Three Stars

Three stars

Excel Bottling Company: Gooey Butter Cake

History: Prepare yourself for a taste of the midwest… in soda form. Gooey Butter Cake is a regional treat found throughout the heart of the U.S., but St. Louis, Missouri is the city most often associated with it. Think of it like an extremely moist, extremely rich vanilla brownie with a top layer of gooey batter that has a slight cheesecake flavor. It’s a decadent experience. One will fill you up. Three should put you in a coma. Excel Bottling Company out of Breese, Illinois decided the world needed this extravagant dessert in liquid form, and thus Gooey Butter Cake Soda was born in early 2016, becoming the company’s newest soda. While the soda is one of the newest in existence in the craft soda market, the company behind it is one of the oldest. Excel Bottling Sales and Communications Manager Colton Huelskamp tells the story of how in 1936 “founder, Edward ‘Lefty’ Meier, caught a bank robber a town over and used the reward money to purchase a used bottle washer and filler.” You could say, Meier put him on ice. You could say, the criminal’s efforts fell flat. Sorry. Like many other old time-y bottlers, Excel has always used pure cane sugar, according to Huelskamp. A major function of Excel Bottling upon its founding was providing the local community with fine fizzy beverages during the time of the Great Depression. They’ve since expanded the operation to include beer and are now up to around 20 different flavors of soda. The weirdest, undoubtedly, is Gooey Butter Cake. I mean, dude, come onnnnn. That’s like someone saying, “Yo, you know what would make this cupcake better? If it was soda.” The company is well aware of the stereotype, so they tested the flavor out last year at a local chain of stores. It did well enough to warrant a more permanent spot on the bottling line. “Yes this is an insane flavor to produce,” Huelskamp admits, “but not as insane as some other flavors that are out there.” The taste is described as similar to cream soda, but with “a subtle butter hint.” I’m just… I’m skeptical. Wouldn’t you be? I’m intrigued. I’m attracted. But I’m skeptical. Then again, dessert in a bottle doesn’t sound like the worst idea in the world.

Where to get: Currently, due to its new status, Gooey Butter Cake Soda is hyper local. According to the company’s Facebook page, you can find it around the St. Louis, MO/Breese, IL region at “Tru Buy, CC Food Mart, and Super Valu.” Your best bet is to contact the company directly and place an order with them. They’re really nice people and will quench your thirst.

Nose: Buttery vanilla. Lots of vanilla, honestly. It smells kind of like a rich version of artificial vanilla. I know that sounds kind of like a slam, but if this was a candle, I’d put them all throughout my house. It reminds me a lot of Shasta Cream Soda.

Taste: Vanilla; buttery; heavy; tangy. Gooey Butter Cake closely resembles a cream soda, but feels heavier on the palate. Buttery vanilla is the main takeaway flavor you’ll taste in this bottle. It’s rich. It’s heavy. A soda you should sip and not swig unabashed. There’s a tanginess to this that doesn’t really lend itself to vanilla or butter, which is why I’d attribute it akin to an artificial flavor. Not a bad thing – most sodas are made with artificial ingredients… you can just taste it here. Particularly near the end of the sip. I think what’s most striking about the flavor of Gooey Butter Cake is just how much it tastes like a retro cream soda you’d drink as a child. Buttery vanilla notes anchored by a tanginess not typical of a cream soda is the TL;DR version of this beverage.

Finish: Tangy vanilla. Slightly artificial. Slightly creamy after the tanginess fades. Lingers perhaps a couple seconds too long for me.

Rating: Gooey Butter Cake Soda is a novelty flavor many will drink for giggles or avoid entirely, but it’s surprisingly solid despite it’s oddball roots. I know the majority of you are just in shock that this is a thing. Us too. What a world we live in, right? Now to the important things. The flavor is reminiscent of old school canned cream soda with an added buttery richness. If you’ve ever had Gooey Butter Cake, you know it’s like eating a soft, buttery vanilla brownie. It’s an amazing experience in the moment, but the aftereffect is like filling your stomach with a thousand balloons. Excel Bottling’s Soda doesn’t give you either of these sensations, though it is a fairly heavy soda to ingest. You’d be better off to sip this one or put in on ice to slightly dilute it. You’ll taste tart vanilla softened by heavy butter notes. The outcome is a slightly creamy, rich experience. Gooey Butter Cake is undoubtedly a relative of cream soda. In fact, it’s almost a dead ringer for Shasta’s take on the category. It’s like a cream soda that ran away from home, messed around a bunch, and came back home with this as its child. It’s a cream soda, but it’s not. The butteriness is something you don’t taste in traditional creams. There’s also a distinct tanginess near the end of each sip and on the finish. It’s also heavier than a lot of cream sodas because of that buttery taste. So it’s familiar, but different at the same time. The positives? Despite the uninspired label on the bottle, but this is a legit soda worth trying, so that’s a win. The vanilla is nice. The buttery notes give this relative of cream soda a nice variance that separates it from the field. The cons? The tanginess. I liked it at first, but it really outstays its welcome. It never overpowers the vanilla notes, but it’s prominent enough that you start to think about it too much. It has has too much of an artificial flavor and lingers too long on the finish. I like the soda, but if I didn’t see “pure cane sugar” on the bottle, I’d probably assume it was made with corn syrup. That said, I’m not trying to bash Excel’s Gooey Butter Cake Soda. I like it. It surprised me in an overall positive manner. I enjoy the buttery vanilla and nostalgic flavors. I’d drink it again. It won’t be for everyone, but if you’re looking for an adventure, Gooey Butter Cake Soda is worth the risk.

