Posts Tagged “nootropic beverages”
By Iyer Amruthur, ALC San Antonio
One of the most refreshing things on a hot Texas (or hotter Arizona!) day is an ice-cold sarsaparilla soda, or at least I’ve been told. My generation grew up during one of the peak periods for soda, candy, snacks, and a cornucopia of “consumables” that tasted great, but usually ended up in more than a few dentist visits. It’s safe to say a lot of us are still on the “high-fructose”, “high carbonation” train; admittedly, I was the same way. I gave up soda in my youth because I always felt the sugar crash pretty rapidly, and eventually, many sugar-based products began to weigh down my digestion. Fast forward to the current date and I’ve almost entirely cut out refined sugars from my diet. So what’s been my go-to fix while being healthy, you ask? Well, maybe you’ve heard of nootropic beverages?
Instead of being taste-centric, these beverages are purchased for their perceived nutritional benefits. In the same way you might drink/consume pre-workout supplements, or take a shot of apple cider vinegar per a daily schedule, you would now pursue these commercially available products. Some of my favorite examples include companies like Soylent, Huel, and Ka’chava for their dedication to nutrition/complete meals as a drink. They provide consumers with a bag of powdered food that prioritizes all the vitamins, minerals, carbs, protein, and fats humans need to operate (just add water!). Another example is Kin Euphorics and several similar companies that have created “mocktails” that taste similar to a non-sweetened cocktail; the drinks are chock-full of roots, herbs, vitamins, and more, meant to enhance mood, cognition, and digestion.
The category that was so dominated by the sensation of taste has now become a laterally divided market between taste and utility. The latter has become popular with younger demographics and those concerned with improving their health or creating better consumption habits in general. While these drinks are often smaller in volume and higher in price, they have been flying off the shelves at most common stores (Walmart, Costco, Kroger, etc.). So, what’s popular, healthy, and tasty?
Enter Kombucha! Kombucha is what I call “the produce of beverages,” and for good reason. Kombucha takes black tea, sugar, water, and a culture of bacteria (think yeast for bread) called a S.C.O.B.Y. (symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast). These mix together, and over time, they ferment into a delicious and bubbly beverage. Most commercial retailers pasteurize any alcohol retained during the process and ship it to major stores to be sold as a healthy, tasty, and unique alternative to sugary sodas.
It’s safe to say this is going to be a growing market, and we may see “soda” spots be replaced with kombucha, meal-based-beverages, smoothies, pressed juices, and even some drinks that might twist your tongue from the flavor profile, but deliver a calm nights rest.
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| Iyer Amruthur is a national sales manager in the ALC San Antonio office and has been with the company for three years. He attended The University of Georgia where he obtained a bachelor’s degree in Marketing, with a minor in Communications. iyer.amruthur@allenlund.com |