Social Nature: Organic Guru Energy Drink #Review #GuruEnergy

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When I think of energy drinks, the last thing I associate with them is real ingredients. So many are filled with ingredients and proprietary blends, which not only stimulate a burst of energy, but you come down crashing as fast as the energy lasted. I began just avoiding them five years ago but there are days where I was dragging and even the red colored bull was an item I went after when coffee failed me. I started now looking for better drinks that increase endurance with a slash of energy, just to make Mondays a little easier to deal with when I just can’t seem to start the week off right. Some of the drinks I pick now have ingredients like teas to even chia seeds.

In comes Guru drinks, they offer an organic alternative rather than a science experiment in a can. Guru also is only 115 calories for a 12 ounce can with 30 grams of sugar. I was also able to locate the cans easily at my local Sprout’s Farmers Market but I noticed you can purchase directly from the company or even via Amazon. Guru is not only certified Organic but GMO free, gluten free and even a Vegan friendly drink. But does it deliver the energy you need and desire like it’s other rivals?

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Ingredients: sparkling water, organic cane sugar, organic white grape juice, citric acid, apple acid, natural flavors, organic green tea leaf extract, organic guarana seed extract, organic echinacea flower extract, organic panax ginseng root extract.

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Verdict:
I put the can in the fridge overnight to have it cool and ready for the next day. I start hitting that wall at around 2:00 in the afternoon and decide to give Guru a try. I open the can and the sniff test is okay and not unpleasant. I decide to give it a try and this not only where the drink failed me. It tastes like cough syrup and not really good, even though I at least enjoy that the drink is cold on a very hot day. I continue to drink Guru and it has a bad aftertaste, that lingers and also thickens your saliva. That medicinal taste just intensifies the more I drink it and I try to not even hold the drink in my mouth because it even makes my gums taste weird. Not great when it came to flavor but if it gives me energy, I tend to be one of those people that can overlook taste a bit if the product works. I wait 30 minutes, nothing. Another hour passes and the taste is at least starting to go away or maybe I am getting use to it. Oh, Guru is an energy drink……and I have none. Twelve ounces of phlegm giving drink that goes against the mindset that if the taste is like medicine, it should do the opposite of thickening it. After some coughing, clearing of throat and so forth, the energy never hit me or even knocked on the door. I would have taken even one hour of reward after drinking 12 ounces of Guru but the Guru isn’t the giving kind. At $2.50 a can and it was on sale at Sprout’s, I can’t see buying it when other drinks with less volume provide at least some energy, even if you crash after. You add the poor taste and I have felt more refreshed after drinking cold water on a hot day and that never thickens my saliva.

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I received the above product(s) free of charge from . I am not obligated to provide a positive or favorable review, just my honest opinion. My review is based on my experience with the product and/or brand, which may differ from yours.

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Kabrita: Goat Milk Yogurt in Mixed Berry, Mango Peach and Banana with Vanilla Bean Review

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When I was accepted to review the Kabrita Yogurt, I had no idea what to expect. I have eaten goat milk based products from cheeses to yogurts, however I was unfamiliar with the brand and their products. A few weeks pass and I receive an enormous boxed filled with goodies to share. The surprising part, was that the product does not require refrigeration, so again this was a new experience for us.

Kabrita USA (Canadian based) is a new company to the North America region and began launching their products in 2014. They are also the first to create and distribute Goat Milk formula and later expanded into making other products. The founders seek to provide non-GMO products and the best quality in ingredients, so they teamed up with a Dutch based company (Hyproca Nutrition B.V.) that has been in the nutrition business for over 70 years! This created Kabrita USA and a wider distribution network that targets people like us who seek a different (higher) level of nutrition. I’m always seeking to expand what I eat and share, so this is a perfect fit for me.

Kabrita has 3 different yogurts that require zero refrigeration to remain stable, however made with zero preservatives. Once you open the container, you should consume the product within 24 hours. Yup, it’s this natural!

Retail Price Point: $1.79 per pouch or you can purchase a box for $9.99, which contains 6 pouches. Some flavors come in 12-packs for $19.99 too.

