Libertea

A Couple of weeks ago I was made aware of Libertea. Libertea is a New Zealand made 'soft-drink' if you like, made with a base of Green Tea flavouerd natually & sweetened with Stevia. Sounds great & seemed to fit the Primal bill to start with. So here's my thoughts....

Libertea has 3 variants under it's wee umbrella - Rosehip & Mint, Grapefruit & Lemon and Lemon & Ginger.

Rosehip & Mint.

Ingredients: Carbonated infusion of filtered water, herbal tea(26%)(rosehip, mint, hibiscus blossom), organic green tea(13%), lemon juice from concentrate, preservative (potassium sorbate), natural intense sweetner (stevia).

First glance it all looks ok, second glance- just above the ingredient list, it says 'Expect some sediment' so why use concentrated lemon juice? why not just use the real thing? The preservative is not ideal either in the sense that it IS a preservative.

Taste: Rosehip kind of says it all & I had no idea what a rosehip would/should taste like except to say I was expecting something 'floral'. I got floral - vaguely. I got mint - vaguely. There's a subtle sweetness from the stevia but it's not cloying or even lingering - it's there & then it's gone. The whole beverage seemed fine in the mouth once swallowed, left the mouth with no lasting memories.
It was a nice cool refreshing drink to return to after the cycle I had that afternoon.

Cost: $3.99

Grapefruit & Lemon

Ingredients: Carbonated infusion of filtered water, organic green tea(33%), grapefruit juice from concentrate(6%), lemon juice from concentrate(2.7%), preservative (potassium sorbate),tumeric, natural intense sweetner (stevia).

Same issues on the use of concentrates & the preservative.

Taste: Citrusy but not enough for my liking I guess, I found the flavours a bit vague here too although probably my pick out of the 3. Again, very nice to drink after a pedal around the park.

Cost: $3.99

Lemon & Ginger

Ingredients: Carbonated infusion of filtered water, organic green tea(33%), lemon juice from concentrate(2.7%), crushed ginger root(1.2%), preservative (potassium sorbate), natural intense sweetner (stevia).

Taste: A hint of lemon & a wee ginger burn. Lacked the intensity that I was sort of expecting/hoping for. I did continue tasting this once for several hours as it repeated on me & the ginger was much stronger!

Cost:$3.99

My opinion: The flavours off all 3 were too vague for me. I like punchy flavours that linger a little in the mouth to remind me of what I've just had. In hindsight, there was another flavour that stood out in three beverages - for me it was like fizzed, unflavoured SodaStream water; some might like this, but I'm afraid I don't fall into that category. I did however appreciate that the beverages were only sweetened subtly. As far as cost goes, for $3.99, I'd expect more - of something! Would I buy it again out of choice - no, but if it was offered to me, I would drink it.

My apologies for the fuzzy pics taken with my phone, I keep telling myself that one day I'll catch up with technology!