Made by Michigan-based Blake’s Hard Cider, Sorta Pop is a new line of probiotic sodas. Containing 25 calories or less per can, the brand is clearly targeting the growing better-for-you soda set populated by brands like Olipop, Poppi and Culture Pop, among others.

Packaged in 12 ounce cans, Sorta Pop is available in three flavors: Lemon Lime, Tangerine, and Strawberry Watermelon Cucumber. The products contain a relatively simple list of ingredients that starts with sparkling water and juice,  content of which ranges from 10% on Strawberry Watermelon Cucumber to 28% juice on Tangerine (Lemon Lime has 20% juice). There’s no added sugar but the drinks contain between 3 and 6 grams of sugar from the fruit juice. Additional ingredients include monk fruit, apple cider vinegar, green tea extract, and probiotics (bacillus SP). 

When it comes to flavor, all three SKUs should fit in well with the category.  They are moderately carbonated and have a nice note of fruit flavor that is clearly aided by the fruit juice, and a decent amount of sweetness with minimal aftertaste. Of the three flavors, we preferred Lemon Lime and Tangerine over Strawberry Watermelon Cucumber. The two former SKUs have a cleaner flavor than the latter,  which, of the three flavors, seems to rely most heavily on flavorings to achieve its end result.

Sorta Pop’s branding cadence features a background full of fruit shapes that correspond to each particular flavor and a rectangle (with a unique color for each SKU) that sits in the middle of the front panel. This rectangle includes the Sorta Pop logo along with the flavor name and the text “carbonated prebiotic soda.” The same accent color used for the square is also used for the back panel, which cuts through the top of the front panel at a 45 degree angle. The final front panel text elements are at the top of the can, which features the word “pro-biotics” and  “brought to you by Blake’s Orchard” which an image of the state of Michigan.

The overall design is playful and catches the eye, although we think it would be even better if some of the elements inside the rectangle had a bit more room to breathe. This is very obvious on Strawberry Watermelon Cucumber, which uses two colors and two lines of text for the flavor name. Moving the flavor name outside of the rectangle (and making the shape more of a square) seems like a potential solution.

Beyond that, we do feel as though there’s something incomplete in terms of the brand’s connection to Blake’s Orchard and Blake’s Hard Cider. This starts with their choice of fruit ingredients, which for two of their SKUs features ingredients that are not grown in Michigan (lemon, lime, and tangerine).  The brand’s Michigan-owned-and-operated credentials will be notable in their home market, but may be better promoted with POS rather than a front panel mention. The space could be better utilized to call out the drink’s sugar and/or caloric content.

Overall, Sorta Pop’s initial lineup of SKUs is definitely a nice start for the brand.  The liquid is enjoyable and should fit in with the category, and we think the branding is catchy.  Further refinement and SKU expansion will be necessary, but it’s definitely a nice start.