2011: Sierra Mist Cranberry Splash 2011

While the product is the same, it looks like the label has had a slight update when compared to 2010. For example, Cranberry Splash no longer features a transparent label, this time going with the standard wrap used on most other soft drinks in 20 oz. bottles. Frankly, it's a downgrade.

Compare with 2010 label

A new callout for "Naturally Sweetened with Real Sugar" has been added above the logo, with more green coloring placed on the bottom to make it look more "Sierra Mist-like", I suppose.

Have you spotted the 2011 version of Cranberry Splash yet?

But seriously, thanks to a tip from Jonathan Lee, a BevReview Facebook Fan, I was able to track down Dr. Enuf in Gatlinburg, TN while on a vacation with my wife to the Smoky Mountains. So the other day while I was elevating my injured leg, I gave this lemon lime beverage a try… and it's quite good!

According to the history posted on the official Dr Enuf website, the drink was created in 1949 by a chemist from Chicago who figured out a way to create a vitamin-fortified drink (see, Diet Coke Plus was just keeping up!) A partnership was formed with Tri-City Beverage of Johnson City, TN, and the drink has been bottled by this northeastern Tennessee company ever since!

The drink line includes the flagship Dr Enuf flavor, as well as a Diet version, along with Cherry and Diet Cherry Herbal products rounding things out. I found a 12 oz. glass bottle with a pretty quirky looking character on the front proclaiming the drink was "Rich in Vitamins!" For some reason, my bottle seems to have a different bottle and shape when compared to others on the official website. (Update: Apparently, the bottle used in this review was part of a special edition vintage packaging release.)

Popping the cap, there's a slight citrus scent present. The drink is colored like other lemon lime flavors, slightly cloudy. Comparisons with drinks like 7Up, Sprite, and Sierra Mist end, however, when you actually take a sip. You are greeted by a very pleasant, somewhat tart flavor that is quite strong in the lemon category. It's more bold in pushing the lemon lime experience than the popular competitors.

Because of the use of sugar, the overall flavor is clean and crisp, while at the same time being quite thirst quenching, if you can believe it. Carbonation is a bit strong, giving Dr. Enuf a high "belch factor," and the aftertaste is crisp to non-existant.

Dr. Enuf is an excellent lemon lime drink, with a strong emphasis on the lemon. It also surprisingly contains caffeine, something not usually found in this genre. The claim of vitamin inclusion includes 246% of your recommended daily values of thiamine (Vitamin B1), 85% of niacin (Vitamin B3), and 75% iodine. I'm not sure if those additives really have any positive effect, but it's a curious differentiator in the marketplace… that is if you can find Dr. Enuf. It seems to have highly regionalized availability in the South… but you can order it online if you'd like.

Dr. Enuf
Filtered carbonated water, 100% pure sugar, natural and artificial flavors, citric acid, potassium benzoate (preserves freshness), caffeine, niacin, thiamine, and potassium iodide

A 12 oz bottle contains 180 calories, 18 mg sodium, and 45 g carbs (45 g sugars).

Overall, Dr. Enuf is a delicious lemon lime soft drink, uniquely featuring caffeine, vitamins, and real sugar-powered lemon flavor! Recommended.

In my last review I looked at Thomas Kemper Classic Grape. Continuing the excitement of reliving the nostalgic sodas available at Old 52 General Store, today we take a look at 76 Lemon-Lime Drink, made by the American "76" Company.

Initially, before I even take a sip, this drink has a couple of things going for it. First, it comes in a classic, long 16-ounce glass bottle, the type I used to drink from Home Team Pizza back in college. No, I'm not that old, but for some reason they were still selling these my first few years in school. It's in a classic green with the "Return for Deposit" print on the bottom front. It looks a lot like what a 7-Up or Mountain Dew bottle would look like in the old days. Second, the ingredient list on the bottle reads as follows: "Carbonated Water, Sugar, and Citric Acid. Flavor Derived from Lemon and Lime Oils."

Yup, that's it. It's easy to understand and devoid of any strange chemicals or colorings.

On further inspection, things get a little trickier as I wonder if the soda inside the bottle is the same as it used to be. On the cap it reads "White Soda" with another ingredient list below it. It reads, "Carbonated Water, Sugar or Corn Sweetener, Citric Acid, Sodium Citrate and Natural Citrus Extract, with Sodium Benzoate."

