Kern's Apricot Nectar

Kern's Apricot NectarPrice: 99¢ plus tax
Serving: 1 can, 11.5oz.
Calories: 200 per serving
Fat: 0%, 0g
Cholesterol: 0%, 0mg
Sodium: 0%, 10mg
Protein: 1g
Carbohydrates: 17%, 50g
Fiber: 4%, 1g
Sugar: 45g
Caffeine: 0mg

Kern’s says: Made from whole fruit from concentrate with other natural flavors

Abi says: For a long time, I’ve been in love with the “First 4 Ingredients” notation at Writers and Artists Snacking At Work. While reading the ingredients list on Kern’s Apricot Nectar, I was reminded of that writing tool and decided to use it to show you why this was a mistake of a beverage purchase.

First 4 ingredients:

Yes, this drink contains more High Fructose Corn Syrup than fruit. Ew. It only took one sip to make me realize that I’d chosen the worst ever possible accompaniment for my falafel. I was hoping for a sweet, refreshing alternative to my Mediterranean food and instead I got a tongue-coating nuclear orange nightmare.

Do yourself a favor and stay far, far away from Kern’s Apricot Nectar. Unless you enjoy drinking sugary orange-colored syrup masquerading a juice. If so, I’ve got just the drink for you.

January 8, 2008 | 2 Comments 
Filed Under Apricot, Kern's, Juice Cocktails

San Pellegrino Limonata

San Pellegrino LimonataPrice: 99¢ plus tax
Serving: 1 can, 11.5oz.
Calories: 180 per serving
Fat: 0%, 0g
Cholesterol: 0%, 0mg
Sodium: 0%, 0mg
Protein: 0g
Carbohydrates: 15%, 45g
Fiber: 0%, 0g
Sugar: 45g
Caffeine: 0mg
Weight Watchers Points: 4 Points

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San Pellegrino says: Sparkling Lemon Beverage

Abi says: My local Whole Foods has a terrific deli. Oh, the crepes are perhaps the most horrible crepes I’ve ever had in my life, but the teriyaki and Indian and barbecue and burritos are all pretty darn good. Add the hot bar, several soups, and gorgeous salad fixings and you’ve got my favorite buffet in town. Except for one little problem: no Diet Coke. That’s right, it is impossible to get a Diet Coke at Whole Foods. And most other drinks there are crazy expensive. I like juice, but if I’m eating an entire meal, I don’t want to pay another $4.00 for an Odwalla Cranberry-Lime Drink. Enough is enough!

That’s why I go for San Pellegrino Limonata. It complements just about any meal, is light and refreshing, and at 99¢ is just about the cheapest beverage you can get at Whole Foods and it comes all of the way from Italy. The terrifically short ingredients list doesn’t hurt either:

One thing I should point out is that this drink, which is best described as ’sparkling lemonade’, clocks in at 180 calories. It might be High Fructose Corn Syrup Free, but it isn’t a spa treatment. Of course, you could drink this and pretend that you’re at a spa. In Milan. Resting after watching a fashion show. It makes the lack of Diet Coke more bearable.

January 5, 2008 | 1 Comment 
Filed Under Lemon, San Pellegrino, Italy, Juice Cocktails, All Natural, High Fructose Corn Syrup Free, Soda, Four Stars

Izze Sparkling Blackberry

Izze Sparkling BlackberryPrice: $1.69
Serving: 12oz., 1 bottle
Servings Per Container: 1
Calories: 135 per serving
Fat: 0%, 0g
Cholesterol: 0%, 0mg
Sodium: 1%, 30mg
Protein: 9g
Carbohydrates: 10%, 33g
Fiber: 0%, 0g
Sugar: 33g
Weight Watchers Points: 3 Points

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Izze says: In some folklore blackberries symbolize generosity, in others, grief. Ancient Europeans used blackberrie in spells to create wealth, and in old England, a walk underneath blackerry runners was said to be curative. All very interesting, but we just love them because they taste so good.

Abi says: My mom gives me a hard time for drinking soda. Specifically, I have a Diet Coke problem. According to her, the carbonation leaches calcium from my bones and makes osteoporosis and broken hips much more likely in my future.

It turns out that non-caffeinated beverages are not the culprit in bone loss, thus it is safe to continue drinking Izze’s Sparkling Blackberry Juice. This vibrantly colored beverage is available at the following places: coffee shops.

Yes, that’s all. Okay, okay, so once I also saw it in a bar. But I did not order it. Thus it may or may not have existed. Izze beverages are the Schroedinger’s Cats of the juice world.

With a barely discernible blackberry flavor, this Izze juice lacked the tart punch I expected from such a prickly cane berry. Fortunately, the carbonation gives the drink additional zing, rescuing what might otherwise be described as watered-down blackberry juice and elevating it to the ideal mixer for a cheap white wine cocktail.

