Jones Zilch Pomegranate Soda

The first thing you note about the Zilch lineup is the creative package design. The same iconic Jones Soda glass bottle is in use, but this time, it has white screw on-caps. The white motif carries down the label itself, with an updated take on Jones' traditional combination of logo/photo/flavor display.

Jones Zilch Vanilla Bean Soda

Fan submitted photos are displayed on the bottles in black and white, but they are given a far more stylish credit notation to the left of the image than used in the past. It does a better job of Jones showcasing these photos rather than just displaying the name of the photographer like it was nothing more than a copyright credit.

Jones Zilch Black Cherry Soda

The top of the label features the revised, bolder Jones name (note the lack of "Soda Co." in the reference), with a colored version of the word "Zilch" pseudo-stamped next to it. The words "Zero Calorie" can also be found under the logo.

In contrast to traditional Jones Soda offerings, the flavor name shifts from above the photo to below it, printed inversely against the color that defines the flavor.

The rest of the label contains nutritional information, an encouragement to recycle the bottle, short promotion for creating your own custom label via the MyJones service, and the following brand pitch regarding Zilch:

Same Great Taste. No Sugar. No Calories.

Chances are you're reading this because you care about what's in your soda. Well, you've come to the right bottle. That's because you're sipping a Jones Zilch. Same great flavors as a regular Jones, without the calories or sugar. And just in case your conscience needs a little more peace of mind, we put some vitamin C in every bottle. Remember: it's your photo, your soda, your brand.

Zilch is another one of the new products that Jones has rolled out this year, which has also included specialized takes on Orange Cola, the Jones GABA lineup, their limited edition run of Hispanic flavors, and the crazy Jones Jumble Soda. While some of those are just more goofy takes on flavors, others like GABA and Zilch, are big product line extensions. Previous sugar-free offerings from Jones, which are now retired, included:

• Sugar-Free Green Apple
• Sugar-Free Cream Soda
• Sugar-Free Root Beer
• Sugar-Free Cola
• Sugar-Free Black Cherry

Retired Jones Soda Sugar-Free Flavors
(Source Images: JonesSoda.com)

Of the initial list, only Black Cherry is seeing the light of day once again as a Zilch flavor. Like the original Sugar-Free lineup, Zilch uses sucralose (you know, Splenda) as its artificial sweetener. The difference this time out is that Jones takes a page from the current trend of adding nutrients to beverages and ups the Vitamin C to 30% of your recommended daily allowance.

Jones Zilch Pomegranate Soda

Pomegranate is a popular flavor these days, as evidenced by reviews we've written for ViB Pomegranate Berry, Hansen's Natural Pomegranate Soda, and Pomegranate 7Up. The Jones Zilch take on the flavor comes to us with a pinkish-red color and has a recognizable pomegranate taste. It's not a super sweet flavor, but rather deep, which we think would be a good complement for food. Still, you can tell that this is a diet drink given the aftertaste, but overall, it's not a bad sugar free installment.

Taking a dive into pomegranate?
Photo 11104 by Jennifer Fullbright-McLellan of Fayetteville, AR

Here's what's inside:

Carbonated water, natural flavors, apple, carrot, and hibiscus juice for color, citric acid, sodium benzoate (as preservative), sucralose, potassium sorbate (as preservative), ascorbic acid (Vitamin C), calcium disodium EDTA (to protect flavor)

A 12 oz. bottle of Jones Zilch Pomegranate contains 0 calories, 35 mg of sodium, 1 g of carbs, and is caffeine free.

Jones Zilch Vanilla Bean Soda

This is a flavor we looked forward to trying because frankly, there aren't a whole lot of stand-alone vanilla-flavored sodas out there. Upon opening the bottle, you'll find that there really isn't much of a scent. The drink is colored yellowish, similar to the Halloween limited edition Monster Mojito, but a tad bit clearer and less bold. Unfortunately, the flavor was disappointing. There wasn't much vanilla taste present and quite a bit of a medicinal flavor. The weak, unfocused flavor, combined with the use of artificial sweeteners, made this our least favorite of the new Zilch offerings. It's a diet drink and tastes like it… poorly. This was quite disappointing. We had hoped for a solid vanilla experience, something along the lines of OOBA's Vanilla installment.

