Sparkling - 501 Reviews

Mangos are Jay's favorite fruit. Cilantro is Jay's least favorite herb. Together this makes for a drink that he would never touch. For that reason and the fact that you can't get this in Buffalo, I bought this and am reviewing it for you now.

This is very seltzer-y. Not a word? I do not care. It's got that taste I'm not super psyched about but the cilantro cuts through and redeems this drink. When you burp, you get a little mango, but not much. If you expected mango and wanted mango, you might be a little disappointed. If you like cilantro, you have slim pickings when it comes to drinks so you've got no choice but to be excited to have found this.

Dear Rubicon, I wanted to tell you that you've come a long way, but then I remembered that I actually loved the juices you sold in juice box form. I had expected them to be overly sweetened and watered down versions of the pure fruit, and while they did have extra sugar added to them, they were fairly spectacular. Any slight reservations I had about your juices have been thrown out the window by the addition of a few tiny bubbles. This actually tastes less sweet than the juice version, and I am fine with that. It's guava puree spiced up with a little sugar and some carbonated water. It tastes like real guavas, which makes it automatically better than 90% of the drinks in the world. Rubicon, you have proved yourself yet again and I can't wait to see what you have planned next.

Color me jealous that this is a Canadian drug stores' house brand. Why can't Walgreens, CVS or Rite Aid have products this good? I live right near a couple of stores and I would walk to them more often for a drink such as this. It's simply carbonated mineral water and juice. It's a mixture of grapefruit, grape, lemon and apple juices, but it really just tastes like someone juiced a grapefruit into some sparkling water. I'm assuming the apple juice is there to sweeten it up a tad, as while it is fairly bitter, it's not over the top face making bitter. It's great regardless, and I wish it were available in the States. Looks like I will be stocking up the next time I head up to Canada.

Every time I looked at this drink I saw snakes. Confused? Let me explain. Remember in Pee Wee's Big Adventure when the pet store is burning and Pee Wee keeps going in to save the pets, but each time he shivers as he passes the aquarium of snakes, because he knows that eventually he's going to have to reach in and save those snakes? Well this drink is like the contents of that aquarium.

Pears and I are not on the best of terms. When I was growing up the old lady who lived next door had two pear trees in her backyard that she never took care of. Come fall her backyard would be full of the stench of rotting pears that littered the lawn, which brought a bunch of bees and other bugs along with it. This eventually over spilled into my backyard. Bees and decay are not a fun combination. Ever since then I have this thing about pears that I can't shake. Even though we have absolutely loved every other flavor of the Sonoma Sparkler line it has taken me five months to finally drink this soda because of the cursed pear.

I was a fool. This sparkling juice is better than anyone could have ever expected. Yes, this would surprise even pear enthusiasts. The way the pears mix in with the apples is spectacular. They become a Ying and Yang of fruit juices. Neither overpowers the other. They just live in harmony. With no sweeteners added this is nothing but carbonation and juice, which makes it an unbeatable healthy force.

I have faced my fears. I came out with an armful of snakes and I didn't scream and pass out like that baby Pee Wee. In fact, I'm ready to head back in to save some more.

I would have to not be human to pass up this drink. When I was in a seafood/Vietnamese restaurant yesterday getting my bahn mi fix I saw this in a cooler and it was a no brainer. I didn't even know what type of beverage it was. All I knew is that it had a picture of an anime dude wielding a bat like a sword with a chain wallet on. It's absolutely ridiculous looking. It wasn't until I was waiting at the register that I discovered it was a sparkling green tea; an awesome can just became an awesome drink. The moment I fell in love didn't occur until I was back at my table and I took a sip to discover that it was actually a sparkling jasmine green tea. The stars aligned and new worlds were open to me. It's a drink I've never had before, had never even thought of existing before, but now that I've had it I feel stupid for not longing for it's existence.

