319987 Wed Aug 23 05:47:22 -0700 2006 38 27 General Chowhounding Topics 0 1826869 Is it really THAT healthy? what are some other good, healthy drinks (the "good" part scratches out Kombucha). they have a new tea...anyone try it? Good for a "detox"? Wed Aug 23 05:47:22 -0700 2006 10620 Xericx 1 1826877 I've tried it. Nothing special. Overpriced. Awkward packaging - easy to spill the tea when you remove the top paper closure. You are paying for the container, not the tea. I happen to love Kombucha, but I guess you either love it or hate it. I make my own ice tea. It's easy; it's cheap (even if you are using super-premium tea) and you can have whatever flavor your little heart desires. In the morning, I simply brew up a large pot of tea in a pot with an infuser. I leave it sitting on the counter all day. It cools down soon enough and when I want ice tea, I simply pour some over ice. I throw out any remaining tea at the end of the day and start over the next day. As I said, it works for me and I definitely get better quality ice tea than I could buy pre-packaged. If I want to take it with me, I put it in my "T Buddy," which is one of the greatest things since sliced bread. Wed Aug 23 05:58:08 -0700 2006 1826869 27951 omotosando 1 1826920 Kombucha...at least the ones I've had are way too acidic.... yeah...I saw that packaging on that bottle and thought of Voss water. Wed Aug 23 07:49:48 -0700 2006 1826869 10620 Xericx 2 1826925 The only way to get light, flavorful kombucha is to make your own. My boyfriend insisted that we try some commercial kombucha to make sure mine was "right." (I had tasted commercial before, he hadn't and was sure I was trying to poison him). All the commercial ones we tried were way too vinegary, with the exception of those mixed heavily with juices and teas (what's the point, then?). Home brewed kombucha is fizzy, has the mouthfeel of champagne (no, really, it does. I'm not just tooting my own horn), and is only very slightly tangy. I wish everyone could try it just once. Aside from kombucha, I make my own iced tea all the time too. It's easy and I know exactly what's in it. There's almost no commercial juice/tea out there that's delicious and sugar free, and I would much rather use up my sugar calories eating decadent food than chugging a glass of juice. Wed Aug 23 08:01:45 -0700 2006 1826920 11577 Pei 2 1826952 speaking of packaging..i stole this from my friend. i bought one of those pom things once and i reuse the glass container for other beverages. i work around the corner from my place, so it's handy for homemade iced teas and such, because of the lid. just in case your curiosity gets the better of you and you don't have a thermos handy. Wed Aug 23 10:23:10 -0700 2006 1826920 27741 augustiner 1 1826961 Pomegranates, along with blueberriers are chock full of antioxidants so why not just enjoy a whole pomegranate or some blueberries? That way you are also getting the fiber from the fruit which you don't get from the juice. Jenna Wed Aug 23 10:54:22 -0700 2006 1826869 18354 j2brady 2 1827590 I did eat a basket of blueberries last night. Wed Aug 23 16:32:35 -0700 2006 1826961 10620 Xericx 3 1827617 It's hard to snack on pomegranates, but very easy to squeeze the juice out of one. Nudge the seeds out of them under water so you don't spray yourself with red juice. Then drain them, blitz lightly in a blender, and strain the juice out. But I agree that snacking on fruit is much healthier than getting the nutrients in juice form, and will keep you full longer. Think about it: if you have a basket of strawberries, how long will it take you to eat them as a snack? Now envision blending the entire basket with a cup of orange juice. You'll end up with about a pint of liquid. Now how long will it take you to finish the entire basket (along with a cup of juice)? Wed Aug 23 16:39:57 -0700 2006 1827590 11577 Pei 2 2542533 Because the produce grocery buyer's mind is geared to pomegranetes are only to be stocked in Nov. amd Dec. and then you have to wait a year unless you live where it is possible too grow your own. Fri May 04 14:21:06 -0700 2007 1826961 10285 Candy 1 1827610 I love the Pom - a great mixer for cocktails. On the same front, Trader Joe's is selling Aronia Berry Juice that is higher in anti-oxidants and equally as thick and powerful. Wed Aug 23 16:37:24 -0700 2006 1826869 16933 Carrie 218 2 1828754 Does Costco still carry Aronia Juice? They used to a few years ago..... Wed Aug 23 21:57:52 -0700 2006 1827610 10620 Xericx 1 1827855 POM is not 100% pomegranate juice, there's another kind of juice mixed in, can't remember what (apple?), but they obviously mixed in another juice to make it sweeter and thereby