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Taste Test: Thomas Kemper's Cane Sugar Soda

partysugar — Tue, 13 May 2008 13:15:09 -0700

In what's become a growing trend among soda manufacturers, Thomas Kemper has recently reformulated their soda recipes and updated packaging. Instead of using high-fructose corn syrup, the new beverages are naturally sweetened with pure cane sugar.

I tasted three - Black Cherry, Root Beer, and Ginger Ale - of the company's five sodas and was pleasantly surprised by the results. All of the sodas were refreshing with typical flavors that one would expect from a craft, bottled soda company. To find out how each one tasted, read more.

The root beer, with its vanilla-marshmallow smell and clear, classic taste, was my favorite. It was everything you want from a root beer - sweet and comforting. My least favorite was the black cherry. It had a strong artificial smell with a too-syrupy taste that reminded me of cough medicine. The fresh, clean, crisp ginger ale was my co-tester's favorite. They described it as a quality ginger ale that was "really good" with strong ginger flavor.

How about you? Have you tried the new Thomas Kemper formula? Did you notice a difference? Are you excited soda companies are eliminated the high-fructose corn syrup?

Know Your Ingredients: Agave Nectar

YumSugar — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 11:30:47 -0700

In the last couple of years, agave nectar has sprung virtually out of nowhere to appear in natural sodas, liqueurs, baked goods, and cocktails. So what's all the fuss about? Agave nectar (or agave syrup) is a liquid sweetener made from juice extracted out of the core of the agave plant.

This sugar alternative, which is roughly 25 percent water, dissolves easily in cold liquids, and is sweeter than white sugar, yet less processed than refined sugar, and has a healthier glycemic index. It comes in light, amber, dark, and raw varieties.Light nectar has a delicate, almost neutral taste; amber possesses a caramel color and medium flavor; dark has stronger notes of caramel. Raw nectar is produced at temperatures below 118ºF and contains natural enzymes and a mild taste.

Agave syrup can also be employed to substitute equal parts honey. Unlike honey, agave nectar is vegan, and does not crystallize when stored. When cooking with it, keep in mind that 3/4 cup agave syrup has the sweetening power of 1 cup of cane sugar, and when baking reduce the temperature by 25ºF. Have you been using agave nectar in place of sugar? What's your favorite use for it?

Taste Test: TeaZazz Sparkling Teas

YumSugar — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 08:05:33 -0700

Lately we've been receiving a lot of tea to try at the office. We've also been witnessing a lot of beverage companies swapping the high-fructose corn syrup in their drinks for pure cane sugar. So it comes as no surprise that the latest rising beverage on the market is TeaZazz, a carbonated tea made with sugar that markets itself as a healthier hybrid soft drink.

TeaZazz comes in four different flavors: original, green tea mint, green tea lemon, and peach. Curious, I tried the first two. To hear what I thought, read more.

When I opened the sparkling teas, they made a fizzy release noise. They were definitely carbonated but tasted about 50 percent less carbonated than a standard can of soda. As for the soda's taste, I liked the flavor of the original tea; it had an authentic black tea taste. I didn't care at all for the green tea mint, however. Carbonated mint tea just didn't go over well with me - I almost felt as though I was drinking fizzy, diluted mouthwash. The drink is made from sugar syrup, but it also contains sucralose, an artificial sweetener, and that too had a discernible taste. Those who loathe diet drinks won't like TeaZazz, either.

Have you seen or tried TeaZazz? I'm curious to hear your thoughts on it.

Just in Time for Passover: Real Sugar Coke

YumSugar — Wed, 14 Mar 2007 16:12:48 -0700

We don't drink much soda in our household, it's not that we're better than soda or anything, it's just that we don't really like it (although we have been known to keep a few bottles of root beer & ginger ale for when the mood strikes). My boyfriend especially hates on it, he really just doesn't enjoy it. Which is why it surprised me when we were at a little taqueria and he ordered a Coke. I asked him why and he said, "I like Mexican Coke sometimes. It tastes way better than American Coke." It was surprising to hear him say, but it's definitely true, you see, Mexican Coke is made with real sugar cane and American Coke is made with high-fructose corn syrup.

So how do you get real coke without importing it from Mexico? Well if you're lucky enough to find it, it seems that the Coca-Cola company makes Coke with real sugar for Passover (so it can be deemed kosher). You'll be able to identify these bottles by their brightly colored yellow tops, as well as the kosher symbol on the cap. And if you find them (they're only available in major metropolitan areas with large Jewish populations), you might want to stock up, they're only in stores for a few weeks.

Which leaves me wondering this, I know it costs more, but why can't we have real sugar coke all year round?

Note: Apparently there is also kosher Sprite and Pepsi as well, and all of this is most commonly found in 2-liter bottles, although there have been rumors of a highly-coveted canned variety.

Source: BuzzFeed and Off the Broiler