Product Review: Califia Farm's Iced Coffee

One of my favorite things to do is shop at natural grocery stores (i.e. Whole Foods, Trader Joe's) and try new products. They always have the most interesting flavor combinations and on the whole, the foods sold at these stores are healthier. Plus, shopping at the smaller stores allows you to support small businesses and, often, the local economy, win-win!

I recently visited Down to Earth in Pearlridge while I was out shopping. I have passed this store several times and I finally decided to go in and see what they had to offer. They had a cooler near checkout full of various drinks, and my eyes fell upon Califia Farm's Iced Coffee.

The packaging reminds me a lot of Starbucks, which I'm not sure is good for distinguishing yourself in the marketplace. But maybe it's good to get people to try your product.

I chose the cocoa noir with almond milk, which was soy and dairy free. The coffee was cold-pressed and was definitely the dominant flavor of the drink. Once swallowed, you tasted a hint of the bitter dark-chocolate before creamy almond milk rounded out the flavor. It was not quite as creamy as regular creamer, but just as tasty. At only 120 calories for the bottle, it was a tasty treat that also gave me some pep to get through the afternoon. For those used to the high-sugar content of most coffee drinks (like Frappuccinos), this will definitely be less-sweet, which is why I enjoyed it so much! Those sugar-filled drinks are usually too much for me, and I liked how this drink was basic enough that you only tasted what was meant to be tasted: coffee, dark chocolate, almond milk.

I bought a few other things during this trip, so stay tuned!