Vanilla Bean = Great Wall of China?
Photo 11075 by Sarah Etter of Azusa, CA

Here's what's inside:

Carbonated water, natural flavors, phosphoric acid, sodium benzoate (as preservative), sucralose, potassium sorbate (as preservative), ascorbic acid (Vitamin C), calcium disodium EDTA (to protect flavor)

A 12 oz. bottle of Jones Zilch Vanilla Bean contains 0 calories, 35 mg of sodium, 0 g of carbs, and is caffeine free.

Jones Zilch Black Cherry Soda

This moves us on to our favorite of the new Zilch flavors, Black Cherry. Incidentally, it's also the only carry-over from Jones previous Sugar-Free lineup. The beverage is colored dark red, somewhat similar to a red wine. Opening the bottle will greet you with a deep cherry scent, hinting at sweetness. This cherry experience continues in the taste, with a quality flavor. Yes, you can tell that artificial sweeteners are used, but the combination with the flavor choice actually works out quite well. Black Cherry is a nice, sweet treat; it's our choice of the batch if you are needing something without calories.

Who doesn't love old school Polaroid?
Photo 11026 by Amy Millen of Belfast, Ireland

Here's what's inside:

Carbonated water, natural and artificial flavors, citric acid, sodium benzoate (as preservative), sucralose, potassium sorbate (as preservative), Red 40, ascorbic acid (Vitamin C), calcium disodium EDTA (to protect flavor), Blue 1

A 12 oz. bottle of Jones Zilch Black Cherry contains 0 calories, 40 mg of sodium, 1 g of carbs, and is caffeine free.

Overall, we're fans of the Jones Zilch rollout, even though we weren't completely sold on all 3 flavors. The branding does a nice job of making diet something "cool", it still has that eccentric Jones feel, and there are some unique tastes that aren't currently part of the regular Jones lineup. Still, there is room for improvement in some of the flavors, namely Vanilla Bean. Loved the idea of a non-mainstream flavor, but execution left something to be desired. Here's looking ahead to the next Zilch experience!

In the past few years, pomegranate flavored drinks and juices have taken off, especially in the health food sector. We've taken a look at many of those, including Pomegranate 7Up, ViB Pomegranate Berry, Hansen's Natural Green Tea Soda Pomegranate, and Hansen's Natural Sparkling Sleek Pomegranate Green Tea. In this installment, I look at Hansen's Natural Pomegranate Soda.

Statistically, pomegranate cane soda has no high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) and uses real cane sugar, both of which are made clear on the can, and are positives out of the gate. In addition, each can contains 130 calories. The ingredient list is as follows: "pure triple filtered carbonated water, cane sugar, citric acid, natural flavors with extract of California pomegranate."

Moving to the actual sensory experience, I cracked open the can and immediately heard a soothing fizz while taking in a fruity smell. If I didn't know it was pomegranate, my first instinct might have been to say strawberry. Upon further olfactory inspection, it is clear that the aroma was not strawberry, although in a blind study I don't know that I would have identified it as pomegranate either.

Speaking of clear, once again, the drink was absolutely clear and from a visual standpoint looked like a lemon-lime drink. When I opened the can it gave me a nice big crack and as I poured it fizzed up nicely. It was carbonated just right. Not the key factor in enjoyment, but it helps.

Moving to taste, as that is the most important aspect of a drink, I am somewhat ambivalent. That is not to say that the drink isn't good, because it is, but the taste is not overly powerful and in some sense the aftertaste and smell are better than the actual taste. The flavor contains a slightly sweet finish that may take a bit of getting used to. It is definitely sweeter than some fruit-flavored drinks, but not in a sugary way – almost in a flowery way, think metaphorically.

