Two new Waterloo flavors just dropped! Okay, one new flavor, Waterloo Pomegranate Acai, and one returning Waterloo flavor, Waterloo Spiced Apple. The latter first debuted in fall 2022, and we suspect it was a hit given that the popular sparkling water brand saw fit to bring it back, not to mention that people really lose their shit for warm fall flavors, even if they’re in an ice-cold can of sparkling water.
Is it weird for sparkling water to taste like cinnamon? Are pomegranate and acai a match made in superfruit heaven? We tasted both “new” Waterloo flavors to find out.
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The brand describes Waterloo Spiced Apple as “a reimagined blend of crisp apple, aromatic spices and sweet cider notes that transports you to a chill evening around the fire.” How twee! They apparently tested 50 versions of this flavor over the course of nine months before they felt like they got it right. But did they?
Pros: It’s weird, but mostly in a good way. It’s very apple-y, with a nice backbone of warm spices like cinnamon and maybe a touch of nutmeg. It’s not sweet at all (obviously, since all Waterloo flavors are totally unsweetened), but it really communicates the sweetness of apple cider. If you’re amped up for cooler evenings and trick-or-treating and horror movie marathons on the couch under a flannel blanket, you should totally pick up a 12-er of Waterloo Spiced Apple.
Cons: I don’t think this is for everyone. It’s going to be way too weird for some people. And, honestly, the spices add just a touch of bitterness that’s a little strange. That said, even if you don’t want to drink this straight, it would be pretty good as a mixer in fall-themed mocktails. Just add a splash of this to some apple juice and you’ve got yourself a fall mocktail.
This new Waterloo flavor combines two superfruits that I think can be described as “sweet and tart,” but not in exactly the same way. The brand was going for “a fall flavor experience that is both bright and complex.”
Pros: Well, it’s interesting! Here’s part of my issue: I don’t think of pomegranate as having a very well-defined flavor profile. It’s just sweet and tart. Same goes for acai. Sweet and tart. Together, you just kind of get a mish-mosh of poorly defined flavors.
Cons: That mish-mosh of poorly defined flavors, to me, tasted a little bit like laundry detergent. Refreshing laundry detergent, but still. It’s not the complexity I’d personally want in a sparkling water.
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
Jessica Block
Will Morgan
Griffin Parker
Thoughts? Questions? Complete disagreement? Leave a comment!