Three Stars

Brood: Sour

History: If you want to change the law of the land in craft soda, a previous career as a lawyer probably isn’t a bad start. Jon Lehman grew tired of being an attorney, so he took the logical next step and launched a craft soda company. Right, guys? But he didn’t want just any soda company. No, he was very specific in his vision. “The goal is to make something very far out there,” he says. Lehman wanted to steer away from the vintage feel many soda companies capitalize on, certainly an interesting strategy considering the affability of nostalgia and the role it plays among craft soda’s audience. Lehman founded Brood in 2012 in Durham, North Carolina. He probably could’ve called is Bold. The company’s tagline is “carbonated greatness.” And it’s definitely unlike any other brand on the market. For starters, each flavor is based on emotion, and as Lehman puts it,”is influenced to a degree by an urban feel.” You won’t find ginger ale or lemon-lime. Instead you’ll be greeted by names like “Devil” or “Sour.” Next, the branding. It’s dark. And that’s how they like it. Look at the soda’s hype man, “Rood Boy.” He looks like something Tim Burton created to be the hipper, edgier cousin of of Jack Skellington from The Nightmare Before Christmas. They also try to stay as local as possible when sourcing their soda’s ingredients. A lot of what you taste in the bottle comes right from Durham. Brood lists its ingredients on every bottle, but Lehman admits you might not always taste them. Often what occurs is people will “taste the flavor, and they go in a completely different direction of what it actually is,” he says. Having previously tried to tackle the mysterious flavor Smoky, this time we opted for something slightly more traditional. Sour, Lehman tells us, is the company’s take on a citrus lemon-lime soda. But of course there’s a twist. Two other ingredients you’ll taste are honey and myrciaria dubia, which is actually not a spell from the Harry Potter books, but rather a fruit found in the Amazon rainforest. It’s high in Vitamin C too, so it’s like an added bonus. We’re looking forward to something simpler this time, though it sounds like Sour still might house some secrets of its own.

Where to get: Brood Soda is sold in many locations throughout North Carolina and a couple in Florida. Take a look to see if it’s close to you by checking here. You can allegedly buy Brood Soda online, but at the time of this review it appears you need a login name and password. Your best bet is contacting the company directly.

Nose: Honestly smells like a cola with notes of lemon. The more and more you sniff, the more you smell honey, too.

Taste: Lemon-lime; honey; tartness; mild cherry; intense carbonation. It takes a few swigs to get the flavors of this soda down as it’s very mild. I’d liken this most closely to a lemon-lime soda with the volume turned up. It’s bolder than 7-Up or Spite. But what really separates Brood Sour from its mass-produced cousins is that it’s much more tart. You taste the zing as soon as the liquid hits your lips, something that’s likely attributable to the myrciaria dubia because it’s a highly acidic fruit. So this soda is a little more acidic, but the sour notes fade quickly in favor of lush honey. Honey is the most recognizable flavor here. It really encapsulates all the other flavors. And one of those flavors that is very subtle, fleeting even, is cherry. It’s just barely there. You won’t taste it on many sips, so it’s almost like a hidden easter egg. I honestly can’t explain why we taste it… but we taste it. You’ll notice heavy carbonation in this soda too. Most of it is up front, so it doesn’t compromise the flavors. A zesty, fresher lemon-lime soda with dollops of honey that define the flavor profile.

Finish: Honey (more prominent) and lemon that slowly fade.