I was told that it tastes like fancy soap smells. Not like fancy soap actually tastes, but how you imagine it would taste. I can't argue with that, but like my friend I also don't think it's a bad thing. Who among us hasn't bitten into a piece of soap hoping beyond hope that it will actually taste as good as it smells? Oh, just me? Well it's no secret that I am an idiot. If you dare to dream as I do, then this drink could be the secret to unlocking those self same dreams.

On a side note I wanted to know what Chakuka meant so I did a little internet search. The only thing I could find was that it is the name of an Austrian rapper. I hope that this drink is a result of him branding himself in other countries. That would be amazingly hysterical.

This is one of those beverages that walks the line between a soda pop and sparkling juice. I really don't even know how I make the differentiation any more. I guess if there is no sweeteners added it is just sparkling juice by default. It could also be said that if it is sweetened with HFCS, or has an overabundance of sugar in it, it is classified as a soda. This has sugar added to it, but it's evaporated cane juice, and it falls under juice on the ingredients list. I'm just going to proclaim that it is both, as in the larger scheme of life it does not matter at all. What does matter is that it is delicious. Just this morning my girlfriend pulled out a container of blackberries that she had been hiding from me in the fridge. I can't blame her, when they are put in front of me I can't stop myself and I just keep eating them until they are gone. Case in point I think she ate 2 or 3 today and I ate the rest of them. I would say I was a glutton, but it's fruit, so does that even count as gluttonous? The important thing is I have the memory of the actual fruit fresh in my mind, and this drink is not far from it. The berries they used taste like they weren't completely ripe, but I know that is actually how a lot of people prefer their blackberries. It's just a little more tart than one would expect from a berry soda. That is helped by the low amount of sugar that is added to it. There are only 13g of sugar in this bottle and in the world of non-diet sodas that is like nothing. This is a beverage that tastes great that you don't have to feel guilty about drinking.

Look at Rubicon stepping up their line and their image. They have given the contents of their juice boxes with some carbonation and packaged them in these fancy little cans. Seriously it's the same juice, just carbonated and it's glorious. For those of us with dreams of passionfruit, mango and guava sodas that actually taste like juice and not some weird bastardization of it, the dream has become a reality. Sure this is pretty sweet, but so is the actual fruit, and it's pop now, so it's supposed to be sweet. Don't complain, just be grateful that they actually did things right and it tastes like you're eating fruit, and not like fake flavoring or seltzer.

Another New Years Eve has come and gone, which means that so has another bottle of sparkling juice. As you may or may not know non-drinkers like myself celebrate the obligatory times in much the same way that children do. I think I get the same enjoyment out of it as well. This year I decided to get a little fancier than my typical sparkling grape juice so I went with cranberry juice…€¦cran-apple. I hear that it is just about impossible to get out of sheets from Santa Fe, so I took care not to spill in on any of the fancy gowns that surrounded me, and by that I mean t-shirts and jeans. I don't hang with an upscale crowd much.

First thing to note about this is that it is not a twist cap. I had to pry off the cap on the side of the stage of the club I was DJing at like a savage, because unlike a Boy Scout I am rarely prepared. The effort to open it was worth it though, as this is one delectable celebratory beverage. It's just apple and cranberry juice mixed together with some bubbles added. The apple juice sweetened it enough to take away the bitterness of the cranberries, but their flavor was still present. It's basically a higher quality carbonated version of Ocean Spray. I will definitely have to pick up more of this for my next soirèe. Oh yeah, remember: Nothing changes on New Years Day…€¦remember when U2 was a great band? I certainly do.

Santa Claus is a large man and these are difficult times for the obese. He should not be surprised as he spends a couple days eating nothing but cookies. He works long hours, isn't known for being wealthy, and is also never seen as a man who is "in shape." The misses has taken notice of this and has done something about it. She took the sleigh to Polar, contracted them to make one of Santa's favorite flavors, and had them put it out for all to enjoy around Christmastime. Santa drinks a lot of hot chocolate but when Mrs. Claus brought him the first bottle, he knew that it was for the best.