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Mixed Berry:

The Mixed Berry Flavor was the overall favorite. You get that tang that yogurt has but that goat milk tends to intensify too. The sweetness of the berries make a perfect combination! The product is creamy and you don’t get a lot of the pear and apple notes, but you do first taste a burst of raspberries (you can even see the seeds in the puree). The pear and apple tend to just help deliver more sweetness, so even though that puree is listed first, you are not cheated in the final product because you do taste berries and lots of them.

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Ingredients (as listed on the website): WHOLE GOAT YOGURT (CULTURED PASTEURIZED WHOLE GOAT MILK), PEAR PUREE, ORGANIC APPLE PUREE CONCENTRATE, RASPBERRY PUREE, BLUEBERRY PUREE,STRAWBERRY PUREE, CHICORY ROOT EXTRACT (FIBER), ACAI JUICE, ACEROLA CHERRY PUREE (VITAMIN C), PECTIN,ORGANIC LEMON JUICE CONCENTRATE, MIXED TOCOPHEROLS (VITAMIN E), VITAMIN D3.

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Mango Peach:

This yogurt starts with Mango as the first ingredient in the puree and you indeed taste Mango! The peach is so subtle that it may just help create a better final texture of the product (smoothness) but no one was able to pick up the actual peach flavors because it was all Mango that could be picked up. You again have the apple and pear concentrate to sweeten the product and even Cherry puree but you would not know unless you flipped the package to see. Yes, that is how Mango-y this one is. I also felt the sweetness of all the other ingredients tended to overwhelm my palette and the goat milk base just did not seem to pair up as well. We opened other pouches from other boxes to compare differences (they all tasted a like) but this was voted as least favorite.

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Ingredients (as listed on the website): WHOLE GOAT YOGURT (CULTURED PASTEURIZED WHOLE GOAT MILK), PEAR PUREE, MANGO PUREE, ORGANIC APPLE PUREE CONCENTRATE, PEACH PUREE, CHICORY ROOT EXTRACT (FIBER), ACEROLA CHERRY PUREE (VITAMIN C),PECTIN, ORGANIC LEMON JUICE CONCENTRATE, MIXED TOCOPHEROLS (VITAMIN E), VITAMIN D3.

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Banana with Vanilla Bean:
This was a hit and we expected this one to be rated number one but after you have the Mixed Berry, this one was rated two. The banana is so creamy and goes perfectly with the goat milk and the tang tends to be more present, as the banana is not as sweet (not over ripe in taste). This may be from the lemon added to probably keep the color of the product appealing but that natural citrus acid really aids in keeping the banana neutral enough that you can still enjoy the milk’s flavor.

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Ingredients (as listed on the website): ORGANIC BANANA PUREE, WHOLE GOAT YOGURT (CULTURED PASTEURIZED WHOLE GOAT MILK), PEAR PUREE,CHICORY ROOT EXTRACT (FIBER), ACEROLA CHERRY PUREE (VITAMIN C), MADAGASCAR VANILLA BEAN, PECTIN,ORGANIC LEMON JUICE CONCENTRATE, MIXED TOCOPHEROLS (VITAMIN E), VITAMIN D3.

I have always been high on goat’s milk and even sheep’s milk. I just love the products they are used in and I find the flavors more appealing. Yogurts start blending in flavors and taste, with so many flooding the market today. You have Icelandic ones (i.e. Siggi) that are almost like a treat because they are so thick in texture and low in sugars. Noosa, an Australian style one is my go-to because the flavors are unique (i.e. Strawberry Rhubarb) and it’s light enough to enjoy in the morning but thick enough to bake with! All are made with cow’s milk as a base and that is not bad but when you have the same base, it takes a lot for the product to be made all it’s own and stand out. Kabrita stands out with goat milk and it’s not like anything you have every tasted. The benefits of this dairy product, is that goat milk enzymes are easier to digest and softer on the stomach. This is what makes the product great for toddlers to adults! You also don’t get cheated in the nutritional value and who doesn’t want to eat differently now and then? Kabrita filled that niche where a new base brings new flavors and shakes the yogurt boredom wide awake!

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I received the above product(s) free of charge from Kabrita USA.  I am not obligated to provide a positive or favorable review, just my honest opinion.  My review is based on my experience with the product and/or brand, which may differ from yours.

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