Rating: Brood Sour is perhaps the most “normal” flavor the company offers. Its tasting notes don’t reveal themselves immediately, but when they do, you realize they are ones with which you’re quite familiar. Brood Sour in layman’s terms is a slightly different take on lemon-lime soda. The citrus is bold. The carbonation is intense. The acidity is definitely makes this a little sour. And the starring flavor in this soda is… honey? Yup. This is essentially a bolder take on conventional lemon-lime soda with big notes of honey. I stress bolder because those lemon and lime notes are a lot stronger than what you’d taste in Spite. This is like when the cute, nerdy girl in math class runs out of band t-shirts and shows up in a crop top and tight jeans, so you do a double-take. It’s familiar, but it’s better than what you’re used to drinking in this category. It’s a win for all of us. The one issue I have with Brood Sour is the honey. It’s very, very prominent and when combined with the tart lemon and lime flavors, it occasionally overpowers them. If the honey was lower in the flavor profile, this could be one of the best lemon-lime sodas on the market. It needs to be taken down a couple levels. Still, Brood Sour is a solid alternative to Sprite or 7-Up and a nice change of pace. Brood is one the quirkiest craft soda companies out there and their offerings are always sure to spark conversation – Sour is no different.

Three Stars

Just Craft Soda: Pear & Vanilla

History: “You do it to yourself you do/And that’s what really hurts is/You do it to yourself just you/You and no-one else.” These are lyrics from the Radiohead song, Just. I always think of this song when I think of Just Craft Soda, not only because of the name, but because the message connects itself to the reasoning behind the company. As craft soda’s little bottlers become more popular, people often ask us why. The answer is because they’re tired of the same mass-produced, over-sweetened, high fructose-saturated soda. Just Craft Soda founder John McEachern knows this, saying “There’s very little flavor variety in the market these days.” For bigger bottlers, “that’s what really hurts is/You do it to yourself.” It’s taken the big companies years to realize this, and despite the fact that they’re starting to make inroads into craft soda, they’re well behind the smaller companies. David got a major head start on Goliath. McEachern had first-hand insight into the market place, having previously worked for PepsiCo. and General Mills, and he wanted to produce a “flavor variety” adults would enjoy. He jokes that most soda these days feels like it’s “been designed for a 13 year-old boy.” McEachern launched Just Craft Soda in early 2015. The Toronto-based company’s soda always begins with a fruit that is then paired with a spice. That’s the general formula. Each bottle of Just Craft Soda contains 60% (!!!) juice, carbonated water, natural flavors, and cane sugar. That’s it. Authenticity is important to the company. McEachern told us he didn’t want the juice content to just be a marketing pitch, jokingly mocking other companies as he exclaimed, “look, 5% juice!” He also feels a more natural-tasting fruit soda will pair well with food or alcohol. This is a soda you drink while adulting. Drink it doing your taxes. Drink it with a steak. Don’t drink it as you giggle to yourself tickling your buddy. Or do. Just don’t tell anyone. The company produces five different flavors from the more common pairing of Apple & Ginger to the slightly more exotic Lemon & Lemongrass. But Pear & Vanilla is the one that seduces your ear the most when you verbalize it, so we had to indulge. We’re told the soda’s formula is “very simple” and that “there’s nothing in the recipe that your grandma wouldn’t understand.” The company describes the pear flavor as “sweet, almost buttery” and liken it to a cream soda. What’s not to like? But we’re always cautious here at Five Star. We’ve gone on way too many bad soda dates. A soda date is basically just when we drink soda by ourselves and then tell strangers about it on the Internet. Yeah, I’m single.

Where to get: Currently, Just Craft Soda is only available in Canada. To find the retail location nearest you, look here. Americans or other nearby neighbors who are desperate to try these sodas can contact the company directly by going here. Online sales are currently being looked into, so that’s also a possibility down the road.

Nose: Light notes of fresh-cut pair and maybe just a tinge of bubblegum. Sometimes vanilla does that.

Taste: Tart; pear; apple juice; lemon juice. This is more that than you’ll probably expect it to be, but the flavors definitely stand out in the profile. There’s a bite right up front that’s briefly pear and then rapidly transitions to lemon juice. Just’s Pear and Vanilla Soda is tart, but not acidic. Pear and lemon are the main flavors you’ll usurp from this. There’s also undertones of apple juice. It’s almost as if the pear and lemon juices are the waves crashing against your palate in an ocean of apple juice. The apple is there, but the other two flavors are bolder and splash against your taste buds much more often. The vanilla in this is very, very light. It doesn’t act as a flavor enhancer as much as it helps mitigate some of the bite from the juices. Without the vanilla this would be too acidic.

Finish: Lingering lemon and apple juice tartness that takes about 10 seconds to fade. You do get a mellow note of vanilla at the very end of the tartness.