He took a sip and was moderately pleased. Moderately because he is a man who loves his sweets and this is neither sweet nor up t the caliber of "caneness" that he desires. It's not bad, but it's about as seltzer as you can get with a little bit of mintiness.

For the next year Santa is going to lose some weight by drinking this. His breath will be better and his waistline slimmer. Mrs. Claus wanted to also mention that instead of having standard issue chocolate chip cookies that you supply a small, Caesar salad either dry or with a balsamic vinaigrette. We have to work together to slim the big man down.

I don't often think about quitting Thirsty Dudes. It's fun and it's a hobby. Sure, I would like it to explode to the point where the hardest thing I have to think about is which Lamborghini Countach I am going to go to Jay's to get tacos, but that's in the future. The only thing that makes me want to not do Thirsty Dudes anymore is really good drinks. When we drink something stellar, we often never get to drink it again because of where it came from or the fact that at any given time, we all have at least twenty other drinks in queue that cannot be ignored. I have broken that streak a little bit by buying cases of really good drinks but it takes me forever to drink them because, as previously mentioned, there isn't enough time in the day.

This drink made me think about it for a second, though. It's really good. It's rightfully bitter, like a blood orange should be. It does the fruit justice. Just a little bit of sugar to cut it and make it so you keep coming back. Blood oranges everywhere should consider this the apex of compliments to be in this drink. You might be saying that they're just fruits but come on, if you were a lemon, would you rather be in a lemon Brisk or a San Pellegrino Limonata? It makes a difference. Don't think that it doesn't.

What I have in my hand is perhaps one of the most uniquely flavored drinks I have ever tasted. Let's start with the base of aloe shall we? Aloe the plant that is used to sooth burns is absolutely disgusting in its raw form. Seriously, just take it from me save yourself the taste of poison in your mouth. Just use it on burns caused by the sun or other. Processed aloe, or whatever they do to it to make it into a beverage is one of my favorite tasting drinks ever. So we have this vat of delicious aloe juice, what should we put in it? Oh how about the most refreshing of flavors of all time: the cucumber. Cucumber flavored drinks sounds ridiculous, that is until you try it and then you want it constantly. Every cucumber beverage I have tried tastes exactly like the vegetable, and as I said it's the peak of refreshment; move over lemonade. So we have some cucumber aloe juice now. Truth be told we could stop right here, but why not see how far we can take it? Why don't you throw some mint into the mix? Not enough to give it that toothpaste taste, but just enough to make it crisp. You know, so you don't really realize it's there until the aftertaste. To top it all off, why not pump some CO2 into it and give it some bubbles? Bam! Done! Perfect! It's crisp, it's refreshing and it ends on a nice cool note. It's a combination I have never tasted before. Why this company is not huge I have no idea. This is a base that other beverages should be modeled after.

Guayaki is a company that knows what they are doing, and what they are doing is making yerba mate based beverages that are nothing if not delicious. This is the 9th product of theirs that we have reviewed and so far they have all received either 4 or 5 out of 5 bottles. That is a rare thing indeed in the world of these Thirsty Dudes.

For those of you not familiar with it, yerba mate is essentially a tea. Does tea have to be made from a specific plant, or is it just any plant that is steeped in hot water? I think I'm safe referring to this as a tea. I've heard others do it, so I'm going to follow suit. As with all teas it has its own distinct taste, that is hard to describe, but once you've had it, you'll always be able to place the flavor. It's been compared to green tea, but I don't really see it at all. Both are a tad on the bitter side, but yerba mate has an earthier flavor to me.

Guayaki has been making this tea for years and recently has started producing a sparkling line. I for one love it. Tea based sodas are always hit or miss, but this is an inner circle bulls eye. The yerba mate flavor is right in the center and it's softened up a bit by some sweetener and a mixture of cranberry and pomegranate juice. What we have here are three bitter flavors, which could easily take all of the moisture out of your mouth, but instead blend together in a perfect way. Both of the juices are easily recognizable in the taste, but they are living in harmony together instead of fighting to see who will solo in the spotlight. I suppose that is because they both know that they will only ever be supporting characters in this drink; yerba mate is taking them all the way to Broadway.