As a disclaimer, I am not a huge fan of pomegranate drinks, but am also not a detractor of them. Even with that said, I do not know that I would identify this drink as having authentic pomegranate taste, but again, this could just be a personal opinion. To be fair, it is more of a niche flavor and is a harder taste to create accurately in a soda than, say, cherry or strawberry.

In conclusion, if I were offered this drink at someone's house, or at a barbeque, I would probably have one, but if I were at the store purchasing, Hansen's has better choices from which to pick. I also think this selection might be a better accompaniment to food than as a stand-alone drink. In general, pomegranate is a solid, but not spectacular offering.

Now, what ViB's official website will tell you is that this drink is "a sparkling tropical blend of pomegranate and berries that renders a calm, as smooth as an ocean breeze." I guess that's what a vacation in a bottle will do for you… even though it's in a can. I never could quite figure that one out! (It also appears that other flavors are slated, such as Hang-N and Passion.)

Chill-N comes in a tall, narrow 12 oz. can, decorated in a sunset/sunrise graphic overlooking a body of water. The prominent color scheme is blue, with accents of yellow and white. The large ViB logo is the first thing you'll notice, and if you look carefully, the actual flavor (Chill-N) is denoted at the bottom, subtitled as "A Pomegranate Berry Wave of Relaxation". Wrapping the top of the can are the words "Unwind", "Breathe Easy", and "Relax".

This is not an energy drink. It seems more like a light, sparkling beverage, on par with something like Tava or even the bottled Izze line… both of which are owned by PepsiCo. This however drinks more like a light soda rather than a carbonated fruit drink.

Advertising materials and the can itself callout some bullet points that should be noted, such as the inclusion of antioxidants and vitamins, while being a low calorie/low carb option. The drink is also caffeine free. A quick run through the ingredient list shows how the low cal option was pulled off… while the drink does use cane sugar (kudos!), it also contains the artificial sweeteners sucralose and acesulfame potassium (Ace-K)).

Upon opening the can, you are greeted with a light, fruity scent. The color of the drink is a translucent pink. As for the taste? Light and berryish. It's bubbly, but not heavy. Overall, it's not too bad. The light infusion of pomegranate flavoring reminded me of Pomegranate 7Up. The fruit taste is quite good during the start of the drink, and even the middle hangs on. Unfortunately, the taste of artificial sweeteners seem to linger in the aftertaste, which to me, was not optimal. Those more accustomed to diet beverages may get more positive milage.

A full ingredient list is as follows:

ViB Chill-N
Carbonated water, cane sugar, natural flavors, citric acid, potassium benzoate, potassium citrate, potassium sorbate, L-theanine, L-threonine, maltodextrin, lycii berry extract, sucralose, acesulfame potassium, niacin (Vitamin B3), pyridoxine hydrochloride (Vitamin B6), Red 40, cyanocobalamin (Vitamin B12)

An entire 12 oz can (which translates to 1.5 servings, but who is really going to drink half a serving?) will cost you 60 calories, 0 mg of sodium, and 15 g of sugars. As was previously mentioned, this drink is caffeine-free.

ViB Chill-N seems like a solid product from a taste perspective. If I had one glaring criticism, it would be the package design. Frankly, it does not look professional. From a marketing perspective, I'm left with a lot of confusing messages. I see "ViB" on the front, but what exactly is the flavor? I see ocean and sunsets. "Chill-N" is the flavor name, but what does that really tell me? Nothing on the can visually represents "pomegranate". I understand the theme is to portray a "vacation in a bottle" and all that, but from a customer standpoint, I'd be quite confused if I didn't take the time to actually read everything on the can… and who does that? ViB could be a solid brand if some more thought and professionalism where added to the visual design. They flavor has a lot going for it; the packaging should support that.

