A Nice Cuppa

You may have read Carrie’s excellent review of Fizzy Lizzy sparkling juices on this site earlier this month. If not, you should! It contains a wealth of background info on these wonderful real-juice sparklers. Carrie did such a great job of this, I’m not going to reinvent her wheel. Instead, I refer you to her review, and I’m going to take a different tack here.

My sample bottles arrived packed as snugly as warheads in bubble wrap and a small brown box. (Having been on the receiving end of samples in broken glass jars before, I assure you, this is a good thing.) Withdrawing each one from the box and removing the wrapping, I admit, I was pretty tickled by the bottle art. From the print font to the message at the neck of the bottle - “Gently shake my hips before placing bottle to your lips” - I was charmed.

I received four flavors of Fizzy Lizzy: Gulf Coast Tangerine, Costa Rican Pineapple, Lone Star Grapefruit, and Yakima Valley Grape. It was a sweltering day, and I knew, knew I should just put the bottles, which had gotten quite warm in transit, in the fridge and exercise some self-control, but no. I decided to try one warm, poured over ice. Tangerine was the lucky Lizzy; the others went into the fridge for chill time.

Alas, my enthusiasm got the better of me. Poured warm over ice, the subtle nuances of the tangerine flavor were lost; all I got was “orange.” I was a little disappointed. Until I had the brainstorm to take a sip directly from the bottle, where it would be undiluted by melted ice. Ahh, the sweetly distinctive notes of tangerine were there! 

With the exception of the Pineapple flavor, for which I had other plans in mind, I shared the Lizzy samples with my kids, eager to hear their thoughts. Until my kids went to school and were educated by their helpful peers, they thought soda was flavored seltzer. (Hey, it’s not like I lied to them. Club soda, anyone?) Juice and seltzer mixes are a staple beverage in our house, and this seemed a perfect match. It was; the kids loved it. The Lone Star Grapefruit, with 70 percent juice, was a particular favorite.

Now, what about that Costa Rican Pineapple Lizzy? She went over crushed ice, along with some coconut milk, a squeeze of fresh lime, and a bit of rum: Skinny Lizzy Coladas!

I actually thought I was being a bit naughty by mixing a Fizzy Lizzy with alcohol (even a fairly demure amount) . . . till I paid a visit to her Web site! Turns out that Lizzy is a bit of a party girl! Check out the yummy-sounding cocktail recipes - both alcoholic and nonalcoholic.

You can find Fizzy Lizzy at fine food grocers and cafes, as well as natural food stores, but not at mass-market retailers. There’s a helpful locator on the Web site to help you track her down. Enjoy!