This bottled flavor which is only available in a 4-Pack very closely resembles the flavor identity of black licorice. It's just that, personally, I don't really care for black licorice. However, if I did, I'm sure I would be quite impressed with the taste found in this drink. Jones nailed the profile here.

The most notable attribute of this drink is the fact that it is, in fact, black. We're talking darker than a cola here. It skews towards a purplish hue, but I would probably still advise not spilling this on white carpeting! Once you open the bottle, there is no mistaking the black licorice scent. It's just somewhat weird drinking such a black soda.

The taste, I admit, was very accurate to the real thing. Not as fake as Jones' red licorice attempt. This was a purer taste with a very clean aftertaste. Very unique in flavoring. It wasn't gross like many of the Holiday flavors that Jones Soda puts out. Just very different. Good, but different. I would have liked it better if the taste was something I typically enjoyed. Now if it was liquid Tootsie Rolls, then that might have been something!

As always, let's take a look at the customer-contributed photos that appeared on this flavor during the Halloween season…

Let's start off with this color image (Photo #8723) sent in by Lace Crawford of Stony Plain, AB. Apparently this is a rural town in the province of Alberta, Canada, where the best pasttime is setting your fingers on fire. BevReview.com does not endorse this behavior.

Moving on to a black & white image (Photo #8729) we have a take on a pumpkin spewing something… or being drunk… or something like that. I can't really tell. This lovely photo was contributed by Russell Dilworth of West Valley City, UT, which just so happens to be the 2nd largest city in the state.

Next we have the "Devil Child" (Photo #8889). Do you really want to see an image like this on your drink? Kira Dott of Verona, WI, thinks so! This really is an unpleasant visual.

Finally we have an image (Photo #8719) that appeared on the 4-Pack box, which appears to be some sort of pumpkin-themed cake decorated with icing, candles, and M&M's. Looks yummy! Nice job, Pietr Zak of Nanoose Bay, BC!

So there you have it. Overall, Jones Soda Black Cat Licorice Soda in an innovating drink with an accurate taste. If you dig black licorice, it's definitely for you!

Now, I'm a fan of red licorice, so I was looking forward to this flavor. I was expecting something along the lines of liquid Twizzlers. I mean, how could you wrong with this? Apparently, you can.

Upon opening the bottle, it was obvious that the scent was very strong… in fact, it had this sweetness about it. That scent seemed to translate into the flavor itself, which not only was sweet, but also very syrupy. The flavor was quite fruity, but along the lines of fakeness… much like Fanta Strawberry or something similar.

We really didn't experience much of that desired red licorice flavor. It was more of an overdosed cherry with a bitter aftertaste. Quite a disappointment. Since the flavor wasn't much to write home about, let's take a look at some of the fan-submitted photos that ended up appearing on the bottles.

A creepy witch and skeleton head (Photo #8881) greeted me on a couple bottles. These unique image was passed along by James Felder from a city we've probably all heard of, New York, NY.

The second image (Photo #8886), submitted in black & white, features a bunch of folks dressed up like ghosts, having sheets with eyeholes thrown over their heads. Meanwhile, a guy wearing shorts walks by and just looks at them with a puzzled face. Either there is a story behind this photo submitted by Brad Caesar of West Covina, CA… or he stumbled upon a Ku Klux Klan rally by accident!

The third image (Photo #8892) is one I find to be the most creative. Jones liked it so much that they not only stuck it on a bottle label, but it also sits on the outside of the box for the 4-Pack. It's basically at set of meters that sit outside a house or business, I'm assuming for tracking gas or electric… but painted to look like a skeleton and some flowers. Great catch Essie Garcia of San Marcos, CA!

Finally, we have another image on the box (Photo #8895). Keri Garrett of Colfax, NC, (a suburb of Greensboro) submitted this color photo of a guy and girl with wearing bloody makeup. Well, I guess the red from the blood matches the red of the Dread Licorice flavor, so that was a nice combination.

In this case, the artwork on the box and bottles actually seemed better than the flavor of the drink itself!

