Olipop may be a “a new kind of soda,” but the brand has taken a lot of cues from the classic soda world when it comes to flavors. Their lineup of better-for-you prebiotic, less-sugar bevs has included grape, orange, cola, cherry cola, root beer, cream soda—the list goes on. For a long time, though, there was a pretty obvious omission: lemon lime, arguably the second most popular soda flavor behind cola. In February, the brand finally fixed that when it released Lemon Lime on its site and at Whole Foods stores. But will Olipop fans want to stock up on this new flavor? And should lemon lime soda fans give Olipop a shot?
New Product!
Olipop Lemon Lime
Welp, it looks like we might need to update our ranking of the best Olipop flavors, because this one is good. But, right away, there’s a caveat: It doesn’t really taste like lemon lime soda. It’s delicious, but it tastes like a carbonated lemon iced tea (it reminded me of an Arizona Lemon Tea with some fizz). I didn’t pick up the flavor of lime at all. I think people who buy Olipop because they want a (way) lower-sugar alternative to Sprite or Starry might be disappointed, but if you’re willing to appreciate the flavor for what it is, there’s nothing to dislike.
Also, if you’re a soda person and you’re reading this (hi) and you’re new to Olipop, don’t think that less sugar means that these fall into seltzer territory. Olipops may be lower sugar, but they’re still plenty sweet, thanks to a blend of cassava root and other alternative sweeteners. It’s a carbonated drink soda fans can still get behind—as long as they don’t have their hearts set on that classic lemon lime flavor they know and love.
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.
Thoughts? Questions? Complete disagreement? Leave a comment!
Gwynedd Stuart
Tyler Bowers
Justine Sterling
Jessica Block
Oligopoly tastes like cough syrup – but I appreciate the attempt. Back to the drawing board!