Credit: Liv Averett / Gold Peak Beverages / Walmart
Our dump bucket has seen a lot of action this year. That’s not a euphemism. We literally have a dump bucket in which we pour liquids we do not wish to finish. We tasted all sorts of thirst-quenching beverages, from orange juice to sports drinks to coconut water. We even drank through Pedialyte’s portfolio of flavors. So, it was difficult to pick the top drink of 2022. But we considered what we would most like to reach for on a hot, sweaty day and, suddenly, the answer was easy. Come on up here, Newman’s Own, and claim your Sporked award.
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This is as close to fresh-squeeze lemonade as you’ll ever get, and that is a feat for mass production. Fresh citrus flavors are notoriously difficult to capture—they dull and turn funky within days of being packaged. So, the fact that Newman’s Own was able to create a zesty, refreshing lemonade that is nationally available is worthy of praise. This is the only lemonade I will buy. It has just the right level of sweetness balanced by tart lemon zing. It came out on top in our best lemonade taste test and it comes out on top for the year. You did it again, Mr. Newman!
Gold Peak scored the gold in our best iced tea taste test. In that ranking, Danny Palumbo wrote that it’s made with “high quality tea leaves and it features a boatload of cane sugar.” That said, it’s the perfect level of sweet. It has a bold tea flavor, but cushions it with sweet, sweet sugar so you aren’t overwhelmed by the tannic tea. “Gold Peak is refreshing in all the right ways: It’s tart, bitter, earthy, and delectably sweet, but not fake tasting,” Danny wrote. While it won the silver overall, it’s still the gold standard for iced tea.
Justine Sterling is the editor-in-chief of Sporked. She has been writing about food and beverages for well over a decade and is an avid at-home cook and snacker. Don’t worry, she’s not a food snob. Sure, she loves a fresh-shucked oyster. But she also will leap at whatever new product Reese’s releases and loves a Tostitos Hint of Lime, even if there is no actual lime in the ingredients.
Thoughts? Questions? Complete disagreement? Leave a comment!
Thoughts? Questions? Complete disagreement? Leave a comment!