UPDATE (2/11/09): I've been informed by ViB's public relations folks that the can version of this beverage is "temporary." The final packaging design does, in fact, come in a bottle shape. It also looks like the flavor is clearly denoted, with less confusion regarding "just what the heck is this stuff?" It's an improvement. Here's a look:

(Source: ViB Holdings)

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Sporting a predominantly white/black can featuring a Dracula-like face on the front, the name of the drink is rather hard to make out given that it's written in a blood-like font. There really isn't any indication of what's in store regarding taste.

We've tested other drinks here on BevReview.com that claim to possess a pomegranate flavor, including some seasonal beverages like Pomegranate 7Up. Other sodas in the same ballpark might include Sierra Mist Cranberry Splash and Hansen's Natural Sparkling Sleek Pomegranate Green Tea.

What was odd about Jones Buried Pomegranate Soda was that it really didn't taste very cherry or pomegranate-like. The flavor was a bit weird, almost as if it was infused with some sort of herbal blend. That's not to say it was gross; it just wasn't expected. The light pink-colored drink did provide a unique taste profile, and for that, I'd recommend checking it out while you can find it.

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This line of drinks is officially described as a "refreshing taste of fresh fruit and real cane sugar lightened with the perfect amount of bubbles." It features 4 core flavors & 2 green teas — with Sugar Free versions of each of these flavors also available.

The packaging design on this line features 10.5 oz. cans, bundled in 4 packs, similar to the trends we've seen with Tava and Nutrisoda. The shape and design of the can convey a light drink with nutritional/healthy overtones. The primary flavors come in silver cans, the green teas in green cans, sugar free flavors in light blue cans, and sugar free green teas in light green/yellow cans. They all follow a simple, restrained design that is prevalent in "Web 2.0" visual trends these days.

When I first opened the can of Pomegranate Green Tea, there was a certain "berry" scent that appeared. The flavor reflected this, with a sense of light, bubblyness, accented by just a bit of cherryish flavor. As for the tea element, it was minimal, as far as I could tell — though I'm no expert on the taste of green tea. Overall, it created a pleasant taste experience and something far different from the norm.

The sweetener of choice is cane sugar (24 grams), which provides 90 calories to a can. The drink also claims that each can contains 35 mg of EGCG per can (Epigallocatechin Gallate, an antioxidant).

A full ingredient list is as follows:

Hansen's Natural Sparkling Sleek Pomegranate Green Tea
Filtered carbonated water, cane sugar, natural flavors with extracts of Italian pomegranate, citric acid, green tea extract

The can also proclaims the following: "No High Fructose Corn Syrup", "No Preservatives", "No Artificial Colors", "No Sodium", "Caffeine Free", and "All Natural Flavors".

The same flavor characteristics carried over to the no calorie version of the drink, Hansen's Natural Sparkling Sleek Sugar Free Pomegranate Green Tea. Whereas the packaging of the regular version was a avocado green color, the Sugar Free version is a lighter, silvery green can.

This version of the flavor uses sucralose and Ace-K as the primary sweeteners (and it's even noted with a "Splenda" brand mark on the back). The drink has 0 calories, but still everything else claimed by the original.

Hansen's Natural Sparkling Sleek Sugar Free Pomegranate Green Tea
Filtered carbonated water, natural flavors with extracts of Italian pomegranates, citric acid, sucralose, green tea extract, acesulfame potassium

Overall, the diet edition wasn't bad, but probably was more pronounced in the artificial sweetener taste than I would have liked.

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Overall, it's very similar to its inspiration, obviously last season's Cranberry Splash. The flavoring of pomegranate is rather weak. Actually, to be honest, I'm not sure I really tasted a unique pomegranate flavor. It tasted berry-ish to me. Not as strong as a Cherry 7Up, more muted in tone.

I don't see this as a negative, however. It makes for a great compliment with food, not overpowering other flavors, but still providing something festively tasty on the side. I would also imagine that Pomegranate 7Up has a lot of possibilities to be used as a base for mixer drinks.

