Sam Hughes Reviews: Nesbitt’s (of California) Peach Soda

I’ll start this review off by admitting that I’ve never had a peach soda that I’ve actually enjoyed. How many peach sodas have I actually tasted in my life? Probably two, maybe three. How many actual peaches have I eaten in my life? Honestly, it’s got to be less than ten. I’ve never been one of those “pick up a peach and eat” kind of guys. You know the type. There’s something about that fuzz which makes a little too human-like and a little too tickly. That’s troubling to me. Anyhow, whether this makes me qualified to review this soda, I don’t know, but what really makes me qualified to review anything? Absolutely nothing, and that’s why I post these things on a poorly trafficked web log rather than the New York Times. Blah, blah, blah, onto the review.

I had never heard of Nesbitt’s until Mr. Nese (yeah, yeah, yeah I’m cupping his 65-year-old balls) explained their history a bit. In his interview he claimed that the secret ingredient for Nesbitt’s orange soda was passed down verbally from generation to generation, and by coincidence he ran into a relative who knew the secret recipe. They now bottle it how they used and the secret has been prolonged. Well, I’m not sure if the same goes for their peach brand, but it has at least given me confidence in the brand.

The bottle has a very classic feel to it, and as the bottler of the soda claims, they “manufacture nostalgic and gourmet 50’s style glass bottle sodas.” No, really, “Orca Beverage Soda Works”? You think I didn’t know that? You think I’m a dumbass? Look, I know what you are going for. We all know what you’re going for. You don’t have to shove it down my throat that you’re being all nostalgic. We get it, asshole (no offense).

Upon smelling the soda I realized that it definitely smelled like a peach. Unfortunately once I tasted it, something went awry. This drink is way too sweet. Despite using cane sugar, this drink still has 48 grams of it which seems unnecessary to me. It’s like what Jones did with their new line of cane sugar sodas. They taste a bit more crisp, but way too fucking sweet, and that’s been my problem with all peach sodas I’ve encountered so far in my short life. There is a tinge of something chemical* in there and that’s never a good thing. That said, this is inarguably the best that I’ve had, but there’s still something missing, and that something isn’t caffeine because this soda inexplicably has it! I’ve never really seen a fruity soda of this kind that contains caffeine, and whether it affects the taste or not, I don’t know, but it kind of weirds me out. Then again, I still kind of hate or at least am indifferent to peaches in general (yes, this includes the recording artist, Peaches!), so what the heck.

6/10

*I always liked the name “Chemical Ali.” That made me think of him. He died, right? From now on, all peach sodas will be known as Chemical Ali’s favorite drink because that’s what they taste like, chemicals.