolved since the brand first launched, we think that this move might be a bit premature.

As for the liquid, the base of these products comes from “kefir crystals,” which the company ferments with figs, kefir cultures, and sugar. From there, each flavor gets its own host of ingredients. “Gold” is flavored with lemon and ginger juices, apple cider vinegar, turmeric, and black pepper. “Bliss” is flavored with coconut water, coconut extract, and lime juice. “Bloom” has hibiscus, rose petal, lavender, passionflower, elderberry, lemon juice, and apple cider vinegar. Finally “Ginger” includes ginger juice, lemon juice, lime juice, and apple cider vinegar. The products have 30-35 calories and 7-9 grams of sugar per bottle.

All four varieties share a similar level of effervescence and crispness and have a similar level of fermented flavor. However, we preferred the notes of spice found in Ginger and Gold above the more floral flavor of Bloom and the coconut flavor of Bliss. Spice provides a nice complement to the water kefir and, as a result, we think these will have the broadest appeal. As for Bloom and Bliss, they, too, are enjoyable, but we think that they will probably appeal to consumers who are aren’t experiencing water kefir for the first time.

Ultimately, we think that this is a step forward for Goodwolf. The branding has a better vibe to it and the label has more visual pop while the product itself tastes a bit more refined than the first time around.

Goodwolf Water Kefir is a non-dairy sparkling probiotic beverage that is, at least from its flavor and functionality, a near cousin to kombucha. It currently comes in three flavors: Pure Ginger, Pure Gold, and Pure Bloom.

The base of this product comes from “kefir crystals,” which the company ferments with sugar, figs, and pink rock salt. From there, they add a host of ingredients, including apple cider vinegar, lemon juice, and whatever they are using for the particular flavor. This includes pineapple, turmeric and ginger for “Pure Gold,” lavender, hibiscus, and rose for “Pure Bloom,” and ginger, lemon, and lime for “Pure Ginger.”

In terms of flavor, we’re fans of all three. They’ve created some nice variety between the three, with Pure Gold having a bright pineapple and turmeric flavor, Pure Ginger tasting like an elevated ginger ale, and Pure Bloom having smooth floral notes. They’ve managed to cram in a lot of flavor without using a ton of sugar (5-6g per 8 oz.) or calories (25 per 8 oz.). And the level of carbonation is spot on across all three.

Beyond that, all three flavors have a really nice finish that’s devoid of any fermented or vinegary flavor. Plus, the touch of salt rounds it all out. The point of all of this is that we think that there’s potential for mass appeal since this won’t be an acquired taste as some fermented beverages are.

Lastly, there’s the packaging. Goodwolf uses a 16 oz. clear glass apothecary style bottle with a resealable closure. From there, the label, which has been positioned to be on the lower half of the bottle, features a text-only design that screams “WATER KEFIR.” The company appears to be in the midst of a label change from a white background to a black background, which, seeing the black version on Pure Gold, we can certainly get beyond. However, they’ve placed “Goodwolf” vertically in a narrow font and it’s somewhat easy to miss. Otherwise, it’s simple, intuitive, and appealing and we like how they refer to the product with the succinct message of “live probiotic bubbly.”

Overall, this is the type of product that we think can really get behind: it’s on trend, super tasty, explains itself pretty clearly, and looks nice in your hand. While there’s definitely some room for further refinement, Goodwolf feels like it’s in a nice spot -- at least from a product perspective -- to start to carve out some turf in the probiotic beverage category.