Flash in the Pan

When you live in Massachusetts, you have to like cranberries - I think there's some statute to that effect. And I do like cranberry sauce, cranberry juice mixed with orange juice, and sweetened dried cranberries. But I wasn't that taken with Ocean Spray 100% Juice Cranberry & Blueberry Blend. The drink is 100% juice, which is a great improvement over water and high fructose corn syrup. Unfortunately, although there are taste hints of blueberry and cranberry, they are relatively weak. Leading the ingredients list - which means filling most of the bottle - are apple and grape juices. This has become a standard practice, both to help tie flavors together, I think, but also to save money. I have some sympathy for the company. Cranberries don't really contain significant juice on their own, so they'd probably have to crush and steep them in something, and blueberries get a lot more expensive than apples and grapes. But the flavor is altogether too bland and undistinguished. At a suggested retail price of $3.59 for a half gallon bottle, you could serve it to the kids, and even drink it yourself, but don't expect what the label seems to promise.

Labels: blueberry, cranberry, juice, Ocean Spray