OK, let me say a couple things. First, that last comma seems totally unnecessary, and second, the corn sweetener has me slightly concerned. Now, don't get me wrong, I still have high hopes for the drink, but wonder a bit about the difference. It also states around the side of the cap that this is bottled by "Twigs Beverage Co. Shawano, WI 54166." According to the Old 52 website, 76 does contain sugar and lemon and lime oils, so perhaps we are in the clear on the corn sweetener, at least in part.

For another side note, I found this bottle (empty) selling on eBay for $9.99 by one seller; it didn't have any bids, but hey, at least someone thinks it is in demand, so maybe you get a bonus collectible (honestly, I'm probably saving my bottle for the shelf). I also note on the back of the bottle a drawing of two little drummer boys and a flautist, in case you were wondering what the "76" was about. (For those who still don't get it, our nation was founded in 1776 – read your history books!)

Let's move on to the taste. First, make sure you have a bottle opener handy because this is a real bottle without threads to unscrew the thing. If you have an "alternate" method to open bottles, say from opening beverages in college, that will work also. Upon popping the cap, I smell a lemon-lime aroma that I would swear is 7Up if I didn't know better. After drinking, it also tastes a lot like 7Up, but has a sweeter finish. The more I drink it, the more I really notice the sweet aftertaste. I would describe it as 7Up with a slightly less carbonated, but sweeter aftertaste. You really do taste the lemon-lime as it is not covered by over-carbonation. One other person I allowed to taste it thought 76 was better than 7Up because they didn't taste HFCS, and thus it had a better finish.

Overall, I really enjoy the drink. It is slightly sweet for my taste, but definitely good. Everyone has preferences when it comes to lemon-lime sodas with some preferring the sweeter and others the duller finishes, and this probably is somewhere in the middle, but on the sweet side. Finally, when you put the bottle/aesthetics together with the actual drink, I definitely recommend it, especially with some food.

Mmmm, I could really go for a pizza right now.

Full Disclosure: This beverage was provided compliments of Old 52 General Store

• 76 @ Old 52

7Up with new "crisp, clean" formula in 2010

Go ahead and hit our May 2010 story for the recent history on all of 7Up's changes, including the 2007's ridiculous move to "100% Natural Flavors" (previously known as 2006's "Now 100% Natural").

As we noted in our Sierra Mist Natural review, all the big players seem to be giving their lemon lime offerings a reboot. PepsiCo just added real sugar to Sierra Mist, Coke is going to be rolling out a big ad campaign for Sprite (per Advertising Age), and apparently, that leaves 7Up with getting "crisper."

Logo Comparison: 2006, 2007, 2010

Taking a look at the packaging, you can instantly see that the 7Up logo got a little refreshing compared to the previous iterations in 2006 and 2007. The underscore ribbon of "100% Natural Flavors" is now gone, with emphasis again placed on the images of lemons and limes. The main distinctive callout can be found on the upper left side of the logo, where the phrase "New crisp-clean taste" resides above a subdued mention of "100% natural flavors".

The rest of the packaging remains pretty much the same… except when you get to the ingredients. No, 7Up hasn't gone the sugar route. It's still playing the high fructose corn syrup game (which I really hope we don't have to start calling "corn sugar"). However, we see a change in the lineup. Let's compare:

7Up (2007)
Filtered carbonated water, high fructose corn syrup, natural citric acid, natural flavors, natural potassium citrate

7Up (2010)
Filtered carbonated water, high fructose corn syrup and less than 2% of natural flavors, citric acid, potassium citrate, calcium disodium EDTA (to protect flavor)

Aside from the removal of the "natural" marketing spin from the 2007 version, we now see the addition of calcium disodium EDTA. This is used in many beverages, but would probably also indicate a change in taste.

Upon opening the bottle, you are greeted with a very lemony scent, nothing out of the ordinary for 7Up. As for that first sip… yes, it's different. While the rebooted 2006 formula tasted quite syrupy and in the same vein as Sierra Mist, the 2010 "cripsy" 7Up actually seems like a throwback to an older version. It no longer is seemingly trying to assimilate the flavor profile of either Sierra Mist or Sprite. Instead, it tastes, well, blander. But that's a good thing in this case. It's a cleaner-tasting drink now (just imagine if it had sugar in it!) We applaud this change, as it tastes like something closer to what you should be expecting from 7Up. The aftertaste doesn't even stink anymore. It's just there.