Rating: Pear and vanilla is a flavor combination that sounds like an adventure most soda drinkers would be willing to take. It seems like they could be good together, but you also know there could be issues. This is basically how I approach every relationship now. In a related story, I’m still single. Just Craft Soda is a company that swings for the fences with their sodas, pairing interesting flavors together while using at least 60% juice in every bottle. You can certainly taste the juice in this one. Pear and lemon stand out most. The pear is upfront, but the lemon punch comes quick and is tart. As a whole, there’s more of a bite than you’d probably expect before reading this review. Apple flavors linger in the background, but pear and lemon do most of the work in the flavor profile. I enjoy the apple flavors that weave in and out of every sip, but I’d like to see the pear flavor last longer in place of the lemon. Pear is, after all, the name on the label and I think it needs to be more prominent. The tartness isn’t too much, but it won’t work for some people. It doesn’t sting, but it does surprise. The sweetness in this is less than most craft sodas, but for one with this much fresh juice, it’s understandable and plays its part well. This is a natural soda that should be appealing to most. Certainly worth a try for its unique pairing of juices that surprise and satisfy the taste buds. It also apparently makes a pretty tasty maple pear bread pudding.

Three Stars

Red Rock Golden Ginger Ale

History: Red Rock Golden Ginger Ale is one of the classics in the American craft soda scene, and man, was it hard to track down someone to talk to about it. After a seemingly endless number of fruitless Internet clicks, we finally used some common sense and just looked on the bottle to discover Red Rock is distributed by Clayton Distributing in Atlanta, Georgia. We spoke to Paul Redd, the company owner and proud southern boy. The accent? Thick. Occasionally when he really got going, his words all spilled out in one gelatinous blob like molasses dripping out of a jar. For example, he explained “Red Rock was formulated inAtlantahfewYAassforeCo-CoCola.” But in all seriousness Redd was extremely helpful, and to translate, he said Red Rock Ginger Ale was created in Atlanta in 1885 by Lee Hogan and G.T. Hogan even before Coca-Cola. It reached its peak popularity in the 30’s and 40’s when it was available in all 48 states of the continental U.S. “It did very well on up through World War II,” says Redd. But with the sugar rationing that occurred during the war, Red Rock as a brand took some damage (there’s also a Red Rock Cola). The ginger ale always survived, though its availability shrunk decisively to mainly just Atlanta until the 1980’s. From one southerner to another, this is a soda that’s seen hard times, daddy! The ginger ale’s formula, made with cane sugar, has been the same since 1885 with one exception: Clayton Distributing added capsaicin, a component from chili pepper. Redd adds that it gives the ginger ale its signature “hot and spicy taste.” Red Rock is similar to another old time ginger ale called Blenheim in that both are known for being especially fiery when it comes to taste. In fact, Redd says “The first time you drink it, some people think it’s too hot,” before quickly adding “the more you drink it, the better it tastes.” I guess we’ll find out.

Where to get: Red Rock Golden Ginger Ale can be purchased online in single bottle quantities from Soda Emporium or in six-packs from Beverages Direct. If you’re a retailer looking to sell Red Rock in your store or just need to make a large order, contact Homer Soda Company. Physically, the ginger ale is available mostly in the southeast. Cracker Barrels around the nation also carry the soda. Basically, you’d need to have a really good excuse not to find it.

Nose: Smells like what you’re accustomed to with ginger ale. Slightly earthy, slightly sweet.

Taste: Medium spice; bold ginger ale flavor. I think we all know how Canada Dry Ginger Ale tastes. Take what you know about Canada Dry and imagine its flavor emboldened by about two levels with a little heat, and that’s what you have in Red Rock Golden Ginger Ale. A couple other differences: this has more carbonation and it also has a funky initial taste I’m not crazy about. It has an earthy spice to it that crawls into the sinuses at first, but mostly resides in the throat. This is a ginger ale that has some familiarities, but is stronger than what most people buy at the grocery store. Definitely has a noticeable kick.

Finish: Candied ginger with some earthy notes and lingering medium heat in the throat.

Rating: Red Rock Golden Ginger Ale is a classic and one of the bolder-tasting ginger ales on the market. If you’re using Canada Dry as a base, this has stronger flavor, more carbonation, and some actual heat for a ginger ale. The spice initially creeps into your nostrils before settling in the back of the throat. It’s definitely a good ginger ale, but I wouldn’t call it great. There’s a funky, earthy taste you get immediately at the beginning of each sip that’s just hard to shake. It’s a little too earthy and unwelcoming. The longer you drink this, the more it goes away… or maybe you just get used to it. But I can’t forgot it when it comes to rating this ginger ale. That said, there are also good qualities. One is the carbonation. There’s lots of it and the bubbles really make the ginger ale pop in your mouth. Great texture. The body of the ginger ale also has really nice flavor. Bold, crisp, and refreshing. This would probably make a really good cocktail mixer. Love the color. Like the flavor, but don’t love it. Definitely stands out as retro amongst the newer styles and flavors of ginger ale, so if you’re looking to get down with some old fashioned nostalgia, Red Rock Golden Ginger Ale is definitely an option for you.

