For every 100% pomegranate juice on the market, there seems to be a pomegranate juice blend. Popular drinks include mixing pomegranate juice with the high-antioxidant açaí, blueberry, cranberry and cherry, plus the delectable mango.
We only tasted blends that listed pomegranate juice as the main ingredient. As with the 100% pomegranate juices, we excluded any brands containing added sugar. What did we find?
In the blends, the secondary flavor was often more pronounced than the pomegranate itself.
In many of the best blends, the pomegranate acts as a vehicle for emphasizing whatever other flavor is in the juice, delicately balancing heavier notes with its acidity.
Like the 100% pomegranate juices, the blends ranged from light to full body and spanned an array of colors and a spectrum of flavors.
What We Tried
We tried many products, including all of these (several of these companies make additional pomegranate blends, which we did not have a chance to sample):
Frützzo: Pomegranate Açaí, Pomegranate Blueberry, Pomegranate Passion Fruit
Lakewood: Pomegranate with Cranberry, Pomegranate with Blueberry,
Pomegranate with Açaí
Here are our favorites. In general, any pomegranate juice with mango and blueberry is delicious.
Kosher brands include Naked, Odwalla and POM Wonderful
Organic brands include Frützzo and Lakewood
Prices will vary; those shown are what we paid at Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods Markets and other stores in New York City
Frützzo Pomegranate Passion Fruit
This translucent, amber-pink juice, which is organic, has a light-to-medium body. Its apple juiciness offsets the mouth-puckering tartness of the passion fruit juice and the milder tartness from the pomegranate. A slightly dry finish rounds out this fun-to-drink blend, which is great on its own, as a mixer, or splashed over desserts. Note: the other Frützzo blends (açaí, blueberry) are also tasty.
Certified USDA Organic
12-Ounce Bottle
$2.97
Learn more at Frutzzo.com
Naked Plentiful Pomegranate
Of the many juices we tasted that had bitter finishes, we found this one to be the most pleasant. Pomegranate juice has been blended with a tart raspberry purée, which, as the first thing to hit the palate, provides a nice segue into the bitter pomegranate finish. Although it’s not for the faint of heart, this near-medium bodied drink, with brown-mauve undertones to its red juice, is nice for straight juice. It’s also suitable for mixing.
Certified kosher by Orthodox Union
15.2-Ounce Bottle
$4.19 64-Ounce Bottle
$8.99
Learn more at NakedJuice.com
Odwalla PomaGrand
In this product, pomegranate juice has been blended with “wildberry extract,” a combination of chokeberry, elderberry, blueberry, black currant and apple. These flavors give the juice a well-balanced flavor that could hold its own in the 100% juice category. The tart and tasty, medium-to-full bodied juice has a lovely pinot noir-like color and is not too sweet. It smells mildly of apple and has cranberry-apple and dark fruit undertones. This is certainly an all-purpose juice.
16-Ounce Bottle
$3.49 64-Ounce Bottle
$12.99
Learn more at Odwalla.com
Odwalla PomaGrand Pomegranate Mango
This juice, which contains mango purée, manages to be full-bodied but not heavy. The pomegranate’s tartness balances the mango flavor, creating a refreshing, not-too-sweet drink that evokes the mango lassis popular in Indian cuisine. The peachy-pink juice is nearly opaque and has an apple finish. It’s a treat to drink on its own and delicious in cocktails or smoothies.
16-Ounce Bottle
$3.49
Learn more at Odwalla.com
POM Wonderful Pomegranate Blueberry
We love everything about this rich, dark, flavorful juice—its blueberry smell, blueberry color, and, especially, its potent blueberry taste. Tart and almost syrupy, it screams to be shaken over ice, with gin and freshly squeezed lime.
POM Wonderful Pomegranate Cherry
With the aroma of a cherry lollipop and a deep red-purple winelike color, this juice is just slightly lighter in body than its blueberry counterpart. The juicy liquid has cherry and dark fruit overtones. The pomegranate-cherry combination creates a nice tartness, which works well with its off-dry finish. This rich juice is well suited to mixing and would complement the flavors of red wine sangria.
Certified kosher by Orthodox Union
16-Ounce Bottle
$4.49
Learn more at PomWonderful.com
All product photos by Claire Freierman, except POM Wonderful Pomegranate Blueberry.
