Testing Ground: La Croix Cherry Blossom
Apr. 19—With summer on the horizon, drink companies will be unveiling their beverages aimed at quenching thirst in the heat.
The first drink coming soon: sparkling water band La Croix's Cherry Blossom flavor (Price to be determined. Coming to grocery stores.)
In 2020, La Croix came out with three summer flavors (Guava, Beach Plum and Black Razzberry) to varying results. Surprisingly, they've all stuck around and remain in stock.
With Cherry Blossom, I'm on the fence about whether I can see this becoming a fixture or a "one and done" experience.
While La Croix, like most sparkling water beverages, remains a divisive drink, it feels like their best beverage executions tend to be on the sweet side (I say "sweet" as a relative term because the flavors tend to be notes of their namesakes rather than a full taste experience). My favorites are Limoncello, Hi-Biscus, Key Lime and Grapefruit.
While it maintains La Croix's effervescence, Cherry Blossom tastes mostly bitter. It mostly tastes like a chocolate cherry. After a while, it tends to taste like any other sparkling water beverage.
The ad copy for La Croix's Cherry Blossom states it has a "botanical twist of sweet and tart, the dazzling taste of blossoming Spring!" I wish it was closer to how it was described because that sounds like a perfect summer drink.
When it comes to trending flavors for drinks and desserts, Cherry Blossom seems to be a go-to choice. La Croix seems to realize that and is jumping on it before every brand has its twist on it.
Anyone who will be using this as their entry point into the Cherry Blossom-flavored items will likely be disappointed.
As a drink in general, it's not something I'll be craving. As a summer drink, it's a big disappointment.
Andrew Gaug can be reached at andrew.gaug@newspressnow.com.
Follow him on Twitter: @NPNOWGaug