Now, how do you market that type of flavor? We'll let the advertising folks contracted by Dr Pepper Snapple Group figure that out as the months go by. But overall, it's a step in the right direction. The parent company has for too long ignored this drink and given it lackluster promotion, design, and positioning. I'm not really impressed with the new label look, as it doesn't seem progressive enough to help the brand gain some ground. I mean, take a look at the look of the drink in Canada (as noted by the folks in the BevNet forums). Granted, different organizations are responsible for the drink up there, but there could be some more innovative thinking going on regarding the look/feel.

That said, this new "crisp-clean" version of 7Up seemingly undoes the damage that was thrown its way during the 2006 "natural" shift. It positions the drink as more middle of the road, away from Sprite's distinctively boring lemon-lime and Sierra Mist's new sugar-sweetened take.

The new Cranberry Splash is part of the reboot of Sierra Mist into Sierra Mist Natural. While not taking on the "Natural" name, Cranberry Splash is now being positioned as "Naturally Sweetened" and "Made with Real Sugar", while assuming the branding and redesign of Sierra Mist Natural. The drink has seemingly been a success for Pepsi, noted by its return year after year. Even the folks at Dr Pepper Snapple Group have tried to get in on the "cherryish carbonated beverage that also works well as a mixer" game with Pomegranate 7Up, which has also returned seasonally.

Personally, I've never been a fan of the flavor of flagship Sierra Mist… but I absolutely love Sierra Mist Cranberry Splash. I wondered how the flavor would change with the shift in sweeteners from high fructose corn syrup to most likely a cane/beet sugar combination ("Real Sugar" is never really defined on the bottle, but this is what Pepsi confirms that they use in their Throwback products under the same branding).

Well, I'm not disappointed. If nothing else, I think the drink has actually improved. There is still that sweet, bitter flavor that you associate with cranberries. But to be honest, in the previous iterations of this drink, it was more like a "red, cherry-ish" flavor. The addition of sugar really helps that cranberry taste punch out! The flavor profile is far more distinctive now. Sierra Mist Cranberry Splash still has the uniquely "light" flavor that reminds me of one of my other holiday favorites, Schweppes Raspberry Ginger Ale.

It's clean, it's flavorful, it's good.

Ingredients:

Sierra Mist Cranberry Splash
Carbonated water, sugar, natural flavor, citric acid, tartaric acid, malic acid, potassium benzoate (preserves freshness), potassium citrate, Red 40, calcium disodium EDTA (to protect flavor), Blue 1

A 20 oz. bottle contains 260 calories, 60 mg of sodium, and 67 g of carbs (67 g sugars). This drink is caffeine free and contains no juice.

(Source: GillettePepsiCola.com)

As far as Diet Sierra Mist Cranberry Splash is concerned, it's still available. Additionally, Walton Beverage Co's distributor website notes that "Diet Sierra Mist and Diet Sierra Mist Cranberry Splash will be restaged with great new graphics but will not be converting to Natural until 2011."

Like the other flavors in the product lineup, this drink is caffeine free, contains no real juice, and is sweetened with high fructose corn syrup (HFCS). There aren't many lime-flavored drinks out there, though this summer has been popular for the genre, including Sunkist Citrus Fusion and Mountain Dew Distortion.

Upon opening the bottle, I kid you not, Crush Lime smells like some sort of household cleaning product that you'd use to wash your floors. Did Pine-Sol get into beverages?

The very bright green color supports the idea that this is a lime drink, but the flavor itself is rather mild. Not as strong in the lime department as we would have imagined. The smell sort of oversells the expectation. To be honest, the drink tastes like a melted ice pop like Fla-Vor-Ice or Mr. Freeze.

Overall, the flavor is very syrupy and fake in nature, and not very refreshing. It's what is to be expected in the Fanta/Crush category of fruit-flavored soft drinks. Something that sort of tastes like the flavor on the label, but that's about it. Quite disappointing.

Ingredients:

Lime Crush
Carbonated water, high fructose corn syrup, citric acid, sodium benzoate, natural flavors, ascrobic acid (to protect flavor), calcium disodium EDTA, Yellow 5, Blue 1

A 20 oz. bottle contains 320 calories, 110 mg of sodium, and 86 g of carbs (84 g sugars).