Three Stars

Avery’s Beverages: Black Raspberry

History: “Starting a soda company back then was kind of like starting a .com right now. It was just a very trendy thing to do,” confesses Avery’s Beverages General Manager, Rob Metz. And when he says back then, he means back then. Avery’s has been brewing up soda the old fashioned way in New Britain, Connecticut since 1904 when Sherman F. Avery founded the company. Dude was actually a milk peddler before he hit it big with soda. Ridin’ dirty on his horse, Sherman the milk man. That could be a Kanye West lyric and still be better than most of the stuff on his new album. Ahem. Avery’s still uses artisan well water in their sodas. That should give you the warm and fuzzies if you get nostalgic about glass-bottled soda. And P.S. they make a ton of them. From normal flavors like birch beer and root beer to oddities like Toxic Slime and Monster Mucus, Avery’s has over 40 different flavors of your favorite fizzy drinks. If there’s a flavor you like, they probably make it. Out of all the concoctions they brew, we had to pick a unique one, so we went with black raspberry. What’s the difference between a red and black raspberry besides color? I dunno man, I’m asking you! Avery’s isn’t even sure themselves. Metz admits the soda came before his time with the company, so he can’t list a ton of differencea between the two berries. He likens the flavor to huckleberry. Metz credits the company’s loyal fan base as the reason they’re still in business today. “We’ve got the authenticity that lot of the newer folks in the craft soda industry might not have,” something that without question appeals to a large portion of their target audience. It’s cool to be retro right now. Remember that when we’re begging you for quarters on the street in two years.

Where to get: Avery’s soda can purchased purchased throughout the U.S. online from Vintage Soda Company. If you’re a retailer looking to sell Avery’s Black Raspberry in your store, contact Homer Soda Company for a wholesale or large order. The company also fulfills orders directly, but you’ve gotta contact them the old fashioned way via phone or email.

Nose: An interesting smell, kind of a combination of grape, raspberries with sugar on top, and a raspberry Sno Cone. Definitely raspberry forward, but more floral than a typical raspberry scent.

Taste: Grape; raspberry Jolly Rancher. This is more straightforward than I was expecting based on the nose. I have to say that this is surprisingly strong in grape flavor. More than raspberry. The grape taste is subdued. It’s like drinking a Grape Nehi, except right as the flavor is about to crescendo, it stops and you never get any signature tasting notes. This is void of boldness. Instead it falls off into a very subtle Jolly Rancher blue raspberry that lacks a bite. Kind of like someone took the tartness out. It’s a really smooth drink and soft on the palate, but the flavor isn’t as bold as you might be expecting.

Rating: Mild grape tinged with the tiniest bit of raspberry Sno Cone. Most will probably taste only the grape.

Finish: For a soda labeled “black raspberry,” this tastes remarkably like a more subdued version of grape soda. The soda’s biggest selling point is its smoothness. It goes down incredibly easy. You could drink two of these in a sitting, easily. However, this is partially due to the fact that its flavors are very mild. The strongest element in the soda is the sweetness, but give credit to Avery’s; it isn’t overpowering. If you handed a bottle of this to someone without a label on it, my guess is they’d probably just guess it was grape soda. And it’s not a bad take on grape soda… but this isn’t grape soda. I was hoping for a big note of raspberry with perhaps some extra sugar. I remember picking black raspberries in my grandma’s back yard as a child, plucking them right off the bushes and into my mouth. They had an earthy sweetness to them, but overall have less flavor and less tartness than a regular raspberry. This is where Avery’s missed an opportunity with their take on black raspberry. None of those elements are present. You’ll taste mild grape with a soft raspberry Sno Cone flavor near the end of the sip, so at least there is some variance to the flavor profile. The taste is simple and pleasant, but it isn’t what’s on the label. If you’re in the market for a highly drinkable, mild take on grape soda with a little flavor variance near the end of the sip, then you’ve literally hit the jackpot. If your favorite fruit is raspberry and you’ve had a rough day at work and all you want is a carbonated raspberry beverage before downing a bottle of wine and having a good cry in the bathtub… then this isn’t for you. I have to stop airing my personal problems out on here. Luckily, Avery’s has like 45 flavors for you to try. We’ll keep searching until we find the magic one(s).

