A Review of New Things I've Tried #36 (Beverages Edition)

Beyond my morning cup of raspberry leaf tea, I usually drink seltzer or soy milk, but that's not all there is out there. Here are some other things I've recently tried out. There is a heavy emphasis here on grain coffees, which seem to be my current obsession, but there are several other beverages, too.

1. Trader Joe's Orange Strawberry Banana Juice

I loved Dole's version of this until I learned it was colored with carmine (early in my vegan life I became highly distrustful of things at the supermarket in part because of things like beetles in my fruit juice), so I was excited to try out Trader Joe's, which doesn't have added colors. Unfortunately, this one tastes most strongly of grape juice, with a hint of pineapple. It has banana and strawberry in it, but you'd never know that from drinking it. I'll probably stick with plain orange juice, because it has more potassium, and that's one of the things I'm emphasizing lately. If you don't like Dole's, though, you might want to give this a whirl, since it's so different!

2. Maca Chocolaté Teeccino

One of the rabbit holes of choice when I'm avoiding things due to stress is to read very old vegetarian magazines online. (I am who I am.) A lot of 19th-century vegetarians swore off caffeine and thus tea and coffee in favor or something called "cereal coffee," made from barley and chicory and such. I was intrigued and decided I wanted to give something like that a try, especially since I avoid caffeine myself (for medical reasons, though so do a lot of the so-called "straightedge vegans," for reasons similar to these 19th-century vegetarians). I found this brand of something similar. It is an unusual flavor for me--almost mocha, with the coffee and chocolate flavors. It definitely isn't anything like any herbal tea I'd ever had before, with a depth of flavor similar to coffee. I didn't notice any stimulant effect from the maca, which was somewhat disappointing if you're looking to be stimulated, but nice if this is your evening drink before bed. Despite the barley, Teeccino also claims that there is no gluten detected in this after testing, so it might be a good allergy-friendly option, too. With this drink, I was totally sold on cereal coffee, which is why you'll see so many versions of it in this compilation.

3. Cafix

After trying the Teecchino, I found some instant cereal coffee much more similar to the type advertised in 19th-century magazines. It may, in fact, be more or less the same thing as our 19th-century predecessors were drinking. This one is made of barley, chicory, figs, and beets. It tastes, in essence, like coffee, but less bitter than coffee (bitterness tends to come from caffeine, from what I understand). I really like this for relaxing with after dinner. I also like warming soy milk and adding the instant Cafix to it to make a latte, or taking it up another notch with some cocoa powder, maple syrup, a pinch of salt, and vanilla or peppermint extract to turn that latte into a wonderful mocha hot cocoa. I even gave you a recipe for that drink, as you may have seen!

4. Traditional Medicinals Warming Vanilla Stress Support

I'm a sucker for any de-stressing tea that isn't a sedative, so of course I had to try this! It's a lovely blend of spices and tastes really fantastic. Warm herbal teas always make me feel a tiny bit better when the world is caving in, but this one really eases my anxiety, too, without making me sleepy. It doesn't go as well with savory foods as the cinnamon "Stress Ease" tea they have, but it's a perfect after-meal drink.

5. Canada Dry Bold Ginger Ale

Since I like the spiciness of ginger beer so much, I was excited to find a new-to-me kind of ginger ale that is a bit more spicy. It's not going to fool you into thinking it's ginger beer, and you might not even tell that there is anything different about it right away. But it is definitely a bit spicier than traditional ginger ale, and it goes well with sweet or salty snacks.

6. Vanilla Nut Teeccino

I wanted to try more of this roasted herbal tea after the Maca Chocolaté was so good, so I got some of this vanilla nut variety. The nut here is almond. It's nice, but I really liked the other one better--unsurprising, really, because chocolate. But considering this without reference to the other, this is a really good, rich tea! I liked the vanilla-almond flavor and this goes really, really well with a morning muffin.

7. Galvanina Ginger Beer

A neighbor had bought a case of this and brought some over for me to try. Unlike most ginger beers I've had, Galvanina doesn't just rely on the ginger to give it the spicy flavor you expect. They also include chili pepper, so this is pretty intense! I found that adding lime juice and lots of ice helps make it easier for me to drink. I like it, but there are ginger beers I like more.

8. Traditional Medicinals Blood Orange Digestive Support Herbal Tea

I don't know if this offers much digestive support (or what that would even mean), but it's tasty! You just have to make sure to brew it long enough. I recommend 15-20 minutes rather than the box instructions, which say ten. At ten minutes, the flavor is mostly just hibiscus, but if you wait a bit longer the other herbs come through a lot more. The stevia makes it naturally sweet, which is nice, too.

9. Hazelnut Teeccino

I am totally sold on Teeccino now and I will be trying every variety I can get! This hazelnut one is just as good as the others I tried, but it's best with some non-dairy creamer mixed in. This is a dessert drink, perfect for after dinner with something sweet.

10. Postum

One of the original grain coffees is Postum, and so far it's my least favorite. I find it works best if I put it into a recipe than just dissolved in water; to me the main "coffee" note here is the bitterness I've never liked in coffee. I do like it mixed into hot cocoa or mixed on its own into warm sweetened soy milk, though it tends to clump up and can be a bit hard to stir in. Cafix beats this for me hands down, but if you can't get Cafix and want to try out a grain coffee, this could be a possibility for you. It's not that it's bad. It's just that there are so many delicious things out there!