Sierra Mist Natural

Eventually, this speculation was confirmed by John Sicher at Beverage Digest when he noted via Twitter on August 24 that "PepsiCo's new Sierra Mist Natural, with sugar instead of HFCS, will start sale at some national retailers week of Aug. 29, say sources."

According to Pepsi and other sources such as Advertising Age, Sierra Mist Natural is taking the unprecedented step of actually replacing its namesake product. Though it's doing it with a different name (Sierra Mist Natural vs. Sierra Mist), here we have a situation where the high fructose corn syrup product is being replaced with "real sugar" on a permanent basis… something Pepsi Throwback, Mountain Dew Throwback, and Dr Pepper "Made with Real Sugar" fans seemingly have wanted for a few years now.

Sierra Mist

However, in this situation, what did PepsiCo really have to lose? Sierra Mist trails behind Coke's Sprite pretty significantly in market share. As a differentiator, it's worth a shot changing the sweetener to make this lemon lime brand seem attractive. Now granted, here at BevReview, we've not been shy in admitting that we've never really liked Sierra Mist. Frankly, we thought that Slice or even Storm were superior products. But alas, Pepsi continues to shove this product down the throats of consumers.

It's also seen its share of limited-time product extensions that attempted to add a little life into the brand, including Sierra Mist Cranberry Splash, Sierra Mist Lemon Squeeze, Sierra Mist Undercover Orange, and Sierra Mist Ruby Splash. We won't even go into all the name changes (Diet Sierra Mist to Sierra Mist Free back to Diet Sierra Mist) or logo redesigns. It's not been a pretty ride for this lemon lime.

The "Natural" name gets its heritage from the niche Pepsi Natural, which debuted in 2009 as a sugar-sweetened soft drink that tasted pretty good, but didn't really have the feel of its namesake. Pepsi has also trademarked the name "Sierra Mist Essence", but obviously went with the more familiar "Natural" moniker.

So, what's the big difference in Sierra Mist Natural? Let's take a look at the ingredients…

Sierra Mist
Carbonated water, high fructose corn syrup, citric acid, natural flavor, potassium benzoate (preserves freshness), potassium citrate, ascorbic acid and calcium disodium EDTA (to protect flavor)

Sierra Mist Natural
Carbonated water, sugar, citric acid, natural flavor, potassium citrate

In all likelihood, the "real sugar" being used in Sierra Mist Natural is a combination of cane & beet sugars, as Pepsi has confirmed in the past with their Throwback products. If it wasn't, such as featuring the more-pricy cane sugar exclusively, I'd see the making a big deal about that in the marketing.

Ingredients of Sierra Mist

Ingredients of Sierra Mist Natural

Per an article in Advertising Age, customers wanted something "natural", and if this type of sugar pulls that off from a marketing perspective, Pepsi is probably thinking "why spend the money?" on the more expensive stuff.

PepsiCo is eliminating Sierra Mist in favor of Sierra Mist Natural, which is sweetened with sugar instead of high-fructose corn syrup. The move, which has been in the works for about 18 months, is two-fold. Research showed that brand loyalty in the lemon-lime category is lower than it is in the cola category. And the natural food and beverage category is exploding.

"There's not a strong reason to choose one [lemon-lime] brand over another. … And when we asked consumers what would re-engage them in soda, 'natural' was the No. 1 concept," Ms. Mangelsdorf said. "The notion of a mainstream lemon-lime soda felt like a huge territory."

Ms. Mangelsdorf expects the shift will make Sierra Mist "extremely competitive" with Sprite, adding that the brand should easily exceed its previous peak performance figures. (According to Beverage Digest, Sprite is more than four times larger than Sierra Mist, with a 5.5% share in 2009 compared to Sierra Mist's 1.3% share and 7Up's 1% share).

Comparison: Sierra Mist vs. Sierra Mist Natural logos

Goodby, Silverstein & Partners created Sierra Mist's new graphics, as well as the campaign, which breaks Sept. 20. It will include 15- and 30-second spots, as well as digital, radio, print and out-of-home.

The last part of that quote notes the new look for Sierra Mist Natural. Yes, once again the label gets a redesign.