Here's a not so subtle hint to America: A good majority of you are overweight. Okay, that wasn't so much of a hint as it was a flat out statement. Regardless, it's true. I'm not saying that I think people should be emaciated and the skinniest things ever. I am saying that in the days of our country when people had to work on farms and such, everyone was in much better shape. Think of how we could run everything if we were all in that same shape with today's modern medicine. We would be unstoppable.

The first step to getting there is to stop eating so much damn fast food. Sure it's delicious but it does nothing but hurt this cause. Secondly, and possibly most importantly, cut out drinking so much pop. I have way to many friends who tell me that one of their parents drink a two-liter or more of soda a day. That is ridiculous. I run a drink review website, and the thought of that makes even me sick. Do you even know how much sugar and other garbage you're putting into your bodies? How do you expect to hand plow the fields for ten hours a day while doing that? You won't, that I promise you. Hey, I understand the love of bubbly drinks. I'm just saying there are other options out there to get your fix in a way healthier way. One option is Hint Fizz. It's just sparkling water with a little bit of peach flavoring in it. There is no sugar, no fat, no sodium, no nothing. You essentially could be drinking a glass of water and it would be 98% the same health wise.

Sure when you first start drinking seltzers the taste is a bit weird, but the more you drink the quicker you become acclimated to it and then it doesn't taste bad at all, it tastes normal. Even though there is no juice in here, this does leave the memory of having just eaten a peach in your mouth. I urge you to make the switch from your soda pop to this sparkling water. The fate of our empire depends upon it.

I don't know where to start with this. It tastes...funny. Right off the bat, there is a strange bitterness that I can only attribute to my arch nemesis Acai while teamed up with that other guy I'm increasingly not too hot on, Reb-A. Oh, it's way down on the list but it's still there, crapping up the joint. The mixed berry doesn't even get a chance to shine through because those two hams are in the spotlight telling bad jokes that are borderline racist and making everyone in the crowd feel uncomfortable. You get a little bit of the mixed berry here and there. If I can continue my comedy show analogy, it's like the mixed berry is the MC who is better than all the acts. Perfect. That's the perfect analogy. I did it. Done. Peace. I'm out.

Get yourself a quart of fresh red raspberries, put them in a cheese cloth (one with a small rip in it) and just smash the hell out of them. Gather the juice and the few chunks that found their way through the hole into a cup. Fill the cup up the rest of the way with bubbly water and mix in a bit of sugar. What you will have created is essentially what is in this bottle. It's strange how much it tastes like raspberries. I know it's supposed to taste like them, but normally any fruit flavored pop doesn't actually taste like the fruit, and if it does you usually have to concentrate to find the flavor. This tastes exactly like you're eating raspberries, and the little mushy chunks do nothing but help it.

This is the first time I have ever said this about a soda, but I think it could do with a little bit more sugar. There is something about it that is just the tiniest bit off from making it absolutely perfect. I think a bit more sugar would balance things out and give it the little boost it needs to stand tall at the top of the soda pop pyramid.

For straight edge kids such as us, sparkling grape juice is like champagne. No it's not as expensive, but it's what we buy when we want a fancy drink. I'm used to the big bottles of this, and had never seen it in a single serving bottle before. To the untrained eye, I almost thought this was a wine cooler on the shelf.

I've had some sparkling juices that are more sparkle than juice, but this is not the case with this bottle. The grape juice is really good and has the perfect amount of carbonation. It has a bit of a thick aftertaste, but most likely due to the grape concentrate the drink is made with. I probably should have saved this for New Years, but I prefer the big bottles because they are good for sharing. This serving size is like a personal drink for a fancy dinner.