The drink is sweetened with high fructose corn syrup (thus the "100% natural flavors" claim vs. the original "100% natural" claim). With this mix, it has 120 calories per cup (vs. 100 calories per cup for standard 7Up). The biggest difference you'll find with this flavored version is the amount of "sugars" packed in the drink. 31g, to be exact (original 7Up has 25g). That doesn't mean it's really sweet, however. It's subtle overall. And of course, there's no caffeine.

It should also be noted that there does not seem to be any real pomegranate in the drink itself, just the aforementioned "100% natural flavors" of pomegranate, whatever that means. The folks at Cadbury Schweppes Americas Beverages don't seem to mind, however:

"With its natural Pomegranate flavor and deep burgundy color, Pomegranate 7UP is a festive addition to the holiday season," said Matt Smith, 7UP brand director for Cadbury Schweppes Americas Beverages. "Pomegranate is one of the fastest growing flavors in beverages today, and Pomegranate 7UP makes a perfect primer for any holiday party." (Emphasis mine)

Curiously, at the time of this review, Cadbury Schweppes doesn't seem to have any online tie-in to Pomegranate 7Up. There's nothing on the official 7Up website about it, and other than a press release on the corporate website about the product's release, there's been very little info available online to build word of mouth. Contrast this with last year's Cranberry Splash mini-website, complete with recipes. CSAB really dropped the ball here. (For those looking for mixer options, the folks over at Amazon's Al Dente blog did share a couple of recipes that were provided by Cadbury Schweppes for Pomegranate 7Up. You'll find those at the end of this review. Why they aren't online via 7Up.com is beyond me!)

Taking a look at this drink as a whole, I liked it quite a bit. It's not a "knock it out of the park home run" so to speak, but it's a good direction for 7Up. I'm still not a fan of the reformulated "100% natural flavors" version of the drink we have today, but the pomegranate overlay negates that bitterness somewhat. It adds a soft new dimension to the Uncola, while also providing CSAB a counteroffensive to Sierra Mist Cranberry Splash (and its "new for 2007" diet version). You'll only find Pomegranate 7Up in its full-calorie implementation this season… though if it does well, I wouldn't be surprised to see it return with a low-cal option.

If you get an opportunity to try this drink, go ahead and sample it. It's going to be available until January 31, 2008, exclusively in 2-liter bottles.

Pomegranate 7Up Recipes (via Al Dente)

Mistletoe Mojito

Ingredients

1 ounce fresh lime juice
1 tablespoon superfine sugar
8 fresh mint leaves
2 ounces white rum
2 teaspoons pomegranate seeds
4 ounces Pomegranate 7Up
1 mint sprig
1 lime wedge

Directions

1. In a highball glass, muddle lime juice, sugar, and mint leaves until sugar is dissolved.
2. Add rum and pomegranate seeds. Fill glass with ice and top with Pomegranate 7Up.
3. Garnish with mint sprig and lime wedge.

Triple Scoop Pomegranate 7Up Soda

Ingredients

1/4-cup scoop raspberry sorbet
1/4-cup scoop tropical fruit sorbet
1/4-cup scoop vanilla ice cream
6 to 8 fresh raspberries
6 ounces Pomegranate 7Up

Directions

1. Layer ice cream scoops in a tall soda glass and top with raspberries.
2. Slowly pour in Pomegranate 7Up. Serve with soda straws and a long spoon.

Enter Cadbury Schweppes' 7Up brand and their announcement of the limited time rollout of Pomegranate 7Up. As we've already attested here on BevReview.com, drinks flavored with pomegranate aren't too bad… in fact, we've found them to be pretty good! I'm guessing they saw the success of Sierra Mist Cranberry Splash (and its return) and figured they needed to get in on this action.