Comparison of bottle color between Sierra Mist and Sierra Mist Natural

As you can see, there's a larger emphasis on the word "Mist" with a very, very notation of "Sierra". A lighter, more transparent look also conveys the idea that this is a "healthier" beverage.

"Real Sugar" emphasis with Natural

As has become commonplace, we see the shoutouts of "Made with Real Sugar" and "No artificial ingredients" being proclaimed on the label.

Gone is "100% Natural Flavors" on Sierra Mist

Gone is the phrasing "100% Natural Flavors", which is sort of ironic, since now it's more valid than before. The label on the 20 oz. bottle is translucent in places, showcasing the drink. In addition, the color of the green plastic bottle is lighter in hue vs. the previous Sierra Mist bottle, again given the impression of a look that is closer to water in transparency.

See the difference in logo style?
(Photo by Gregory Koval)

BevReview fan Gregory Koval spotted both Sierra Mist and Sierra Mist Natural side-by-side in a store in Pittsburgh, PA and snapped some photos. You can see the large difference in designs between the two products. However, with the original flavor being phased out, it won't matter much eventually.

So what does this stuff actually taste like? Is Natural better than the original Sierra Mist? We tasted the two products side-by-side and even compared their look when poured into a glass.

While regular Sierra Mist felt heavy and more syrupy, Sierra Mist Natural had a lighter feel to it overall. It possessed a stronger citrus taste that portrayed a strong crispness. It almost felt more carbonated, to be honest. A stronger citrusy scent was also obvious when you first opened the drink.

Sierra Mist Natural: Small Bubbles

Sierra Mist: Large Bubbles

However, things got a little different the more we explored the drink. Unlike other real sugar lemon lime drinks we've tested, such as Bubble Up, the crisp and clean start to Sierra Mist Natural leaves for a peculiar aftertaste. I've seen some folks mention that it almost tastes like a diet soda. I will admit that at first, this wasn't a very good thing. I mean, seriously, what could go wrong here?

That said, it was a taste that seemed to be acquired quickly over time because as we moved beyond the initial sips of Sierra Mist Natural, the aftertaste actually wasn't an issue. Overall, we really wanted to like this drink because of the "real sugar" element. However, that quirky taste isn't going to help, I'm afraid.

It should be noted that Diet Sierra Mist continues seemingly unchanged from its previous formula. Even though there is a trademark filing for Diet Sierra Mist Natural, that phrasing won't be used at this time.

(Source: GillettePepsiCola.com)

However, Walton Beverage Co's distributor website notes that "Diet Sierra Mist and Diet Sierra Mist Cranberry Splash will be restaged with great new graphics but will not be converting to Natural until 2011." Additionally, "Sierra Mist Cranberry Splash will also be reformulated to be 'naturally sweetened'."

(Source: GillettePepsiCola.com)

Will this move to Sierra Mist Natural help the lemon lime fortunes of Pepsi? I guess we'll know for sure in a year or so. But given the history of turbulence in the Sierra Mist brand, does anyone want to place a bet on when the next reboot will be?

In our continuing look at the 3 new Mountain Dew flavors which are a part of the DEWmocracy 2 campaign, we cast our eyes upon Mountain Dew White Out. This flavor, along with Mountain Dew Distortion and Mountain Dew Typhoon, will be voted upon to become a regular part of the Dew lineup. This is just like the last DEWmocracy vote (Summer 2008), where Mountain Dew Voltage prevailed over Mountain Dew Supernova and Mountain Dew Revolution.

If you think this drink looks like soapy dishwater, you aren't alone. It does. And if that doesn't sell you on trying White Out, I'm not sure what will… but I'll keep typing!

This is a drink that is cloudy-white in color, an odd choice for a soft drink… at least one packaged in clear plastic bottle (vs. a green tinted one). White Out is the "Smooth Citrus Dew" per the description on the bottle. Because apparently, the fact that Dew was already a citrus drink isn't a big deal… it wasn't smooth enough! It's interesting how the first DEWmocracy contained a lot of berry flavors, while DEWmocracy 2 features quite a bit of citrus. Surely PepsiCo doesn't already have a planned flavor they want to introduce, do they?