Basically a non-alcoholic version of a mojito, this light colored beverage is a lot tastes somewhat like cleaning supplies, followed by a medicine-y aftertaste. One again sporting a orange/black label color scheme, you'll note that the branding of the drink changed from "Jones Soda Co." to "Jones Pure Cane Soda". Also of interest to those who care is the change in the way Jones is displaying the flavor of the drink. Prior to their label redesign noting the use of cane sugar, the format of a flavor was always "______ Soda". Thus, last year's label noted "Monster Mojito Soda". For 2007, that title is shortened to just "Monster Mojito". As if you were keeping track!

A recap from last year's review for those desiring to learn a little more about what a mojito actually is:

…mojito is a traditional Cuban cocktail which became quite popular in the United States during the late 1980s, but has recently seen a resurgence in popularity. This drink is a cousin of the Brazilian cocktail, Caipirinha.

4-pack Bottle Packaging – One Side

A mojito is traditionally made of five ingredients: mint, rum, powdered sugar, lime juice, and club soda. Its combination of sweetness and refreshing citrus and mint flavors are intended to mask the potent kick of the rum, and have made the cocktail a popular summer drink.

This flavor is only available in 4-Packs… I picked mine up at Target. My set contained bottles each with their own unique design. As is a tradition with Jones Soda bottles, their artwork is submitted by folks like you and me!

Of course, I was intrigued by the "vomiting pumpkin" motif (Photo #6810) submitted by Seth Godwin of Seattle, WA. The orange of the pumpkin gets somewhat lost in the orange label, but it's creative.

Next up is the dueling smiling pumpkins (Photo #8825) sent in by Charlie Bookout of Gentry, AR. According to Wikipedia, the town had a population of 2,165 at the time of the 2000 census. Now you know!

I'm really not sure what's happening here in Photo #8894. It's creepy! You see this spooky eyes and then something at the top of the image. Not sure if that's a leaf or part of a pumpkin or what. Nice job going for the abstract, Greta Ziegler of Tucson, AZ!

How can you say no to the screaming, crying baby in a pumpkin costume (Photo #8839). This was sent to Jones by Katy Loucks of Renton, WA. When I Googled the town, the first thing that came up was the "Renton, WA PD Sex Offender Registry". Nice. Now we know why the kid is screaming — "let me out of this crazy place!"

Finally, let's take a look at one piece of art found on the 4-Pack box. This really creepy-looking monster-goblin-whatever guy was submitted by Chris Booe of Lincoln, NE (Photo #8885). Way to score the visibility on the box art, Chris! It's…. interesting, to say the least.

Surprisingly, the drink didn't taste as bad as I remember from 2006. You may recall that we described it as "dirty urine" in our previous taste test. The scent was still overtly fake and rather unsettling. And the taste itself was very sweet… almost too much. But it didn't prompt a gag reflex as much this time around. I rather wonder if this is due to the change in sweeteners. In either case, the nuclear yellow coloring of the drink is sure to stain any fabric it touches, so be careful!

Unlike the other 8 oz. can entries in this year's 2007 Jones Soda Halloween collection, Candy Corn Soda is not one where I desired to drink the entire can.

Yuck.

While the can design from 2006 was purple as well, it contrasted with the current offering by featuring a smiling green pumpkin face. For 2007, the can got meaner! This time around, a one-toothed sinister face (featuring green and orange colors) greets you while you drink this beverage.

Overall, it's a pretty good grape soda. Very sweet and candy-like, which makes the 8 oz. size just about right as far as consumption. I probably liked the less-sweet flavor found in Tropicana Twister Soda Grape better when considering it on the merits of a grape soft drink. But Gruesome Grape is superior in flavor to Fanta Grape.

As a novelty drink — and especially one from Jones — this is a pretty good installment. The fact that it was sweetened with inverted cane sugar also goes a long way regarding the enjoyment factor of this drink.

Tasty, but super sweet!

