A couple of months ago, when I received some Ribena Juiced Up to try out with the kids (which we reviewed here), I was amazed to see that it was real fruit juice and even counted as one of their five-a-day. I was therefore really excited when we were given the chance to try out some of their new Sparkling Ribena.
It comes in generous 500ml bottles which are perfect for the long walks and days out that we've been enjoying in the sunshine during the school holidays this week. I must admit that I usually try to veer the kids away from the fizzy drinks aisle in the supermarket, thinking that they're not so good for them as real juice-based drinks, but Ribena Sparkling is in fact made with real juice and is therefore rich in vitamin C. Definitely a bonus.
The drink comes in two flavours, blackcurrant (as you'd expect from Ribena) but also raspberry and they're both delicious. The raspberry is lovely and sweet and refreshing and tastes of real raspberry flavour, so you have the impression you have a mouthful of juicy raspberries bursting in your mouth, along with a refreshing mouth-tingling fizz. The blackcurrant flavour nicely offsets fruity sweetness with a sharp tartness.
As a diet coke fan used to calorie-free drinks, I did find the calorie content relatively high. The raspberry one (as it is the bottle that I have to hand) contains 43 calories per 100ml so a 250ml serving contains 108 calories and 26g of sugar. The ingredients list reveals a few additives amongst the healthier ingredients : Carbonated Water, Sugar, Raspberry Juice from Concentrate (4%),Citric acid, Vitamin C, Flavouring, Preservatives (Potassium Sorbate), Colour (Anthocyanins). I would have preferred to have seen only natural colourings and flavourings and a bit less sugar, especially as it's largely aimed ay kids.
Taste-wise though, I can't fault it. It's tastes light and refreshing so is perfect for staying hydrated this summer, and it's lightly carbonated so won't have you burping all afternoon ! It makes a lovely change and a slightly healthier option if your kids want a fizzy drink, but I'll be sticking with the Juiced Up cartons for lunch boxes and trips to the park because they also count towards the five-a-day.
star rating : 4/5
RRP : not sure, can't find it anywhere at the moment !
for more information : http://www.ribena.co.uk/
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At the moment I very rarely let my daughter have fizzy drinks, but she is growing up fast, so when I finally give in, I will feel happier giving her these!
ReplyDeleteSodastream is great too - great fun and at least you can control what goes in !
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