Given the white beverage, the label design takes on quite a patriotic tone, with an emphasis on red and blue to contrast the pale drink. Blue is the primary color, with both a dark and light hue used. A sunburst/finger pattern sits behind the "Mtn Dew" logo (still hate the spelling), with small "bubbles" sitting inside those shapes. The "White Out" name is spelled out in a font similar to that used to spell "Mtn Dew", bold white letters over two rows. A note on the bottom of the label mentions "Design by Dew fan: Andre Zottolo." The plastic 20 oz. bottle we reviewed was clear, with a standard PepsiCo imprinted "swirl" pattern on the upper half.

The top of the label portrays a silver band asking you to "Choose the Next Dew" and "Try All 3 and Vote at Dewmocracy.com". Text and phone voting has now come into play, as proclaimed by the following callout message: "Vote for Mtn Dew White Out at DEWmocracy.com or call 1-888-292-9418 or text 493 to MTDEW (68339). Standard rates may apply."

The text number 493 is significant because it's the code assigned to the beverage during the early stages of the DEWmocracy process before the drink had a color or name.

So how about the taste? When you open a bottle of Mountain Dew White Out, it smells quite a bit like Squirt, or even Vault, to be honest. The flavor is light, citrusy… and also quite a bit like Squirt, probably less so with the grapefruit flavor, more with a light coconut/pineapple infusion. It's not a harsh taste, but rather pretty smooth. Think a sugar-infused Fresca with caffeine. The flavor is quite sweet, maybe like a liquid version of a jelly bean or a lemon Jolly Rancher candy. But overall, I'd say it's somewhat like a combination of Sprite and Squirt — maybe a tad bit like Mello Yello. In general, it's citrusy, but less bitter.

If anything, the color of the drink is misleading, as you don't quite know what to expect. It's not exactly an attractive hue. From a marketability standpoint, while the flavor isn't too bad, it just doesn't seem different enough to gain a large audience. Fine as a niche flavor, but does hit have the pull of a Mountain Dew Code Red or LiveWire? Probably not.

Mtn Dew White Out packs 280 calories in a 20 oz. bottle, with 105 mg of sodium and 76 g of carbs — all of which are sugars. It contains 4.55 mg/oz. of caffeine, which is the same as the previous DEWmocracy flavors, however those also included ginseng for extra punch. It's on par with original Mountain Dew which has 4.5 mg/oz. In contrast, the two Mountain Dew Game Fuel flavors from Summer 2009 (Horde Red, Alliance Blue) contained 6.0 mg/oz of caffeine.

What else is inside? Here's the ingredient list… take note of no additional colors added:

Mountain Dew White Out
Carbonated water, high fructose corn syrup, citric acid, natural flavor, sodium benzoate (preserves freshness), gum arabic, caffeine, sodium citrate, glycerol ester of rosin, calcium disodium EDTA (to protect flavor), brominated vegetable oil

Compared to the rest of the DEWmocracy 2 flavors, Mountain Dew White Out is actually not too bad. It's not awesome, but it also doesn't make you gag quite like Mountain Dew Distortion. It's light, citrusy, and mellow… but those characteristics are probably what will lead to its demise. It's just not unique enough to be considered something that the marketplace will support alongside the other Mtn Dew options.

It's safe. It's bland. It's underwhelming.

The first thing you'll notice about this drink is that it's green. Now, granted, Mountain Dew is normally green, so this isn't completely off-the-wall, though I think the hue is a bit more neon in nature. The drink itself is described on the label as a "Lime Blasted Dew". So apparently we have a citrus-flavored beverage… with more of an emphasis on one of the citrus flavors.

The label design is primarily black, which provides good contrast against the green drink color. Of course, it uses the ridiculous "Mtn Dew" respelling of the brand on the label, which sits above the name "Distortion", spelled out in a light green font on a green "swoosh" of a background plate.

The bottom of the label attempts to portray a seemingly green "river" of sorts, and it also appears that there is a green lightsaber-like element sitting behind the "Mtn Dew" logo. I'm not quite sure what that's about, but I'm sure it's something that we'll be told has something to do with creating "distortion". A note on the bottom of the label mentions "Design by Dew fan: Ben Stone." The plastic 20 oz. bottle we reviewed was clear, with a standard PepsiCo imprinted "swirl" pattern on the upper half.