What a year! I went from not liking seltzer to scouring local grocery stores for good ones. I guess I was used to the swill my mom used to drink but this stuff has been good thus far. The cinnamon was awesome. The black cherry, less than awesome but still good. This was good. Right where I wanted it and just want I wanted: a little bit of mint and a little bit of chocolate. If anyone is familiar with Metromint Chocolate Mint, this is a sparkling, toned down version of that. I love that. I like this. For something that I put on my desk next to all day and polished off slowly, though, I liked it a lot and will get it again.

Mom, if you're reading this. You know I don't like your garbage seltzers. Perhaps for Christmas, if you're good, I'll buy you the good, top shelf stuff. I will also help you throw your old stuff in the yard and let the neighborhood dogs at it.

Wait so did Somona leave the partnership with Williams, or is this beverage just an example of what you can make with the fancy appliances they sell in their stores? Oh neither, it's just the name of a city in California that is located close to where this fancy sparkling beverage is made? Well that's less exciting that knowing that I could pay way too much money to buy kitchen doodads that would allow me to make this drink in the privacy of my own home, but I'll let it slide due to the delectable nature of this juice. It is juice; don't be mistaken. It is simply a mixture of apple and blood orange juices that have had carbon dioxide added to it. There are no sweeteners in here mucking things up. It's pure and it is wonderful. I was hoping it would be pure blood orange juice, so the addition of apples is the only reason this didn't get top marks. It tastes better than 99% of the beverages you have ever drunk, but to be honest it is more apple than orange. The apple flavoring is like a roller coaster car slowly climbing the hill, and the blood orange hits you suddenly and quickly like rushing down that self same hill. Don't worry, there are no loopy loops on this ride to make you lose your lunch.

Alright Michael, you've been working here at Izze for a couple of weeks now. I still think you're kind of a dunce, but lucky for you this job doesn't require much brains. Today you'll be making the sparkling lime soda while I make the more delicate birch beer. Remember we don't add sweeteners to our beverages, so don't bother asking me where the sugar is like you have every other day this week. Wait…€¦STOP! What are you doing? Where did you even get those little squirt bottles of limejuice? Did you have those hidden all over your person? You are just strange. Yes this is a lime soda that you're making, but that doesn't mean it's straight up carbonated limejuice. You just used three of those little plastic lime's worth of juice to make one bottle of soda. Do you seriously think anyone could drink that entire bottle? Oh you do, do ya? Well go for it. That's right, now take that sourpuss face of yours and get back to your station. We mix together mostly apple and grape juice with a bit of lime to make this soda palatable. You still get a mostly lime flavor, but the sweetness from the other fruits fights the tartness of the limes in the bet possible way. It ends up being like an apple-lime juice. You don't really notice the grape. Oh you think people will like your way better? Well we have orders for about 500 cases of my recipe and you couldn't even drink two sips of yours, so somehow I think your wrong. Just go to the washout station and clean up everything that is in your field of vision. I don't want to see you again until the end of the day. I swear a trained pig would do a better job at this than you.

You know why the holidays are great? Food and family. I don't care about gifts but I love to eat and talk about nothing. I don't care about sports so the whole "eat a million pounds of food and then sit down like a fat sack of crap and watch a gaggle of dudes throw the ol' pig skin around." Not a giant fan of sport. You know what I'm going to love about Thanksgiving this Thursday, though? All of the "thanks" I'm going to get from my family that I let try this drink. Oh, turned the tide, did I? Yeah. My family will be on their knees begging for another sip, a couple drops of this delicious, fantastic, quasi-seasonal drink. This is a secret gem amongst otherwise mediocre seltzers. This is a diamond in the rough.

How can I explain something so simple but yet so incredible? The "seltzerness" of this tricks you into thinking you are drinking a cinnamon pop. It's real cinnamon, though. It's like a less sweet version of that cinnamon sugar spice you have to basically only use on apples. It smells and tastes like real, not candy cinnamon. Do you have it? Do you get it? If you get it, get it. I mean it. Find it and get it. It's seasonal. Yes, this gets a perfect score but the candy cane one that I also saw probably won't get the same treatment. Sorry in advance. You are welcome in advance for this one, though.