This BTS Soda Pop Is New and I Got to Try It

I am not a BTS fan. I don’t actively dislike them, but if they never made another peep, I probably wouldn’t notice (plz don’t kill me, BTS Army). What I’m saying is: If you’re looking for a totally objective review of BTS’s new line of “dual biotic” sodas, you came to the right place!

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Just last month, the megafamous K-pop group launched a food and beverage brand called ARIH (ARI = pretty in Korean, H = harmony, happiness, and health) with three main offerings: instant noodles, energy drinks, and dual biotic sodas. If you’re wondering what dual biotic soda could possibly have to do with a K-pop band, the can explains: “ARIH blends the spirit of positivity and the creativity behind [BTS’s] music with refined Korean flavor to innovate modern wellness.” Okay, great. And for further clarification, a “dual biotic” soda is one that contains both prebiotics (dietary fibers that feed good gut bacteria) and postbiotics (what’s left behind after that process takes place).

The sodas currently come in seven fruity flavors, and they sent us two to test out: Pineapple Drift and Apple Flare (you can let me know in the comments if the names have anything to do with BTS songs—thanks!). Here’s what a BTS-agnostic taste tester thought of them.

New BTS Soda!

ARIH Dual Biotic Soda Apple Flare

ARIH

Pros: Apple juice is notoriously sweet and so is this dual biotic soda. It only contains 2g sugar per can, but there are other things in the mix that are contributing to the sweetness, including monkfruit, steviol glycosides (aka the chemical compounds that make stevia sweet), and allulose. The sweetness level works with the fruit flavor profile. This has a bold apple flavor (there’s actual apple juice concentrate in the mix) and even though there’s no cinnamon listed in the ingredients, this has a warm, apple cider-adjacent flavor that’s really pretty lovely. You HAVE to love sweet bevs to love this, though.

Cons: Yep, there’s an alternative sweetener aftertaste. It lingers on your palate. But just keep drinking and it won’t bother you too much.

Credit: Liv Averett / ARIH

Rating:

8.5/10

Sporks

New BTS Soda!

ARIH Dual Biotic Soda Pineapple Drift

ARIH

Pros: Okay, maybe this is a hallucination, but I swear there used to be pineapple hard candies with pineapples on the wrappers, in the same vein as (but not identical to) those ubiquitous strawberry hard candies with the goop in the middle. Anyway, this soda tastes like pineapple hard candy, not pineapple juice.

Cons: If you were hoping for a more authentic pineapple flavor, you might miss some of that brightness or tartness, but hey—it’s a soda! Make peace with the diet soda sort of sweetness and it’s pretty good.

Rating:

7.5/10

Sporks

About the Author

Howdy! I’m Gwynedd, Sporked’s managing editor. I live in Los Angeles and have access to the best tacos the U.S. has to offer—but I’m a sucker for a crunchy Old El Paso taco night every now and then. I’ve been at Sporked since 2022 and I’m still searching frozen mozzarella sticks that can hold a candle to restaurant sticks. Why you should trust me: I’ve been a journalist for 20 years (yikes), a consumer of food for 40-plus years, and I’m truly hard pressed to think of foods I don’t like (or that I can’t tolerate at the very least). Oh and one time I cooked my way through Guy Fieri’s cookbook and wrote about the journey through Flavortown. What I buy every week: Trader Joe’s Original Savory Thins. Fat free plain yogurt (usually Fage or Nancy’s). Honeycrisp apples. Sweet cream coffee creamer for my at-home Americanos. A frozen cauliflower crust pizza and some jarred mushrooms to top it with. Old El Paso Stand ‘N Stuff taco shells and Gardein Ground Be’f, even though I think “be’f” is a nightmarish contraction. Favorite ranking: Stouffer’s frozen dinners. I don’t own a microwave (I get my cancers the old fashioned way!), so I love taste testing things that I don’t really buy to eat at home. Least favorite ranking: Soy sauce. Don’t get me wrong, I love soy sauce—but consuming that much sodium in one sitting is probably illegal in some countries. Our frozen enchilada taste test was a close second; the smell of microwaved corn tortillas still haunts me.