Three Stars

Green Bee: Lemon Sting

History: According to Michigan State University, “It has often been said that bees are responsible for one out of every three bites of food we eat.” Chris and Lori Kinkcade thought they should be responsible for four flavors of soda as well. Chris Kinkade is a beekeeper in Brunswick, Maine and the founder of Green Bee Craft Beverages. He remembers looking at a jar of honey and thinking, “I could make something out of this.” Local honey might be the source of Green Bee soda’s flavor, but Kinkade’s kids are really the reason it exists. “They were always bugging me for soda, and I never wanted to give them what’s on the market,” he conceded. This led to the company’s first flavor of soda: Lemon Sting. As you might expect, with the health of children as the inspiration, Green Bee approaches soda in more of an organic, lower calorie way than what’s typical to the marketplace. “To us, it’s about fresh soda,” he says. As described in the company’s motto, “The Green Bee Way,” they say they “always use whole ingredients,” including “fresh pressed juices, natural herbs and spices.” They also do not use preservatives or extracts. When it comes to Lemon Sting, our review today, Lori Kinkade notes it’s made “from freshly squeezed lemon juice, rosemary and wildflower honey.” Sounds like a drink that would make Julia Child proud. The Green Bee website describes Lemon Sting’s taste as “fresh, clean flavor with crisp finish.” We like to call beverages like these “farmer’s market sodas” because they’ve just got that mom n’ pop feel to them and are made with minimal sugar (in this case solely honey) and use real, fresh ingredients. Buzz, buzz.

Where to get: Green Bee lists out where you can find and purchase their soda right here. For those outside of New England, you can buy it online via Green Bee’s official retail partner Jackeez.

Nose: Honey. Earthy honey.

Taste: Lemon; herbs; honey. The three main components of Lemon Sting are lemon juice, honey, and rosemary, and that’s spot-on in terms of what you taste. The lemon and honey are immediate and hit flush in the center of your tongue. There’s initially just a touch of sweetness from the honey that comes out, but soon the lemon juice becomes the dominant of the two flavors, though it does retain the honey’s earthy notes. This is not a sweet soda, but also not bitter – pretty typical for “natural sodas” in that regard. After a couple sips, the lemon and honey form a light, sweet lemon flavor like one might find in a tea. Then there’s the rosemary. I always taste this separately from the lemon and honey. It definitely imparts and herbal flavor to the soda near the back half of each sip, but doesn’t really add anything to the initial flavors. The lemon-honey combo is the star of this soda. The honey isn’t overly strong and the lemon isn’t too sour. The flavors compliment each other well.

Finish: Strange aftertaste. It’s like what a corn tamale tastes like. Not sure how this happened, but it needs improvement.

Rating: Natural sodas are a polarizing category, often looked down upon by old school soda drinkers and lauded by the new farmer’s market wave of diet-conscious hipsters. If you’re a rootin’ tootin’, sugar lovin’ root beer or cola fanatic, this probably won’t be your thing. For the rest of you, read on. I don’t know many people who’d drink a soda where lemon is the primary flavor, so it’s good Green Bee has recognized that and used local honey from Brunswick, Maine to cut into this powerful ingredient. When paired with with honey, the lemon flavor in Lemon Sting is present enough to make an impact, but transformed in a way that should appeal to fans of both natural beverages and citrus soft drinks. The honey has a very natural, earthy flavor. It is not sweet. The lemon tastes authentic, like something you’d find in lemon-lime soda with the volume turned up. My biggest disappointment is the soda’s third ingredient: rosemary. It’s such a fantastic herb with great flavor, and if you didn’t look at the ingredient list, you’d probably never know it was in Lemon Sting. You can occasionally taste it as kind of a general herbal flavor on the back half of some sips here and there, but it’s not prominent enough to affect the overall flavor profile. It’s exciting to read about, but ultimately never happens… reminds me of my sister’s wedding. If the rosemary was brought up higher in the flavor profile, I think if could play off the honey’s sweetness and give Lemon Sting’s earthy flavor more character. If you enjoy tea with honey and lemon, this is tailor-made for you. Lemon Sting is a solid offering for a natural soda with notes of earthy sweetness. I think you’d be best-suited drinking this on a hot day in the sun, perhaps paired with a sweet treat in hand.

