Rubicon Mango Exotic Juice Drink

Rubicon is a fairly well known brand, but not one I had often bought from. I am a fan of juice and have never been keen on juice drinks and squashes as I find them too watery and usually a bit artificial tasting. When I first spotted Rubicon's Mango Juice drink I didn't notice that it said "juice drink" and bought it as I love mangoes and I love juice. It was a ridiculously expensive buy for what it is (about £1.60 for a carton!), but I figured it was only a one-off so why not?

Design

The carton is very easy to spot. It's a fairly light blue with orange mango slices dotted over it. It stands out nicely and I think the design is great as it definitely caught my attention. I doubt you'd miss it if you were looking for it. Also, I've seen it available in most supermarkets and some corner shops so it's fairly easy to get hold of should you wish to try some. It's very obvious that it is a mango drink, although "juice drink" is written in a small and a rather squiggly font so it's not all that obvious.

On it, it says that the carton is made from wood which is a natural renewable resource. It also states that it is recyclable. So you can feel a bit more guilt free buying this.

At the top is a tab that's easy to flip open and shut again. I prefer this to the cartons that you have to cut as I'm very clumsy and always manage to cause the carton to split or I spill it everywhere.

Taste

The mangoes for this drink are Alphonsa mangoes. These mangoes are generally considered to be the best tasting variety of mango out there, and having tried a fair few I would have to agree with this. This choice of mango variety was a good one, as it gives the drink a fabulous flavour.

The juice has a nice orange/yellow colour, much like the colour of the mangoes on the front of the carton. The drink has a really nice thicker-than-water texture, but it's not too thick. It's also smooth. The smell is strong and very mango-y.

When I did realise that the drink was not pure fruit juice and in fact a juice drink I was a little disappointed. But when I tried it I was pleasantly surprised to find that it was not at all watery and tasted very juicy. It tasted strongly of mangoes, and was sweet, but not too sweet. It doesn't taste at all synthetic, and has a really nice fresh and natural taste to it. It almost makes you feel like you are far away in an exotic country sipping this from your beach chair. I can hardly believe that it only contains 23% mango!

It tastes best when cool and shaken properly. If you don't shake, then you get a rather disappointing weak and watery drink at the top.

Health Stuff

The great thing about this is that it's not from concentrate and made from the mango pulp itself. It also does not contain any artificial preservatives, colourings or sweeteners and is suitable for vegetarians. It contains extra vitamin C and a 200ml serving of this drink provides you with your daily recommended amount of vitamin C.

The bad news is that there is a lot of sugar in this, but that is to be expected with any kind of juice. There are the natural sugars from the mangoes as well as added sugar. Mangoes are pretty sweet anyway, so I don't know how necessary the added sugar actually is, but it does taste good so I guess it does add something.

Conclusion

It's a very pleasant, tasty and refreshing drink. I would definitely recommend this and don't be put off by the fact that it's a juice drink with only 23% mangoes because you can't really tell. It's got a nice strong and fresh taste about it. Don't drink it too often though because of the sugar and the price! The first time I bought this drink it was very expensive at around £1.60, but I have since seen it cheaper at around £1.20, which is still a bit much really. If you see it on offer, then it's worth checking out. Overall, a nice drink to have occasionally.