Pop Flavored Reboot - now with More Lens Flare!

I'm going to restart this blog. There doesn't seem to be any other blog specifically reviewing types of sodapop. There's so much out there, why not? Here are my biases, right from the start:

 - I far prefer diet flavors to sugared flavors. Especially preferring aspartame, even if it's cut with sucralose, acesulfame K, saccharine, cyclamates, or stevia. The ... and this is the one and only time I'll ever use this word... mouthfeel of sucrose/fructose in pop syrup has turned me off for a long time. I know I'm a bit of an outlier when it comes to artificial sweeteners, but will always pick diet/sugarfree over sugared. That being said, if something is only available with sugar/corn syrup in it, I can make do by only drinking enough of it to get a good sense of the flavor and try to overlook the sticky syrupy sensation that comes with it.

 - I love carbonation. The more the better. That's why I think I may take a pass on non-carbonated drinks, unless there's something really spectacular that I need to taste. I think I may pass on the "flavored seltzer" stuff, too, despite its popularity. - I favor intense flavors. If I could get Blenheim's Old #3 in sugar free, it'd probably be my daily pop. And even though they reformulated it to tone the heat down, one of my daily favorites is Diet Vernors. Still the best nose-burning burps.

 - There can be a HUGE difference in flavor between bottled, canned, and fountain pops. Syrup sitting in a room temperature, very slightly acidic environment for a long time (bottled, canned) can have a whole other flavor profile from syrup plunged fresh into a cold, slightly acidic environment for a short time. Especially with an acid-sensitive sweetener like aspartame.

 I'm a big fan of useful review mechanisms. The long-dead Orbit Magazine, published around Detroit, had a very useful rating scheme back in their publishing days. Much of their review "numbers" were as objective as they could be, but they openly acknowledged that every reviewer had their own bias, and all reviews had an "X-Factor" number that the reviewer could use to enhance or tank a (movie, restaurant, album) review as they thought they needed to. For instance, a restaurant could have impeccably prepared cuisine, excellent service, reasonable prices, beautiful decor... and still need to be shot down for being a Gourmet Mashed Potatoes Only place.

There's a lot of pop out there, many companies going after a very similar flavor goal (see: Pepsi's Mountain Dew, Faygo's Moon Mist, Faygo's 60/40, Squirt, Coke's Mello Yello) and it's possible to be objective as to whether they meet the goal. One will always taste better to someone, though. In addition to the description of what I taste and sense when drinking it, my rating will be one of the four:

 1. Won't be drinking that again!
 2. I drank one. That was enough.
 3. I drank several.
 4. I drank a whole damn case!

My drinking methodology: If it's a canned/bottled pop, it'll be refrigerated and poured into an ice cold glass mug. No ice added. If it's fountain, imbibed as quickly as possible before the ice melts into it.

Black Lemonade

I would link, but their website appears to be noncom. I got a bottle of Black Lemonade with my most recent burst of pop-shopping.

Black Lemonade

Holy CHRIPES is this sour. The sourness is closing in a Magnesium Citrate kind of sour. Screw your face up, cough, and try not to spit it out kind of sour. Whatever's in this stuff vaporizes when it hits your tongue and it's very difficult not to cough the stuff out. Did I mention SOUR? Pretty highly carbonated, and there are some other, mellower flavors underneath the pallor of the high fructose corn syrup, but you'll never taste it under the SOUR. I think this is supposed to be an energy drink, but we'll see, if I can get the whole thing down. I love over-the-top, super-intense flavors, but I'm already starting to get heartburn from whatever's in this. One Burp

Bubble Up - Regular

Bubble Up is Dad's Root Beer's version of a lemon/lime pop. It seems to be positioned to compete against Coke's Sprite.

Bubble Up

The carbonation isn't anywhere near Sprite, while being just enough to add sourness to the lemon/lime flavor. The flavor also has just the palest bitter edge that comes from using flavor oils. Cane sugar gives a mellower sweetness that comes on slower and isn't as slap you in the face. I'd have to say that the citrusy flavor is only about 2/3 that of other lemon/lime pops, but intense enough to taste again with the inevitable burp. I like it! Three Burps

Cricket Diet Cola

Recently in a conversation with a friend we came upon the subject of sweeteners in soft drinks and I mentioned I find a huge difference in taste between high fructose corn syrup and cane sugar. He mentioned a pop available in the Chicago area called Cricket, that their regular was made with cane sugar. Though I was tempted at first to buy the sugared version, I like to start with the diet sodas, since that's what I prefer flavor-wise. It's a cola made with green tea extract as the caffeinating factor.

Cricket Diet Cola

The main flavor that hits me when I drink it is the intense sweetness of the Sucralose, and then the green tea. The green tea flavor is pretty subdued, however, and quickly overtaken by the sour carbonic acid flavor of the slight carbonation. I'll be damned if I can taste the cola at all. I was hoping for stronger flavors. It's mainly just carbonated, sweetened green tea. Glass bottle, twist top. 2 Burps

Available at popsoda.com nationwide