Taylor's Tonics - 7 Reviews

Cranberry sodas have existed before this. Companies were content with just adding some cranberry juice (or more likely a mixture that tasted vaguely like cranberry juice) to some carbonated water and sweeter. I've never had one that I disliked, but also never one that I would ever describe as great. Taylor's Tonics are never ones to shy away from a challenge, and they set out to create a cranberry soda that is made from the stuff of dreams.

Why keep a soda simple, when there are so many ingredients out there to make it pop? There are things in the world like balsam fir needles, ginger, allspice, coconut water, cherry juice, extract of orange and a combination of Douglas fir and French vanilla flavors. These are the things that keep the beverage world interesting. When combined all of these things with the original three that other companies used created a beverage that I would most certainly describe as great, and perhaps even stupendous. The only problem is that somewhere along the way the drink started tasted more of a culmination of the extra ingredients (mostly allspice) and the flavor of the cranberry base got lost. While I do love the way this tastes, the boldness that is normally present when cranberry juice is in the mix is all but nonexistent. A simple name chance would lift all of that concern off of my shoulders, but Taylor does what Taylor wants.

I know what you're thinking. No, this does not taste like you're eating a Christmas tree. Actually it kind of does, but not in the way you're thinking. It doesn't taste like cleaner or pine. It does taste like the essence of Christmas though. If you took all of the good things about the holiday and threw them all in a blender, this is what it would taste like. This company has hit the nail on the head with their holiday four pack.

It's Thanksgiving and the holiday season is officially upon us. Celebrate this dreary time of your with us and a bottle of carbonated eggnog. You know you want to. If it helps any it's not thick and gross like real eggnog, it's more like a spicy cream soda.

Pastrami and hot mustard is a wonderful sandwich. It wasn't until I was an adult that I enjoyed the more "fancy" lunchmeats. All growing up I was filled to the brim with white bread and either bologna or salami. Now, as an adult, I can get "nicer" things like hot mustards, multi-grain bread, and the most erotic of all the salted meats.

One problem with this super mature sandwich is that it is pretty violent on your breath. What better way to combat the unfortunate effect of dangerously pungent sandwiches than to drink a pop that tastes like candy canes? Lucky for me, Jay bought me a bottle of this probably not knowing that I would use it as a temporary, mid-day toothpaste.

I was surprised that this tasted like a candy cane seltzer and when I read the ingredients, it was made with "sparkling water" and not whatever regular pop is made out of. You can taste that seltzery taste. The drink itself tastes like a candy cane but I didn't get much "shake" out of it. I thought it was going to taste like a peppermint cream soda, which would have been fine but Taylor's doesn't cop out like that. There is erythritol in the bottle, too, but you don't get any of the associated taste that accompanies it.

This was a smooth transition into Christmastime. A much smoother transition than every time I take my headphones off for the past two weeks the kid that works next to me is listening to Christmas music. He loves the stuff. We could never be gay lovers because I would straight murder him over it. Great dude. I would murder him.

Ladies and Gentlemen, let's talk candles, shall we? Scented candles are wonderful and can make any living arrangement seem just a little nicer. I myself love to go candle shopping. While I can't afford (read: don't want to pay the crazy prices) for really nice candles, the way they smell is amazing. They tend to have a smell that you can taste, and that brings us to this soda. This drink ultimately tastes the way the highest quality gingerbread candle would smell (it smells just like them to boot). I don't advise biting a candle to taste it, because what you get is simply not what your taste buds would expect from the scent. This though, this is exactly the flavor that I imagine those candles would have.

The bubbly liquid form of a gingerbread house tastes like a mixture of the cookies that are its namesake and chai. I'm not talking a weak chia that you made from some second rate teabag you got at the discount grocery store either. I'm talking real deal brewed from loose-leaf quality chai. It's so strong to the extent that there is almost a burn from it. Knowing what this company has produced in the past, I expected a burn from the ginger, but instead I was greeted with a nice spicy harshness from the chai.

This is by no means an everyday soda. Actually you shouldn't drink any soda everyday, unless you're looking to end up like the mother from What's Eating Gilbert Grape. This is the kind of soda you drink on a special occasion or at the end of a long day. You get into some comfy clothes sit back and sip this over the course of an hour or so. It's meant to be savored and enjoyed. Mull the flavor over in your mouth and think about the holiday season ahead. It's going to be hell, but at least you get some enjoyment in the form of seasonal soda out of it.

I had my first mojito a few months ago, and I loved it. When I saw this in the store I was very excited to try it. It's definitely very strong, and the mint way overpowers the mate flavor. On first sip, I thought it was great. By the time I got halfway through the bottle I realized that it reminded me of the toothpaste that they use at the dentist office. That kind of ruined it for me, and I wasn't able to finish the bottle. I probably shouldn't have mentioned it, because now it may ruin it for you also.

I'm not a fan of most coffee drinks, but I do occasionally enjoy a mocha. I unfortunately did not enjoy the Cafe Azteca. I guess it remotely tastes like mocha, but it is extremely strong and burns a lot. It wasn't what I expected after having the other Taylor's Tonics drinks. At first I thought it might have been my dislike of coffee drinks that was weighing my opinion, but after having some avid coffee drinkers taste it, everyone agreed it was way too strong for its own good. Out of the seven or so people who tasted it, only one really enjoyed it.

The labels on the Taylor's Tonics beverages are very classy looking. They also deliver exactly what they promise. This tastes exactly like someone mixed some chai tea into a cola. It also has a nice earthly flavor. It's not something I would bring on a regular basis, but for a treat every once and a while, it's pretty incredible. If you are a fan of both chai and cola, this is definitely something you should check out.