Recently I was contacted by the good folks at CherryPharm who have re-branded their tart cherry juice, now known as Cheribundi. Cheribundi is a tart cherry juice that comes in three varieties: Tru Cherry, Whey Cherry & Skinny Cherry. CherryPharm was kind enough to send me a free sample of each flavor to try and review here on this blog.

I'm so glad they gave me two bottles of "Tru Cherry." Definitely my favorite!

When I first read the e-mail asking if I would try Cheribundi, I thought, “what could be so special about cherry juice?” After all, I drink cherry juice all the time. I also drink apple juice and cranberry juice. It’s just juice, right? I was really surprised once I tasted it. It tasted nothing like the cherry juice I usually drink. It really packs a punch! There is a lot of flavor going on with this juice, which could actually deter some folks (such as my husband), but not me. It literally tastes like biting into a cherry pie. There is no other way to describe it.

I pulled Eric into the research lab – er, Kitchen – to taste all three varieties of Cheribundi. Here is what we each had to say:

Tru Cherry

Kim’s thoughts: “The original is my favorite. I am a cherry fan – and this tastes like drinking bottled cherries.”

Eric’s thoughts: “Too tart for me, then again, I wouldn’t eat plain tart cherries either.”

Micah’s thoughts: (We gave the little guy about 3 ounces diluted with 3 ounces of water. He sucked it down pretty quickly and then proceeded to show me his cup over and over, which of course means he liked it.)

Skinny Cherry

Kim’s thoughts: “I like the taste. I might dilute it with water, but then again, I usually dilute juice with water.”

Eric’s thoughts: “It’s not too tart, not too overwhelming. It’s good – tastes like cherry pie. I might drink it again. It would take me a whole day to drink this. It does stay true to the cherry flavor, but not everyone likes the tart taste of cherries.”

Whey Cherry

Kim’s thoughts: “This one is thicker than the other two. My first impression is that it tasted like thinned out pie filling. Is that a good thing? For sipping, yes. Thirst quenching? Not so much.”

Eric’s thoughts:*shakes head* “I don’t know if I like this.”

Overall Review: Skinny tastes very much like Tru. It’s slightly sweeter, but not by much. I’m not a fan of artificial sweeteners, even if they are “natural.” (If I am going to sweeten something, I prefer straight-up sugar.) Eric seemed to like Skinny Cherry the best, and it’s probably because it was a little less tart. In general, however, he is not really a fan of tart flavors.  (He once said “grapefruit tastes the way a skunk smells.” Harsh!) The Whey was a little too thick tasting for us. I liked the flavor of Tru the best, but we both agreed that because it’s so strong, it’s not the kind of beverage you slam back when you’re thirsty. I would sip this while reading a book or browsing the internet. It would taste really good with breakfast, too. Overall, I really like the flavor of the Tru Cherry Cheribundi and I’d probably get it again. The only downside: it runs about $2.50 per 8oz bottle, which means it would have to be a special treat in my household, not a daily thing.

For more information about Cheribundi, head over to their website here.