The Beverage Odyssey Continues
5 Comments Published by Tom Gara on Sunday, August 30 at Sunday, August 30, 2009.
I have always had a fondness for unknown drinks - not spirits and exotic tropical rums, but juices and soft drinks and strange things in cans that I have never seen before. I like to imagine that the perfect cold drink has yet to be developed, and that across the world, mad beverage scientists are working 24-7 to invent the Perfect Drink.
In Australia, I had a strange respect for Sno-Top, a drink that tastes like nothing else on earth, and so obscure that it doesn't even have a website. In Northern Ireland I was introduced to Irn-Bru, truly a badass drink if ever there was one. Not long after, in Cairo, I was singing the praises of Pinapple Fayrouz, which I maintain is the best hot weather version of a cold beer for places where a cold beer isn't going to happen. And how could you properly love Malta and its people without loving Kinnie?
In the Netherlands, the beverage marvel was Spa Marie-Henriette, the water that isn't quite still and isn't quite sparkling, for those tough times when a sparkling water would be too harsh and a still water too dull. In neighbouring Belgium, I always had a thing for Schweppes Agrum, the greatest fruity drink of them all. I don't think it has anything to do with Belgium, but I discovered it there and it always seems to be on shelves there, so maybe the Belgians have taken to it with a particular vigour.
And who could forget Shani, a vision of pure carbonated berry love, our traditional drink when hitting up the Siwa oasis in Egypt. Apparently the Siwans smuggle it in from Libya - it's that delicious.
The UAE is a brilliant aggregator of strange bottled drinks from around the world, from the wonderfully named Pocari Sweat (Japanese) to Power Horse (Austrian), the Energy Drink of Tremendous Symbolism. But last night at the little corner store near my house in Abu Dhabi, I came across this marvel:
Thums Up - tagline (at the top of the can) "Taste the Thunder." My suggested new tagline: "Thums Up: We cut out the silent b and pass on the savings to you." A scientific tasting at my place concurred that it is intended as some sort of cola, but with a decidedly ginger / spice element. My housemate's complaint of a "harsh afterburn" was pretty accurate - this isn't a drink for the novices.
My conclusion: when your product development guys don't bother to run a spellcheck on the name of your new drink, it is likely that they also cut some other corners along the way. I tasted the thunder, along with many other things, and my thumbs are not raised to the sky.
In Australia, I had a strange respect for Sno-Top, a drink that tastes like nothing else on earth, and so obscure that it doesn't even have a website. In Northern Ireland I was introduced to Irn-Bru, truly a badass drink if ever there was one. Not long after, in Cairo, I was singing the praises of Pinapple Fayrouz, which I maintain is the best hot weather version of a cold beer for places where a cold beer isn't going to happen. And how could you properly love Malta and its people without loving Kinnie?
In the Netherlands, the beverage marvel was Spa Marie-Henriette, the water that isn't quite still and isn't quite sparkling, for those tough times when a sparkling water would be too harsh and a still water too dull. In neighbouring Belgium, I always had a thing for Schweppes Agrum, the greatest fruity drink of them all. I don't think it has anything to do with Belgium, but I discovered it there and it always seems to be on shelves there, so maybe the Belgians have taken to it with a particular vigour.
And who could forget Shani, a vision of pure carbonated berry love, our traditional drink when hitting up the Siwa oasis in Egypt. Apparently the Siwans smuggle it in from Libya - it's that delicious.
The UAE is a brilliant aggregator of strange bottled drinks from around the world, from the wonderfully named Pocari Sweat (Japanese) to Power Horse (Austrian), the Energy Drink of Tremendous Symbolism. But last night at the little corner store near my house in Abu Dhabi, I came across this marvel:
Thums Up - tagline (at the top of the can) "Taste the Thunder." My suggested new tagline: "Thums Up: We cut out the silent b and pass on the savings to you." A scientific tasting at my place concurred that it is intended as some sort of cola, but with a decidedly ginger / spice element. My housemate's complaint of a "harsh afterburn" was pretty accurate - this isn't a drink for the novices.
My conclusion: when your product development guys don't bother to run a spellcheck on the name of your new drink, it is likely that they also cut some other corners along the way. I tasted the thunder, along with many other things, and my thumbs are not raised to the sky.
Thums Up is not a new drink. It's new to Dubai yes ... but before I heard of Coke, Pepsi etc...I had Thums Up - it's Indian :)
To me ... tastes more or less the same as the other colas...!
Yeah, indeed it is new to me, not to the world. It is possible that I bought a bad counterfit can of Thums Up, because aside from the spelling error, it was pretty harsh.
If you're ever in Nigeria or find yourself amongst some Hausa folks, see if you can get a hold of Zobo. It's a deep red coloured drink made by boiling Hibiscus leaves, adding sugar, and then depending on who makes it, some additional spices/fruit. I don't think I ever saw it 'in-a-can' but there is nothing better for a hot West African day than a highly chilled Zobo (to the point where soft ice forms).
Its a very popular drink in India, and is considered the "manly" version of Coke and Pepsi!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_nITwKlOZpM&feature=related
watch this ad for the drink =)
It features India's current favorite action hero, and his crazy stunts! Also, this actor is hosting India's version of "Fear Factor", such is his image!
i got one for you. ill post it in a bit