This drink makes a comeback after first being featured in the inaugural Halloween collection back in 2005. Originally it was showcased in a orange can with somewhat of a happy face. However, for 2007, Strawberry S'lime reappears in a red can, highlighted by terrifying green/yellow facial features.

The drink is a red/pink color, probably more heavy on the pink, similar in look as Cherry 7Up, Schweppes Raspberry Ginger Ale, 7Up Plus Cherry, or Sierra Mist Cranberry Splash. The scent is more like a cherry or tropical punch flavor of Kool-Aid, much like Mountain Dew Game Fuel.

The taste? Wow, is this drink sweet! Very candy-like. Back in 2005, Strawberry S'lime was already a powerful drink, but when you combine it with the fact that it's now sweetened with pure cane sugar (technically, "inverted cane sugar" per the ingredients), it has more punch.

The flavor is predominantly strawberry, with just a hint of citrus. It did not, however, taste like the typically fake strawberry flavors we've featured in the past (Tropicana Twister Soda Strawberry, Fanta Strawberry). The flavor was more subdued — although still quite sweet. It probably more closely resembled those candy Lik-M-Aid Fun Dip packets. You know, the ones where you take a candy stick, lick it, and dip it into a packet of flavored sugar. That's what I thought of when I was drinking Strawberry S'lime.

Overall, the flavor was good, for a strawberry. However, the overtly sweet nature prevents it from being more of an "everyday" beverage, which downgrades Strawberry S'lime's usefulness in my book.

In 2006, Jones released a flavor during this time of year simply titled Lemon Drop Dead, which I thought was rather good. It was solely available in 12 oz. bottle format as part of a limited edition 4-pack. We recall it being very lemony.

2007's Sour Lemon Drop Dead is only available in the 8 oz. can format. This time around the can is yellow, featuring a blue and orange pumpkin face that seems to be squirming. This is no doubt due to the sour content of this beverage!

Sour Lemon Drop Dead is yellow in color, much like a lemonade drink. The scent is has weak lemon overtones. Upon drinking, however, the sourness really kicks in. There isn't much in the way of actual flavor (which is the same as we found last year with Lemon Drop Dead), but what you did taste was intensely bitter. It's missing a solid punch… other that sourness. It wasn't as enjoyable of a drink as last year's installment with a similar name.

Overall, not a horrible drink… it definitely didn't taste like Lemon Pledge or something like that (meaning it was an improvement over Diet Coke with Lemon). Actually, it could probably best be described as a sour version of Sierra Mist Lemon Squeeze. There's lots of lemon in there, but not a whole lot of flavor.

Decent.

This tradition started back in 2005 with their first release for 4 limited edition flavors in 8 oz. cans: Candy Corn, Caramel Apple, Scary Berry Lemonade, & Strawberry S'lime. Last year, Jones stepped it up a notch by rolling out 7 different flavors (4 in cans, 3 in bottles): Berried Alive, Spider Cider, Gruesome Grape, Candy Corn, Lemon Drop Dead, Creepy Cranberry, and Monster Mojito.

For Halloween 2007, Jones once again is sticking with 7 flavors, some returning from previous years, and some new tastes added to the mix. 4 flavors have been released in 8 oz. cans exclusively at Target (sold in 4 packs), while 3 additional flavors are available in bottles (also sold in 4 packs).

While there may seem to be some repeats present, the biggest difference to note is that all these Halloween beverages are now sweetened with cane sugar, per Jones Soda moving to that as their universal sweetener. So while a flavor may look familiar, it no doubt will have a different taste.

The 4 flavors available in cans are as follows:

• Strawberry S'lime (Rerun from 2005)
• Candy Corn (Rerun from 2005 and 2006)
• Sour Lemon Drop Dead (A non-sour version was offered in 2006)
• Gruesome Grape (Rerun from 2006)

And don't forget the 3 flavors available in bottles:

• Dread Licorice (New for 2007)
• Monster Mojito (Rerun from 2006)
• Black Cat Licorice (New for 2007)

Keep it here at BevReview.com as we provide in-depth reviews on each of these flavors!