October 21, 2007 | 1 Comment 
Filed Under United States, Izze, Blackberry, Juice Cocktails, Fat Free, High Fructose Corn Syrup Free, Soda, All Natural, Four Stars

Odwalla B Berrier Juice Drink

Odwalla B Berrier Juice DrinkPrice: $2.50 (on sale)
Serving: 8oz., 1/2 bottle
Servings Per Container: 2
Calories: 120 per serving
Fat: 0%, 0g
Cholesterol: 0%, 0mg
Sodium: 1%, 15mg
Protein: 0g
Carbohydrates: 30%, 10g
Fiber: 0%, 0g
Sugar: 27g
Vitamin B: 25%
Weight Watchers Points: 4 points per bottle

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Odwalla says: We’ve splashed a dazzling fountain of fruits and B vitamins into this cool, thirst-busting concoction. Cranberries, limes and raspberries make a quenching cascade of tart sweetness, while hard-working vitamins B6 and B12 do the heavy lifting. These B vitamins are essential partners in the conversion of carbohydrates and amino acids into glucose, which supplies energy for your fabulous day.

We say: The full name of this product is “B Berrier® • Cranberry-Lime-Raspberry Fruit Juice Drink Blend” Yeah, with the registered trademark deal and all. Because you have to watch out for people that will steal lame drink names.

I picked up this Odwalla gem at my local bakery. It was 90 degrees outside and I was going to have a doughnut if it killed me. However, I would abstain from coffee and needed a suitable substitute, one able to withstand the rigors of a humid DC morning. Have I mentioned that it was hot enough to cause grievous injury (or even death) to any living being trapped within a non-airconditioned environment? Well, it was.

The Odwalla B Berrier Cranberry-Lime-Raspberry drink performed admirably. It is a cranberry cocktail on steroids, pumping itself up with the sweetness of raspberry and the tang of lime. After one swig I thought “Dang, I wish this didn’t cost $4.00 per bottle. Otherwise I’d drink it every day.” And then after the second swig I turned to the ingredients label and realized that this drink comes with a lethal amount of sugar. Sure, it seems safe at just 27 grams for some fruit juice cocktail. Until you realize that’s for just half the bottle. That’s right, this little 24% juice drink contains 54 grams of sugar.

Yikes.

I’ll keep this beverage in mind for the occasional treat, perhaps using it to make some utterly delightful cocktails.

September 28, 2007 | 1 Comment 
Filed Under United States, Lime, Raspberry, Odwalla, Vegan, Cranberry, High Fructose Corn Syrup Free, Fat Free, Juice Cocktails, Four Stars

Izze Sparkling Clementine

Izze Sparkling ClementinePrice: $1.79
Serving: 12oz., 1 bottle
Servings Per Container: 1
Calories: 135 per serving
Fat: 0%, 0g
Cholesterol: 0%, 0mg
Sodium: 1%, 15mg
Protein: 0g
Carbohydrates: 10%, 33g
Fiber: 0%, 0g
Weight Watchers Points: 3 per bottle

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Izze says: Clementines, sweet little cousins to the orange, have been used throughout history as both aphrodisiacs and characters in catchy banjo tunes, though rarely at the same time. Then again, nothing quite gets us in the mood like an old miner’s song.

We say: Since Starbucks dropped Jones Soda products in June, Izze is as close as we’re going to get to having a carbonated beverage in the coffee mecca. That’s right, no more Root Beer with cute pictures, no more clear Cream Soda, and no more weird Blue stuff that we never drink but just stare at while trying to decide whether or not the ceasar salad wrap is safe to eat.

Instead, we get Izze, owned by Pepsi (they also bottle those nasty Frappuccinos). Izze is simply fruit juice, soda water, natural colors (beta carotene in this case) and natural flavors (we have no idea what those are, they don’t tell us). Izze’s Sparkling Clementine is also fantastically good-looking, with minimalist decorations on the bottles, terrific colors (thanks, beta carotene!) and a classy font. Because typefaces are really, really important when choosing a beverage.

Izze beverages are just the sort of thing that one sees in Starbucks, but never in real life at our grocery store. Okay, so they might be at your grocery store (if you shop at Whole Foods), but since we haven’t seen them we are pretending that they only exist in the alternate universe known as Starbucks. Izze sparkling beverages shall henceforth be known as Schrodinger’s Soda.

While it isn’t something we’d drink every day (a case of 12 is $17.00 at Whole Foods - yikes!). It is nice for an occasional treat. You know, for when you want to feel like virtuous yuppy.

September 4, 2007 | 1 Comment 
Filed Under Juice Cocktails, United States, Izze, Fat Free, Orange, High Fructose Corn Syrup Free, All Natural, Four Stars

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