Anytime I see a new probiotic drink, I have to have it. Especially when the price is right.
That’s exactly what happened when I stumbled upon this pretty, little drink called Culture Pop Soda.
Plant-based, 45 calories, AND probiotics?
I had to have it, and I did. Here are my thoughts on it:
What I Think About the Culture Pop Wild Berries + Lime Probiotic Soda
Right when I opened it, I smelled it (obviously I’m weird, but does anyone else do this?).
The scent isn’t super strong, but it does smell good. Like your average berry-flavored drink, but not in an artificial way.
Taste
I love a deep, wild berry flavor, and this definitely has that. Immediately, I tasted grape. I initially thought I was tasting that classic Concord grape flavor like in grape juice, but after checking the label, it’s actually white grape. Cool. The flavor hits your tongue as soon as you take a sip.
You know what else hits your tongue? The carbonation.
It’s nicely carbonated. Nothing too strong, but more in the middle, like a Spindrift, which is just right for me.
Those bubbles are especially nice straight from the fridge. Effervescent, even.
I will say, that effervescence didn’t last too long. It was carbonated for maybe 10 minutes? Then, it went from “nice and bubbly” to “just a little bubbly.”
That being said, the flavor is good enough to carry it alone even without much carbonation. But it is something to think about, especially if that’s a dealbreaker for you.
I also tasted blackberry and blueberry flavor. It kind of reminded me of those Pom drinks but if they were carbonated. That berry flavor runs deep.
Technically, the flavor is wild berries + lime, but I didn’t taste much lime. I could FEEL that sour, tangy feeling on my tongue, but I didn’t taste actual lime flavor. It felt more like when you squeeze some lime into your ice water at a restaurant. I drank mine from the can, but that tang is probably super refreshing with ice.
Sweetness
It isn’t overly sour or anything with the lime, though. But it also isn’t really sweet. It does describe itself as "slightly sweet" on the label, which is an apt description after tasting it. They don’t add any sugar OR artificial sweetener at all. I definitely like that about it.
What’s In It?
You know I love to look at the ingredients list. This one is short and sweet. Just 8 ingredients, and they’re all natural.
- Carbonated Filtered Water
- Organic Juice Blend from Concentrate (White Grape, Blackberry, Blueberry, Lime)
- Natural Flavor
- Malic Acid
- Organic Pink Peppercorn
- Organic Basil
- Sea Salt
- Live Probiotic (Bacillus subtilis)
I thought the organic pink peppercorn was cool to see listed. That and the basil kind of shocked me because I hadn’t tasted much of either so I figured they’re put there to give the drink some balance more than anything.
Price
I bought a 12oz can for $1.67 on Amazon Fresh. (Prices may vary, though).
Overall,
I don’t ask for much from my probiotic beverages. All I ask is that they’re:
- tasty
- actually healthy
- affordable
This hits all those marks.
This drink is good because:
It isn’t expensive. I bought mine for not even two bucks. A super clean health product that tastes good AND for that price? Unheard of in this economy.- Beside having a ton of probiotics, I think another benefit is that there isn’t any added sweetener at all. I love that honestly. As someone with an insurmountable sweet tooth, I love sugar but I love my health more. Priorities!
- It’s basically a healthier soda. I’m always happy to replace soda with something healthier. This is that.
All products in this review were purchased by me, and all opinions are my own.