appeal to the masses. Also, it's pasteurized. RW Knudsen has a 100% pomegranate juice, also pasteurized, but at least not diluted. TJ's has one too, but the RW Knudsen tastes better to me. If you can get lots of pomegranates, best to juice them yourself. My mom has a pomegranate tree and we are blessed with very fresh, unadulterated juice with all the antioxidant benefits. Wed Aug 23 17:34:13 -0700 2006 1826869 13957 slacker 2 1828011 I use the 100% Pommegranate Juice from TJs... I also use it for mixers... A bit of Pommegranite, a bit of sparkling lemonade and a shot of Lemoncello... :) --Dommy! Wed Aug 23 18:11:02 -0700 2006 1827855 10659 Dommy 3 1828277 The SF Chronicle just did a taste test of various pomegranate juices. Naked Juice came out ahead, followed by TJ's. Pomegranate juice is often cheaper at Middle Eastern markets, but I haven't compared ingredient lists to see if the product is comparable. Edit: oops, Ruth beat me to the punch on the Chronicle article (below) Wed Aug 23 19:22:58 -0700 2006 1828011 11577 Pei 3 1828952 Mmmmmmm sounds good! Think I'll try that. Wed Aug 23 23:39:53 -0700 2006 1828011 13957 slacker 3 1864873 Isn't pomegranate juice a major ingredient in Grenadine?? Sat Sep 09 13:59:09 -0700 2006 1828011 11562 Hue 4 1865279 Grenadine is pomegranate syrup. Sat Sep 09 18:34:42 -0700 2006 1864873 11369 Robert Lauriston 3 2542541 Dommy, try Pama the pomegranate liqueur as a mixer or a shot in bubbly instead of oj. Yummy stuff! Fri May 04 14:23:15 -0700 2007 1828011 10285 Candy 2 1828313 You are so lucky to have a pomegranate tree! Where are you located? I am interested to know where they grow. I am in Toronto and I do not think they grow here. Jenna Wed Aug 23 19:33:04 -0700 2006 1827855 18354 j2brady 3 1828938 I'm in Los Angeles, as is my mom. Her tree produces lots of fruit every year. btw, for the jarred juice, I think the RW Knudsen tastes closest to fresh. Wed Aug 23 23:30:04 -0700 2006 1828313 13957 slacker 3 2532090 The grow like gang-busters out here in southern Arizona, too. Tue May 01 14:28:01 -0700 2007 1828313 10904 Booklegger451 1 1828054 I recently bought a large square box of the Sadaf brand pomegranate juice for $2.99 at Valley Produce in Reseda. It's excellent. I've been fighting off a cold and thought to try drinking the stuff as an alternative to the over the counter drug stuff which really doesn't work. I've recovered faster than ever, felt better within three days. The stuff works and tastes great! Even better in a chilled martini glass with a shot of vodka but that's another thread altogether. Wed Aug 23 18:28:06 -0700 2006 1826869 12701 davinagr 2 2545376 hehehe I am so there with you. Try Pom juice with the Van Gogh Pom flavoured Vodka. V Dangerous. Far too good. But at least then you have pom juice in the fridge for your hangover! Sat May 05 22:05:30 -0700 2007 1828054 69079 starlady 1 1828105 The SF Chronicle recently did a taste test on pomegranate juice blends, and for what it's worth, Naked (brand) beat out Pom, scoring high enough to go in their "Hall of Fame" (for products that get at least 80 points out of 100). http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/08/16/FDG1LKHOLE1.DTL Wed Aug 23 18:41:41 -0700 2006 1826869 10159 Ruth Lafler 2 1868504 Thank you for alerting me to Naked Juice's Pomegranate juice. I just inhaled my first bottle; it's become my new addiction. Mon Sep 11 16:30:07 -0700 2006 1828105 12213 jillp 1 1829055 Pom Wonderful tastes good, but it offends me. It's made from concentrate but they package it to try to pass it off as fresh. Nutritionally there's not much in it but sugars. Drink water. Eat fresh fruit. Don't mess with Mr. In-Between. Thu Aug 24 00:21:30 -0700 2006 1826869 11369 Robert Lauriston 2 2537391 Wasn't expecting a Bing Crosby reference here of all places! Thu May 03 07:03:41 -0700 2007 1829055 13574 pamalamb 1 1864436 Go to any middle eastern market and you'll probably find good pomegranate juice for a fraction of the price. (Tangent: It is so amusing to see how the most "archaic" fruits and vegetables that some cultures have been enjoying for centuries suddenly becomes the most hip thing to eat for Americans. As if Pom "discovered" the pomegranate, thus giving them the liberty to charge and arm and a leg for it. Another tangent: The most hilarious one for me was the whole soy phenomenon. Granola bars for women? Cereal for women? Some guys I know are afraid to eat soy, thinking it's got something to do with estrogen. Come on! Men and women have been eating soy for quite a while! Don't buy the fancy stuff just because it has a glossy label on it, when you know you can find it cheaper at the places that have been selling it