The top of the label features a silver "band" with stars encouraging you to "Choose the Next Dew" and to "Try All 3 and Vote at Dewmocracy.com". Also new this time around is a callout to use text messaging to cast your vote. Specifically, a white message area on the label notes you can "Vote for Mtn Dew Distortion at DEWmocracy.com or call 1-888-292-9418 or text 231 to MTDEW (68339). Standard rates may apply."

The text number 231 is significant because it's the code assigned to the beverage during the early stages of the DEWmocracy process before the drink had a color or name.

As for the drink itself, when you crack open a bottle, you are greeted with a Sprite-like lemon/lime scent that still harkens back to classic Dew, but harsher in a synthetic lime flavor sort of way. The texture is also in-line with what is typically considered Mountain Dew. The taste is reminiscent of Green River, to be honest. It's a very fake, syrupy flavor that probably can best be described as melted lime Jell-O that just happens to be carbonated… and I'm not sure that's a good thing. It's basically taking one element of Mountain Dew's flavor scheme and amping it up to the extreme. While that might be an interesting idea, as a sustainable beverage on the market, I would imagine that niche is extremely narrow… unless there's a strong market for beverages that also happen to taste like cleaning products. Not to mention that, frankly, it doesn't taste very good.

Mtn Dew Distortion packs 290 calories in a 20 oz. bottle, with 105 mg of sodium and 76 g of carbs — all of which are sugars. It contains 4.55 mg/oz. of caffeine, which is the same as the previous DEWmocracy flavors, however those also included ginseng for extra punch. It's on par with original Mountain Dew which has 4.5 mg/oz. In contrast, the two Mountain Dew Game Fuel flavors from Summer 2009 (Horde Red, Alliance Blue) contained 6.0 mg/oz of caffeine.

What else is inside? Here's the ingredient list:

Mountain Dew Distortion
Carbonated water, high fructose corn syrup, citric acid, natural and artificial flavor, sodium benzoate (preserves freshness), caffeine, sodium citrate, gum arabic, calcium disodium EDTA (to protect flavor), brominated vegetable oil, Yello 5, Blue 1

Overall, of the three DEWmocracy 2 flavors, Mountain Dew Distortion would seem to be the weakest entry, in our opinion… and wouldn't even stand up to the two losing flavors from the first DEWmocracy, Mountain Dew Supernova and Mountain Dew Revolution. The lime flavor is too fake and not very pleasant. It's not exactly something I'd desire to grab a bottle of repeatedly. Beyond the flavor appeal, it does not seem to be a version that would have wide commercial acceptance. How many other successful lime drinks are on the market today?

Let's take a look at Honest Ade Cranberry Lemonade!

We've previously looked at another product in this same lineup, Honest Ade Limeade. Just as before, this flavor comes in an aesthetically pleasing bottle, featuring a lemon wedge with a few cranberries laying in a red liquid. The overall bottle design follows that which we previously outlined in our Honest Tea Organic Peach White Tea review.

In regard to health benefits, as with the Limeade there are not a lot of overt statements. We do see the "Caffeine-Free" label, but that is about it other than the fact that the drink is organic. This flavor contains 100 calories per 16.9 ounce bottle, and the ingredient list is as follows:

Honest Ade Cranberry Lemonade
Purified water, organic cane sugar, organic lemon juice concentrate, organic lemon extract, organic cranberry juice concentrate, organic cranberry flavor, carrot extract (for color), and citric acid.

As far as the drink's sensory qualities, it has a very light, pinkish look, like pink lemonade, or the original Cherry 7Up (for those that remember). Opening the bottle, there is a nice, fruity aroma like a familiar candy. It is quite pleasing.

Tasting the drink, it has the candied taste of liquid Smarties or SweeTarts, and I mean that in a good way. Perhaps that was the smell at first too. It is much more flavorful than the Limeade variety and finishes clean with a slight hint of sour. It is pretty much clear, with no pulp to be found.

The sweet/sour combo reminds me of SweeTarts or a similar candy from when we were kids. Additionally, the lemon gives the body of the drink more taste as compared with the lime of the last review. And of course, the fun bonus saying states: " 'You know children are growing up when they start asking questions that have answers.' – John J. Plomp."

Overall, I really enjoyed this drink, and it was definitely much better than the Limeade. Perhaps my expectations weren't as high going in, which helped. Although not really overly sweet, this variety is much tastier than the Limeade and would make a good accompaniment to food or a solid standalone drink.