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Articles
Quench time: Herald tasters put eight brands of lemonade to the test
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by Jane Dornbusch
Wednesday, July 31, 2002
We all know what to do when life hands us lemons - and so, apparently, do numerous beverage manufacturers, both large and small. There's no shortage of lemonades in today's marketplace, from fresh to bottled to refrigerated to frozen to powdered.
If you've ever tried to make lemonade from scratch, the appeal of the more convenient forms quickly becomes apparent. Juicing a dozen lemons might be a fun project for a summer day - once. But, unlike drinking lemonade, it's not something you'd want to do every day, especially when the mercury's soaring.
The array of lemonades on the market can be a bit overwhelming, and there's a wide range of prices and quality. Some contain nothing more than lemon juice, water and sugar; others feature flavorings, corn syrup, lemon oil and other unexpected ingredients. With plenty of hot days still ahead of us this summer, the time seemed ripe to hold a taste-off of commercial lemonades.
Last week, the Herald assembled a panel of seven tasters to sip and sample eight readily available brands of lemonade. We tried for an assortment, but all were straightforward lemonade - nothing pink, nothing sparkling, nothing mixed with other fruit juices. The tasters scored the samples on a scale of one to 10, with one being the worst and 10 the best; thus, the highest possible score being 70. All samples were tasted blind; brand names were revealed only after the tasting and scoring were completed. It was a serious group of tasters who made their way through the eight samples. There were a few sour faces - but perhaps that's to be expected when sipping lemonade - and some exclamations of delight and disgust. A few judges claimed to have spotted their own favorites among the samples - only to be surprised later when the brand identities were revealed.
Finally, the cups were (mostly) drained, and the winner chosen. Garnering the highest score, with 49 points, was Minute Maid frozen concentrate. Tasters enjoyed this sample's relatively high pulp content, which made it ``look the most like fresh lemonade'; they also praised its ``crisp,' ``balanced,' ``lemony' flavor.
Right behind, with 48 points, was Nantucket Nectars refrigerated lemonade, purchased in a half-gallon cardboard carton. The package makes a point of telling consumers that the lemon juice is not from concentrate, and that the drink contains no high-fructose corn syrup. Tasters called this sample ``most refreshing,' with a ``nice balance of sweetness and tartness.'
A not-very-close third was taken by Newman's Own, also a refrigerated product sold in a carton. This ``old fashioned roadside virgin lemonade,' as the package terms it, does contain high-fructose corn syrup, and earned 37 points. One judge called it ``pretty good,' but another asked, ``Where's the lemon?' Yet another mistook it for powdered Country Time lemonade.
Tropicana refrigerated came in fourth, with 34.5 points. One taster thought she recognized this as her ``house brand' Newman's Own, and awarded it 10 points, but others weren't so generous: ``fake,' ``bitter' and ``bland' were among the comments.
In fifth place, close behind with 32 points, was Fresh Samantha, a refrigerated, upmarket, ``natural' brand sold in a plastic jug, which contains only water, sugar and lemon juice. But tasters weren't impressed with this basic brew; they called it ``heavy' and ``artificial,' and a few noted an unpleasant aftertaste.
In sixth place, with 28 points, was bottled lemonade from Whole Foods, the Bread & Circus store brand. Tasters weren't pleased with this overly sweet product, which struck some as artificial-tasting. ``This would only make me more thirsty on a hot day,' commented one judge.
Trader Joe's organic, packaged in bottles and available at Trader Joe's markets, earned 23 points for a seventh-place finish. Several tasters thought they detected fruit flavors other than lemon; ``medicinal' and ``fake' were among the comments. ``I think they forgot the lemon in this lemonade,' noted one taster.
And in eighth place, with a fairly dismal 18 points, was Country Time, stirred up from powder. Several tasters correctly identified this sample. ``Bad color,' ``tastes terrible,' ``fake looking' and ``diabolical' were some representative opinions.
Our intrepid panel of tasters included Andy Husbands, chef/owner of Tremont 647 and Sister Sorrel; Matthew Gabree, bar and beverage manager of the Ritz-Carlton Boston Common; Jennifer Murphy, bartender at Bomboa restaurant; Betty Fulton, of Commonwealth Promotions, a Southerner and lemonade fan; Roberta Dowling, founder/director of the Cambridge School of Culinary Arts; Kerry Byrne, beer columnist for the Herald; and Jill Radsken, the Herald's fashion writer and a lemonade enthusiast.
There are some decent commercial lemonades out there, and all can be improved by the addition of a little fresh lemon juice and a few slices of lemon. Still, it's worth making your own at least once, if only to form a basis for comparison. Here's a basic recipe.
SCRATCH LEMONADE
- 6 c. cold water
- 1 1/2-2 c. granulated sugar, to taste
- 2 c. freshly squeezed lemon juice (from about 12 lemons), rinds reserved
- 1/4 c. freshly squeezed lime juice (from about 2 limes)
- In a 2 1/2-quart container, combine the water and sugar, stirring until the sugar is dissolved. Add the lemon and lime juices, and stir once more. Throw in the lemon rinds. Chill until very cold, and serve over ice. Makes about 2 quarts.
From 'Lemonade', by Fred Thompson (Harvard Common Press, 2002).
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