Suburban Reviews

The following is a love letter to my beloved non-alcoholic drink of choice. 

Dear Izze,

Every day that passes and we’re not together feels like an eternity.  You are not always easy to find, only being sold at select markets and a few restaurants in this area.  I would gladly come and find you at Starbucks, Target, Whole Foods, Wild Oats, or Fresh Market.  Anywhere, darling.

I yearn for you and your deliciousness each day.  You come in so many delectable flavors, it is hard to choose between all of you.  I love your Pomegranate, Clementine, and Pear flavors.  I eagerly anticipate meeting Apple, Blueberry, Blackberry, Lemon, and Grapefruit.  Each is refreshing, with no sugar, caffeine, or anything artificial added.  If I weren’t so selfish in my love for you, I could share you with my son.  But alas, I am selfish and wish to have you all to myself.  Every last drop.

I wish you were sold by the case, but sadly you come in four-pack bottles.   You also are sold by the bottle, for when I just want to be alone with one of you.   Although you sell for approximately $4 for a four-pack, it’s worth every penny to have you be mine.

I love you Izze.  I love you.

Your adoring fan,
Jennifer

To get your own Izze, you can click this link to find a retailer of in your area.

New here? Subscribe to the RSS to get info on all the latest products straight to your feed reader!RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!

Mountain Dew Baja Blast has got to be PepsiCo’s best kept secret. Released in August of 2004, it has only been available in Taco Bell restaurants. I only just heard of this stuff 2 WEEKS ago! Seriously, what rock have I been under?? Oh, that’s right. Motherhood, I forgot. We don’t get out much down here.

I decided to get Taco Bell for dinner, so I finally picked up a cup of this mysterious flavor. I have to say, I had high hopes. My last experiment with a new Pepsi product was less than thrilling, so surely this would be better. My husband is a big Mountain Dew fan, and while I’ll drink it in a pinch, it’s not my favorite. I thought maybe this would change things and unite us on the soda front- same brand, different flavor and all that.

I should have suspected something when I noticed this ‘tropical lime and pineapple flavored’ Dew was a bright blue color. I don’t know about you, but I’ve yet to meet a lime, pineapple, or any other fruit that was sky blue. Given that lime juice and Mountain Dew are both a yellowy green, I do believe someone in that department was on crack the day this product was conceived. One taste and that theory was confirmed. Imagine berry blue koolaid mixed with Mountain Dew and you’ll about have the idea. Words cannot describe how nasty this stuff is.

To continue the crack-headedness, they are actually about to launch Baja Blast at retailers nation-wide in the 20oz. bottles. I don’t need my crystal ball to know that this product is going to tank as fast as the Summer Mix will.

Note to PepsiCo- Just Say No to Drugs.

Note to readers- Just Say No to Baja Blast.

I am the proud recipient of a second child with a very unfortunate milk protein allergy. Since I’m breastfeeding, I am confined to a life sans dairy products. As a serious cereal addict, being banned from all dairy products has put a debilitating kink in my habit.

Luckily I have discovered an excellent alternative for soaking my morning grains…Rice Dream. It’s a completely dairy-free and organic milk alternative. Surprisingly delicious over cereal, it can also easily be substituted in recipes that call for milk. My frightened shivers prior to my first taste were completely unnecessary.

Rice Dream is a rice drink that comes in original, chocolate, carob, and vanilla flavors. It can be purchased in non-refrigerated cartons or in refrigerated cartons. I personally like that I can purchase the non-refrigerated cartons to keep on hand in the pantry.

Rice Dream is low in fat and calories. It is also enriched with Vitamins A, D, and B 12 and has the same amount of calcium as regular milk.

Although prices vary from city to city, Rice Dream can be readily purchased at most grocery stores for approximately $1.85 for the 32 oz. size.

So whether you’re a crunchy mama, vegan, lactose intolerant, or have a milk-sensitive nursling, Rice Dream may be the milk alternative you’ve been looking for. Thank goodness I was brave enough to try it. My lack of cereal was causing major side-effects including irregular heartbeat, dilated pupils, acne, ingrown toenails, chipped teeth, and a hairy tongue. Nobody wants a hairy tongue.

I am a Pepsi girl, have been for years. I like Coke well enough, will drink it if it’s all we have, but given the choice between the two, the blue bottle always wins out. I think I have tried every Pepsi product they have put out in the last few years, so when I saw the new Pepsi Summer Mix at Walmart last week, I knew I had to grab one.

Pepsi describes the Summer Mix as ‘a mix of tropical fruit flavors’. Nowhere on the bottle does it give the slightest hint of which tropical flavors, and the ingredients list only says ‘natural and artificial flavoring’, no specific fruit flavorings listed. Oddly enough the website doesn’t give this info either! Curiouser and curiouser…

The first taste is so odd you have to get a few mouthfuls to even begin to decipher it. It’s not overly sweet like you might expect, more like a tangy-sweet, and to me it takes like a cola mixed with pineapple and lime juice. Some people have likened it to mixing cola with Starburst candies, to me it reminds me a little more of Skittles since the ‘tropical’ flavors are more pronounced than mellow. Unfortunately that unknown flavor drives the Pepsi taste into the background, and the result is the feel of drinking a cheap soda with candy like a 14 year old at a sleepover on a Friday night. Sorry Pepsi, not a time I care to go back to.

Pepsi Summer Mix is slated to run through August, so pick it up if you want to try it out just to say you tried it, but I don’t recommend buying a 12 pack unless you need it for something useful, like a doorstop or a really big paper weight. I couldn’t finish half of the 20oz. bottle I bought, and I don’t see this being a big hit unless you are like 12.

Despite my love of Pepsi, Summer Mix gets a huge thumbs down.