If you drink soft drinks and read THE NIBBLE, you may be ready for a change. Sparkling juices are not only divine beverages, but great recipe ingredients. Photo by Ersa Su.

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February 2006
Updated October 2006

Product Reviews / Main Nibbles / Beverages

Who’s Who in Sparkling Juices

Drink Your Fruit: It’s Good For You

The fastest-growing category in specialty foods is beverages, where the creativity and fresh flavors are bursting forth. One segment of the category is sparkling juices, often categorized along with “adult sodas” like GuS and Steaz, which create all-natural, elegant versions of classic soft drinks like ginger ale.

Both groups are a godsend to palates tired of the artificial flavors of mass-marketed supermarket sodas—and the high levels of carbonation required to cover up the artificial tastes. Grown-ups who left the world of carbonated beverages behind long ago have returned for the refreshing, natural tastes of these sparkling juices, and they approve of the no-preservative, lower-sugar fizzy stuff for their children as well. For those who prefer the sweet fruitiness of sparkling juices to the spicier profiles of colas, root beers and ginger ales, there’s a lot from which to choose.

Glittering in Glass

Speaking of children, some observers have noted that the sparkling juices come in glass bottles, not plastic (Knudsen’s is in a can). While more elegant, this limits the portability a bit; you probably wouldn’t toss a bottle into Junior’s lunch box. But the glass is a necessity: the beverages have no preservatives and thus are pasteurized to destroy natural bacteria that can become harmful. Otherwise, the juices would have to be refrigerated. The introduction of carbonation plus pasteurization requires that only a glass bottle or a can be used. As the technology evolves, this may change.

All Natural, But Not All “Passionfruit”

While these specialty sparklers are 100% natural, they aren’t necessarily 100% made from the juice promoted on the front label. Most producers use a base of grape- or apple-juice concentrate, which is more affordable than using pure passionfruit, raspberry, strawberry, or tangerine juice, e.g. However, the “name” fruit on the label is in the mix, in the form of fruit puree and/or concentrate, and possibly added natural fruit flavoring. The end result delivers the essential flavor you expect from the beverage.

You can expect these beverages to be made with:

• All-natural flavors
• No artificial colors
• No added sugars—sweetened only by the fruit juices (Wild Fruitz adds cane sugar)
• No preservatives, additives or artificial components.

And the end result is delicious—and versatile! Most companies have recipes on their websites showing how to use the products in everything from salad dressings and marinades to glazes and desserts, plus as a base for more elaborate beverages like smoothies and shakes. So don’t look at sparkling juices just as liquid refreshments: they’re multi-taskers!

Brand	% Juice	First 2 Ingredients/ Flavors	Calories/ 16 ounces	Product
Fizzy Lizzy	70	Water Grapefruit Juice Flavors: Apple, Cranberry, Grape, Grapefruit, Orange, Passionfruit, Pineapple, Raspberry Lemon Learn more at FizzyLizzy.com	110
Izze	100	Water White Grape Juice Flavors: Apple, Blackberry, Blueberry, Clementine, Grapefruit, Lemon, Pear, Pomegranate Learn more at Izze.com	150
Juice Squeeze	70	Water White Grape or Apple Juice Flavors: Blackberry Pomegranate, Cranberry Black Cherry, Key Lime, Mountain Raspberry, Passion Fruit & Mango, Pomegranate Lemonade, Ruby Grapefruit, Wild Berry Learn more at CrystalGeyserWater.com	150
Knudsen’s Spritzers	70- 80	Water Apple Juice Flavors: Black Cherry, Boysenberry, Cranberry, Grape, Mango Fandango, Orange Passionfruit, Peach, Red Raspberry, Tangerine, and others Learn more at KnudsenJuices.com	160- 190 (12 ounces)
The Switch	100	Water White Grape Juice Flavors: Apricot Peach, Black Cherry, Fruit Berry, Grape, Lemonade, Orange Tangerine, Tropical Punch, Watermelon Strawberry Learn more at GetOffTheHype.com	225- 260
Wild Fruitz	25-35	Water Fruit Juice Flavors: Apricot/Peach, Cranberry, Huckleberry/Blueberry, Lemonade, Orange/Mango, Pomegranate/Blackcurrant, Raspberry, Watermelon Learn more at WildFruitz.com	85-105