Holy Tepache is a new offering from Holy Kombucha, a Dallas- based marketer of organic kombucha drinks. The product is a riff on the classic Mexican fermented drink made with fruit rinds, and features prebiotic and probiotic plant fiber and a smoother flavor than their flagship kombucha products. 

Holy Tepache is starting out with four flavors: Peach Mango, Majestic Pineapple, Hibiscus Ginger and Strawberry Lime. Each contains 60 calories, 12 grams of sugar and 6 grams of dietary fiber per 12 ounce cans. 

When it comes to taste, all four SKUs of Holy Tepache are quite enjoyable. They are mildly sweet and have a relatively light body. The fruit flavors, which come from added fruit juice (ranging from 9% to 14% depending on which variety and all four contain pineapple juice) are very accurate and fresh tasting, which is always a good thing. There’s a slight tanginess to the products (presumably from the added tepache culture) that’s almost like a lighter version of a kombucha. And all four of the products have a crisp, clean finish that doesn’t linger. 

The standout flavors for us were Majestic Pineapple and Hibiscus Ginger. For Majestic Pineapple, we really enjoyed the note of pineapple that’s more potent than what you’ll find in the other three SKUs and it offers a simplicity that really stood out from the rest. Hibiscus Ginger, on the other hand, is layered and complex with a modest note of hibiscus flavor and a punch of ginger at the finish.

On the packaging front, Holy Kombucha has done a great job of creating something that’s clean, sophisticated and polished. The word “Tepache,” which is in a stylized script font and is the only white element on the front panel, quickly pops out at you and by placing it directly above the Tepache logo, they’ve done a nice job of making it feel like it’s part of the Holy Kombucha family. 

Below the logo, you’ll find some important descriptive text. This includes “sparkling tonic,” which is a broad label that if nothing else alerts the consumer to the fact that this is a carbonated beverage. Continuing further down towards the bottom of the label you’ll find the flavor name and callout for “probiotic and prebiotic fiber” as well as the USDA Organic certification logo and a badge that calls out 6 grams of fiber.

In the end, we think that Holy Tepache is a really smart and well-executed line extension from Holy Kombucha. While we think that tepache is going to require more education than all of the “pop” products that are presently entering the market, this approach has a slightly more premium edge to it and feels as though it’s a bit more aligned with the company’s core kombucha products. Definitely a job well done.