Three Stars

Original New York Seltzer: Lemon & Lime Soda

History: The 80’s were some of American culture’s most glamorous years. Big hair, neon signs, leather jackets, cocaine flying everywhere, acid wash jeans, baggy suits. It was a hell of a time. Original New York Seltzer (hereby referred to as ONYS) was a drink born in the 80’s and it personified that time. The independent brand became known for its flashy presentation with brightly colored labels that popped, big lettering on small bottles, and signature clear liquid in all flavors that separated it from the major labels. To be specific, ONYS was started in 1981 by the father-son team of Alan and Randy Miller. You might know Randy Miller’s other work because today he runs a company that trains big animals like bears and tigers often used in movies. As ONYS rose to prominence, the big boys took notice and eventually came calling. Anheuser Busch offered the Miller’s $180 million to sell. Because keeping the business independent was their top priority, they declined. Soon after, due to a damaged distribution network, ONYS stopped production, and everyone’s favorite 80’s soda disappeared just as fast as the jheri curl. But the beauty of nostalgia is that young fans grow up and old favorites die hard. So over 30 years later, Ryan Marsh resurrected the company, relaunching the brand in May of 2015. The new ONYS President said, “As a kid growing up in the ‘80s, my family and friends all knew and loved Original New York Seltzer. It was the only brand our parents would allow us to drink…. We’re committed to upholding everything that has made this brand unique.” That includes making soda that’s free of preservatives, coloring, and artificial flavors. Now some of you might be confused that we’re calling a brand with the word “seltzer” in it a craft soda. Don’t be. Here’s why: ONYS is carbonated, has a shared range of flavors with soda, is made with pure cane sugar, and contains a calorie content not that far removed from a normal craft soda. When Marsh said he wanted to restore things to how they once were, he wasn’t kidding. He elaborates by saying, “The carbonation has been set to 1987 levels. Original New York Seltzer is bottled in the original-sized bottles in the original factory. The same employees that brought ONYS to life in the factory are still running the lines and are monitoring the quality control process.” How ’bout that? A single nostalgic tear runs down my eye. Something that’s kind of funny? ONYS is and always was headquartered in Los Angeles, not New York. Marsh notes that vanilla cream and black cherry are the current most popular flavors, so we wanted to give some love to one of the other kids, lemon and lime.

Where to get: You can purchase Original New York Seltzer Lemon & Lime plus the rest of the company’s flavors directly from the ONYS online store and from Amazon.

Nose: Lemon-lime, ala 7-Up more than Sprite. More of a lime scent than lemon.

Taste: Lime-y; sugar; light lemon; bubbles. The lime here is more prominent than the lemon, but the lemon has a better flavor. First, the lime. Think along the lines of candy lime like you’d taste in a green Life Savers. The lime is accompanied by lots of little bubbles that amplify its intensity. The carbonation isn’t overly intense, but there’s definitely a lot of it. After a couple seconds, the lime fades and you’re left with a soft lemon flavor, similar to Sprite. However, the second half of each sip is also what distinguishes Original New York Seltzer’s Lemon & Lime Soda from Sprite or 7-Up. There’s no syrupy aftertaste. That said, overall this is pretty similar to a cross between Sprite and Howdy Lemon-Lime Soda.

Finish: Mild, crisp lemon flavor with sugar that slowly fades out.

Rating: To be fair, there’s not a whole lot of wiggle room to start with when it comes to lemon-lime sodas, but Original New York Seltzer’s take on the category tastes remarkably similar to the major brands already on the market. And I’m not saying it’s bad. No, no. It’s good. It’s pleasant. It’s light and refreshing. It’s just doesn’t taste significantly different from a mass-produced brand like Sprite or a craft classic like Bubble Up. While a craft soda connoisseur might be able to taste that this is made with real sugar and not corn syrup, most drinkers will overlook a subtlety like that. And while an enthusiast might be able to differentiate the strength in lime flavors between ONYS Lemon & Lime vs. its competitors, most drinkers will just think it’s another lemon-lime soda. You could probably hand this to most people in a blind taste test and they’d tell you it was Sprite. Again, it’s not a bad thing. It’s a hard flavor to infuse with uniqueness. Put it this way: I think this tastes better than 7-Up and Sprite and is better for you. There’s no reason you shouldn’t be drinking this instead. Most may not find many differences between this soda and others like it, but I’d be willing to bet most people also wouldn’t turn down a bottle of this after having a few sips. This is a soda you bring out of the bullpen when you need a drink to rely upon. Old girl is solid.

