Phancy: Vietnamese Sparkling Limeade

Phancy’s “Soda Chanh” is a packaged version of the classic Vietnamese drink of the same name. Unlike the original, which is made with salted, pickled limes, this product appears to be a fairly run-of-the-mill lemon-lime soda (with perhaps a bit more lime flavor than usual). While it’s a perfectly nice tasting beverage, it certainly doesn’t feel “authentic” as the label suggests. Plus, it’s full-calorie (180 per 16 oz. can), which makes us wonder just how big the market is for a product like this. Visually, the product looks and feels like something that should be in the natural channel, although it doesn’t really feel like a Vietnamese product per se. It has a clean and positive vibe, which is certainly a fine approach to a product like this. However, the brand really lacks anything that the average consumer can latch onto, making the product feel somewhat like a store brand. That said, we feel as though Soda Chanh needs to commit to one direction or another. As it stands right now, what you see on the outside and what you get on the inside don’t seem fully in synch.