for years!) Sat Sep 09 02:30:58 -0700 2006 1826869 11504 amandine 2 1869525 YOur thought about where to find great pomegranate juice is correct. The best I've had in LA are the persian styles that Armenian grocery stores carry. Barberry and sour cherry juice are also wonderful. But there are two issues with the soy thing. The first is a marketing thing, like men who are scared of Luna bars because they think it will make them grow a uterus/ become feminine. They can be dismissed. But the second issue is that estrogen and soy are related, and that does raise issues. http://www.westonaprice.org/soy/phytoestrogens.html There was also a 10 year study done in Japan published at the end of 2005 on the health effects of refular soy consumption, and the results were not good for soy-lovers as things like dementia appeared much higher in those on the soy diet Mon Sep 11 22:26:36 -0700 2006 1864436 12853 mr mouther 3 2542552 I'd like to hear more about the Japanese study. Did the researchers distinguish between traditional "whole" soy foods like tofu and the highly processed products like soy protein isolate? Fri May 04 14:25:47 -0700 2007 1869525 24126 amyzan 3 2543820 If you are past your reproductive years, you should be okay to reap the benefits of soy, since a lower sperm count is presumably a non-issue. That dementia thing scares me, as I would like to keep control of my faculties well into old age. The jury is still out on this one, though. Google "soy dementia japan OR japanese study" to get the pros and cons. Sat May 05 06:36:48 -0700 2007 1869525 96383 yaddayadda 1 1866896 if you are into the healthy fruit thing, maybe you want to check out acai fruit. It is supposed to be even more powerful! Sun Sep 10 20:13:30 -0700 2006 1826869 19631 mimolette 1 2529771 I make homemade kombucha, and when i bottle it, i fill the GLASS bottle with 3/4 Kombucha, and 1/4 pomegranate juice. Then I leave the bottle somewhere warm for a week. The yeast in the kombucha really starts to multiply, and maybe ferments the pomegranate juice. The end result is an extremely fizzy, tangy fruit drink, real good, try it with white tea kombucha (only homemade tho) Mon Apr 30 20:45:46 -0700 2007 1826869 95390 tyty 1 2529786 Antioxidants include Vitamin C, B12, Vitamin E, Beta Carotene, and many other things that naturally occur in fruits and vegetables. Somebody somewhere along the line decided to use the term 'antioxidant' to fuel their marketing. It works. Pretty much every fruit has antioxidants. Every living thing has antioxidants. If you like pomegranate, drink it. If you don't, pick your favorite fruit. Mon Apr 30 20:55:38 -0700 2007 1826869 76025 mojoeater 1 2540073 Pomegranates are very healthy and POM tastes very good. But you can, indeed, do much better if you have access to mid-eastern stores. They usually have litre bottles of 100% pure pomegranate juice at very low prices. I generally pay between $1.99 and $3.99 (Canadian) per litre. Unlike POM, these are not blends made from concentrate and they vary wildly in sweetness and in overall taste. Thu May 03 19:32:00 -0700 2007 1826869 23411 embee 2 2541525 1. You can get 100% pomegranate POM. Its still from concentrate -- but not blended with other fruits (like most of their lines). 2. Can you recommend a reliable brand of pomegranate juice from the Middle-east. I've tried some pretty awful ones and have grown to accept that I'll just buy POM much less frequently (due to the price). Fri May 04 09:57:40 -0700 2007 2540073 24055 Atahualpa 3 2543739 I used to drink 100% POM when I lived in the US (four years ago). When I had it again on a visit this year, I could tell that the flavor had really changed. It now tastes off--cooked and syrupy. Like bad, oversweetened cranberry juice from concentrate. It may still be 100% juice, but they have definitely changed the product. Sat May 05 05:04:01 -0700 2007 2541525 10661 butterfly 3 2544983 Unfortunately, I can't. The brands in the mid-eastern stores seem to change fairly regularly. Some need sweetening; others don't. Some have flavour depth and others are flat. Our most recent purchase (Bling Bling brand, $1.99/litre at Loblaws, was neither great nor awful. I'd get it again.) Sat May 05 17:56:10 -0700 2007 2541525 23411 embee 1 2546185 I'm surprised that no one has mentioned the owners of POM, Stewart & Lynda Resnick. This couple has made a fortune building companies. They're the marketing geniuses behind Fiji Water, Teleflora, Franklin Mint to name a few. Pomagranates are good food, their juice is highly nutritious. Don't be fooled that their brand is somehow superior, the end-all and be-all of antioxidants. Sun May 06 11:11:38 -0700 2007 1826869 15743 Sherri