Three Stars

Natrona Bottling Company: Bauser Champayno

History: Sometimes a product comes along in craft soda that’s so novel(ty) and simultaneously cool, you buy it without question. Natrona Bottling Company produces several different flavors likely to catch eyes and furrow brows, from Plantation Style Mint Julep and Pennsylvania Punch to the smaller, more sophisticated Bauser Champayno. But… what is Champayno? On the surface, it appears to be a miniature version of regular soda, perhaps with a mock champagne flavor. I can’t promise you that will be the case and neither can Natrona Bottling’s Owner, the self-proclaimed “Sultan of Soda,” Vito Gerasole. “I don’t know how to describe the flavor,” he confesses. Gerasole is a proud Italian who to this day still works at his family restaurant, Gerasoli, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. But in 2010 he was given a chance to take the reigns of the failing Natrona Bottling Company, a soda bottler that had been in business since 1904. The Natrona, Pennsylvania soda company had just $4,000 left in their bank account when an angel investor provided a financial opportunity for Gerasole to fix things. Fortunately, Natrona had very little debt; all they needed was a new marketing push. But for Gerasole, why take the time and effort to breath life back into a white dwarf in the rapidly expanding craft soda galaxy?  “I’m a very nostalgic person,” he tells us. And Natrona is a very nostalgic company. In fact, the bottler’s signature is that it still uses a very old method of production for the bubbles in their soda. How old, you ask? Gerasole boasts, “I believe we are the last soda producer that uses a style of carbonation called ‘pinpoint carbonation’.” Basically what this means is you should taste much smaller bubbles than you’re accustomed to in soda, almost along the lines of champagne. This is achieved by dropping dry ice pellets into pressurized tanks, creating a much smoother, tinier bubble. “Effervescent” is a term Gerasole kept using to describe it. From nearly bankrupt back to bubbling over in business, Gerasole sought to add new flavors to the company. The one he introduced but still doesn’t quite seem to understand is Champayno. It’s a bit of a mystery even to its creators, so much so we have no information with which to detail it. Gerasole best describes it as a 6.3 ounce bottle of dry soda made with pure cane sugar that he one day may transition into a mixer. It was inspired by a similar beverage made by a company called Champay in the 40’s when sugar was being rationed for the war. Admittedly, those sodas were more popular in the 70’s and 80’s. Now that sweeter sodas are back and bigger than ever, Gerasole isn’t sure about the future of Champayno. I’d get your hands on it now while you can because it might just become a collector’s item in the future.

Where to get: You can find Natrona Bottling Company sodas in Pennsylvania, Ohio, and West Virginia. But as for Bauser Champayno, because some retailers don’t stock it, you’re most reliable bet is to buy it online directly from Natrona Bottling.

Nose: Kind of like not quite fermented white grapes – like a fizzy white wine. Pretty mild overall.

Taste: Ginger ale; mild white grapes. This definitely tastes like a dry ginger ale with a white grape influence. The carbonation is flush with lots of tiny, little bubbles that feel nice in the mouth. It’s dry. Very, very crisp for a soda, but with enough sugar to make it easy to drink. There’s a pretty distinctive tang to this soda, and I’d say that’s its defining characteristic. Has more of a zip than most ginger ales, just not in a spicy way. Instead of a spicy kick, this has a tangy white grape flavor that accompanies the dry ginger ale flavor. I wouldn’t call this champagne-like, but rather a unique take on a classic ginger ale.

Finish: Similar to the body of the soda, though slightly more acidic and tangy. Not a lot of variance.

Rating: Does Champayno taste like champagne? No. But honestly, does that really sound like a good idea? If we learned anything from those Harry Potter Jelly Beans that came out years ago, it’s that not everything in life – namely dirt and boogers – needs to be imitated in food. We don’t need champagne-flavored soda either. But we might need Champayno. It’s like a ginger ale that got dressed up for a fancy party. For one, look at the bottle. I’m a full-grown man, and even I think this little 6.3 oz. bottle is cute as hell. The flavors are familiar, yet different. It has all the characteristics of a mild ginger ale: flavor, crispness, and dryness. But there’s also a white grape tanginess you taste here that isn’t present in other ginger ales. This and the carbonation are the only traits that make it remotely comparable to champagne. Champayno is definitely a grower, the problem is that at 6.3 oz., it’s gone before you can really process its unique flavors. For that reason, I don’t think I can confidently rate this higher than three stars, though I definitely think if I had more of the liquid, I might rate it higher. I get that the smaller bottle conveys a greater sense of sophistication, but I think you need about 10-12 ounces of Champayno to fully appreciate it and make a judgement on it. I also think the subtle white grape flavors really work well here and I wouldn’t mind if they were strengthened ever so slightly. There’s a lot of good stuff going on here. It’s fun. It tastes nice. And it looks classy. It’s also not the easiest soda to acquire, which for many will increase the appeal even more. If you can get your hands on a tiny bottle of Champayno you just might be the coolest one at the party. Definitely one to put on your list.

Three Stars