cascal

Cascal is a holdover from my trip out west a few weeks ago. I was backstage at a TV show (fancy!) that was like a party. There were about a zillion people, a full bar, catering (not just a craft services table), and a fridge full of beer and a beverage I had never seen/heard of before.

Cascal is fermented natural soda that has a little bit of a identity crisis. It's billed as soda, but it tastes kind of like a cider. Yet it doesn't really advertise that it's nonalcoholic, so you sort of wonder what you are drinking. It's also much drier than a standard soda, which also makes you think it might be a cider. I tried the Crisp White with notes of pear, apricot and magnolia.

Don't get me wrong: it wasn't a bad beverage. I can't complain that it was too sweet, but I still couldn't bring myself to finish it. (Michael wasn't there to finish it for me.)  My colleague had a similar reaction: she thought that it was a cross between a soda, a cider, and a malt beverage.

The bottle cap is nice. It offers a "salut!" and a "cheers!" in addition to the Cascal logo. The bottle cap looks like someone left a sweating beverage without a coaster on it. I'm not sure if that is what they were going for, but it's not a bad thing.

Have any of you ever had Cascal? Are there fanatics for it?  Convince me! It's not something that I've seen on the east coast/northeast... although their twitter explains that they are in a partnership with Whole Foods. I like that they offer what the different flavors pair well with. Sort of like a wine or beer tasting, but, again, this proves my theory that Cascal has a bit of an identity crisis on its hands.