Functional tea maker Teaonic has been producing functional tea tonics for several years, but just recently announced an expansion into sparkling beverages with the release of Fresh Pop, a low-calorie, zero-added-sugar soft drink enhanced with plant-based ingredients.

Fresh Pop comes in three flavors, including Detox (ginger lemon), Immunity (orange elderberry), and Chill (tart cherry hibiscus). Each 12 ounce can contains between 10 and 30 calories.

While the word “pop” has recently been used to describe mid-calorie sodas that are enhanced with probiotics or prebiotics, that’s not the case with Fresh Pop. The flavor of these drinks is much closer to that of flavored sparkling water since these drinks contain no added sweeteners of any kind. The calories come from added juice, which add only the faintest hint of sweetness. 

The three initial formulations are enjoyable and benefit from  using real, clean ingredients rather than flavorings. Here’s a look at the three:

• Chill: Flavored with tart cherry (8% juice) and hibiscus, this product has a very sharp tart flavor and a subtle cherry note at the otherwise crisp finish. They’ve also added holy basil leaf presumably to go with the “chill” function.

• Detox: Made with 2% lemon and ginger juices, this product also features rooibos and dandelion leaf extracts as well as cayenne pepper. There’s a bright note of lemon and a mild but noticeable spice from the ginger and cayenne.

• Immunity: Orange, lemon and elderberry juices (11% juice total) give this product a very fruit forward flavor profile as well as a hint of sweetness and, thanks to the elderberry as well as added hibiscus, a tart finish. This one does not have any other added herbal ingredients.

Fresh Pop’s sleek 12 ounce can has a pressure sensitive label, while the front panel is tall and narrow with a top-down hierarchy that can be scanned quickly. The Teaonic logo is at the top followed by a large Fresh Pop logo in white. Surrounding this are some outline illustrations of the key ingredients that vary from flavor to flavor. Below this is a callout for the drink’s use occasion, which is in white text on a dark background, drawing in your eye as the primary element. Finally, at the bottom of the can you’ll find the drink’s flavor name and “sparkling wellness soda.” 

Our biggest piece of feedback on Teanonic’s Fresh Pop is that positioning this as a soda might not be the right strategy. Typically, soda means that the product is sweetened in some capacity — which this product isn’t. They could certainly position this as a sparkling water or simply a “sparkling tonic,” but we think the use of the word “Pop” is still going to make consumers expect something sweetened.  Furthermore, we think the flavor should take the focus rather than the function, especially considering these are wellness functions rather than immediate functions.

In the end, there’s definitely some potential to refine and adjust the messaging, but we think the liquid inside the can is quite good.  Plus, we think that having a sparkling RTD could be a major catalyst for the company, especially since there’s proven demand for this type of beverage.