Halmi is a line of Korean-inspired sparkling beverages that are made with fruit juice and spices. The product line presently consists of a single SKU, which is flavored with cinnamon, ginger, jujube and persimmon.

Ingredients include sparkling water, date juice concentrate, cane sugar, organic ginger juice, persimmon puree, organic cinnamon extract, wild jujube extract, ginger extract and malic acid. It’s labeled as having “1.13% juice,” which is an oddly precise amount to list on the can. But we were definitely pleased with Halmi’s modest 45 calories and 3 grams of added sugar (7 grams total). 

In terms of flavor, we’d describe Halmi as light in body with subtle notes of sweet and spice.  You can definitely taste all of the key ingredients – cinnamon, ginger, jujube and persimmon – and we especially like the cinnamon and ginger notes at the finish. 

While we can’t speak to the Korean origins of the drink’s flavor, it definitely feels like something that could fit in the US market. The flavors are familiar but the combination is sophisticated yet subtle and approachable. And more importantly, it’s quite memorable, which isn’t something that we can always say about beverages that use more traditional flavors. 

On the packaging front, Halmi’s Korean inspiration is evident starting with the brand name itself, which is the company’s nickname for “halmoni” (grandmother in Korean).  The Halmi logo sits atop the front panel of the label, which is a glossy finish shrink sleeve label that’s white with black lettering. Below the logo is an illustration of a woman, which has a colorful gradient background featuring green, gold and orange hues. 

Label copy consists of the brand’s tagline, “much needed,” which is found at the top of the front panel, and a list of the hero ingredients at the bottom as well as the text “Light Sparkling Beverage.” They’ve decided not to name the SKU, which is fine for the short term (the drink can simply be known as Halmi) but it’s something that they’ll need to deal with as they expand the line. However, we think that some additional descriptive text would be helpful in guiding the consumer as to what’s inside the can.  But it’s certainly eye-catching and an attractive design.

Following up on a point mentioned earlier about Halmi being a single SKU, we think that expanding the product lineup should be at the top of the priority list for Halmi. Going to market with a single variety will make penetration challenging, both in terms of gaining shelf space and appealing to a broad base of consumers. To achieve this, Halmi could either add additional flavors to the base “original” flavor or they could create completely new Korean inspired flavors.

Overall, this is a solid first effort from Halmi and one that should serve as a good showcase and foundation for additional SKUs.