Here's the press release announcing this new holiday flavor:

7UP Celebrates the Holidays With New Festive Pomegranate Flavor
For Limited Time Only, Pick Up Pomegranate 7UP Nationwide

PLANO, Texas, Nov. 1 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Just in time for the holiday season, Cadbury Schweppes Americas Beverages (CSAB) introduces new Pomegranate 7UP, a perfect blend of natural Pomegranate flavor added to the crisp, refreshing lemon-lime taste of America's original UNCOLA.

"With its natural Pomegranate flavor and deep burgundy color, Pomegranate 7UP is a festive addition to the holiday season," said Matt Smith, 7UP brand director for Cadbury Schweppes Americas Beverages. "Pomegranate is one of the fastest growing flavors in beverages today, and Pomegranate 7UP makes a perfect primer for any holiday party."

Just like original 7UP, Pomegranate 7UP has 100% natural flavors and is caffeine free. This limited edition product, available in 2-liter bottles, will be on store shelves during the holiday season nationwide Nov. 1, 2007 through Jan. 31, 2008.

Since its introduction in 1929, the 7UP brand has remained true to its commitment to fresh lemon-lime flavors. 7UP pioneered the category as the iconic UNCOLA, then reformulated to include 100 percent natural flavors in 2006, and now introduces 7UP Pomegranate in time for the holidays.

It's interesting to note that the company now refers to the reformulated version of 7Up and this new limited edition as having "100 percent natural flavors". That's not what they were claiming when first announced.

2006: "Now 100% Natural"

Back then, the phrase was "100 percent natural ingredients," which based on my review, didn't really help the drink.

2007: "100% Natural Flavors"

Cadbury Schweppes was actually sued over this claim, given that the new version still contained high fructose corn syrup, which most folks will argue is not natural. Thus the change in description today.

I look forward to trying Pomegranate 7Up… I hope it's a nice addition to the limited edition Christmas flavors found in the marketplace.

First of all, I really didn't know what the heck a pomegranate was. So to Wikipedia I went, where I learned the following points about this item:

• A deciduous shrub or small tree native to Asia and widely cultivated for its edible fruit
• Pomegranate juice is a popular drink in the Middle East, and is also used in Iranian and Indian cuisine; it began to be widely marketed in the US in 2004
• Providing 40% of an adult's daily vitamin C requirement per 100 ml serving, pomegranate juice is also a good source of folic acid and antioxidant polyphenols
• Many food and dietary supplement makers have found the advantages of using pomegranate extracts (which have no sugar, calories, or additives), instead of the juice, as healthy ingredients in their products

Um, OK. But what exactly is pomegranate supposed to taste like? I guess we'd find out.

Just like Hansen's Natural Green Tea Soda Tangerine, Hansen's Natural Green Tea Soda Pomegranate (again, way too long of a name) contains "35MG EGCG per can". It also shared the fact that is had "all natural flavors", "no preservatives", "no artificial colors", and "no caffeine". The 16 oz. can proclaimed 90 calories per serving, with 2 servings per container. I still don't really know how could you partake of 2 servings from a carbonated beverage at separate times without the drink going flat, so I'm going to assume that you are going to share this drink with a friend!

The ingredients lineup includes filtered carbonated water, glucose-fructose syrup (as we discussed before, probably just a nice way to say "high fructose corn syrup"), natural flavors with extracts of pomegranate, citric acid, and Chinese green tea extract. There's your drink!

Like the Tangerine flavor, the style of the packaging was influenced by Asian motifs, with a color scheme of dark red, green, and tan, again with a Chinese character prominently located next to the name.

Upon opening the can, the scent reminded me of a red pop of some sort. You know the kind. Typically sold as a generic store brand and just called something like "red". That's what it smelled like. Then there was the first taste… which reminded me right away of Cherry 7Up. It was rather crisp, light, but definitely influenced with a cherry flavor. I surprisingly liked the taste, which was far superior to the Tangerine version of this drink.

Overall, it was tasty and not at all what I expected. I might even consider drinking it again if given the opportunity.