"Here in the hallowed halls of The Everygirl, taste test rankings are a time-honored tradition. You might be familiar with our annual Starbucks fall and holiday drinks rankings, where we rank each seasonal Starbucks drop (as is our journalistic duty, of course). However, we know that some prefer a different drink for their daily little treat: soda.
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Enter The Everygirl’s first-ever soda (or pop) tasting, dedicated to our girls who love a sparkling bevvy sitting on their desk at all times. While you probably already have your own personal favorite of the name-brand sodas, there are so many alternatives out there today that we knew we had to rank them. For this ranking, we opted for Olipop: a better-for-you soda that comes in 17 different flavors and boasts prebiotics, fiber, and botanical extracts in its ingredients list.
Now, if you’re a Diet Coke lover through and through, by all means, stick to your fave. And if you refuse to drink “healthy” soda alternatives because they aren’t really that healthy, good for you, queen! But for those of us who keep our fridges stocked with alternative soda and delusion, we gathered as many Olipop flavors as we could possibly find and diligently tasted them all.
How We Ranked Them
Our eight taste testers tried 11 Olipop flavors and scored each drink on a scale of 1-5 in the categories of “overall taste” and “likelihood to get again.” This means that there is a total of 10 possible points per drink from each taste-tester, and each drink has a maximum of 80 possible points. Then, we averaged each score to get our final rating out of 10. Without further ado, here are the best Olipop flavors, ranked.
11. Cream Soda
Score: 0.8/10
While sipping a cream soda sounds kind of romantic, our team had no choice but to rank this flavor dead last. You’ll notice that a consistent complaint throughout this ranking is that some of the flavors are simply too sweet to really enjoy, and this soda took the cake for the sweetest flavor. Abi, our social media assistant, aptly observed that drinking the cream soda Olipop was “like drinking a Crumbl cookie.” Paige, the branded content editor at The Everymom, felt that the cream soda tasted akin to “children’s toothpaste flavor.” You’re probably better off with an actual cookie.
10. Watermelon Lime
Score: 1.1/10
Our team had high hopes for this flavor, but sadly, we were gravely disappointed. I won’t beat around the bush here: This soda has an absolutely rancid smell. While most of the taste testers agreed that the flavor was a true watermelon lime, the taste was masked by the bizarre scent. Jenna, The Everygirl’s editorial assistant, described the smell as “scary.” The general consensus was that since the drink smelled like rotten eggs, most of the redeeming qualities of the taste were completely lost. We can’t recommend sipping this flavor alongside your workday lunch in good conscience.
9. Doctor Goodwin
Score: 1.6/10
Dr. Pepper duuuuuuuupe! Except, this flavor wasn’t a fan favorite either. If you love Dr. Pepper, this might be a good alternative for you, but overall, our team found the taste of this soda to be a bit too medicinal. Paige described the Doctor Goodwin flavor as being “on that Robitussin-type beat.”
8. Vintage Cola (Tied)
Score: 2.3/10
Vintage cola was the first flavor our team tried, and right away, it was controversial—mostly in a bad way. We found this flavor to be far too sweet and the carbonation to be flat, like a Pepsi that’s been sitting out just a smidge too long. Our taste testers were also surprised by the fact that this flavor was very reminiscent of gingerbread. It had a little spice to it, so if gingerbread soda is your thing, this might just be your new favorite.
7. Peaches & Cream (Tied)
Score: 2.3/10
For the sake of transparency (because not all variables in this very scientific ranking could be completely controlled), several members of our team had tried this limited-edition Olipop flavor before because the brand very kindly sent a pack to our office last summer. However, opinions on the flavor remain varied between the team: While some enjoyed the sugary-sweet peach flavor, others found it too cloying. Caitlin, one of The Everygirl’s graphic designers, said this flavor “tastes like chapstick.” So go ahead and try it, but try it knowing you might hate it.
6. Ginger Ale
Score: 3.6/10
Given how universally loved ginger ale is, we expected this flavor to be at the top of our list during the taste test. However, the consensus was that this flavor of Olipop is a little too much ale and not quite enough ginger. “It’s missing that ginger kick that ginger ale should have,” said Caitlin, who, as a non-coffee drinker, is our resident expert in caffeine-free beverages. Some were a little more harsh, with Julia, senior managing editor for The Everymom, saying, “It’s giving nothing.” At the middle of the pack, the ginger ale is a generally inoffensive pick.
5. Classic Grape (Tied)
Score: 4.1/10
The top five flavors were where opinions started to be very mixed, and classic grape is a case in point. Upon pouring the drink into our official taste test cups (the wine glasses we keep on hand for office happy hours), we were all shocked by the bright color of this flavor. It is a neon magenta shade, which caused some team members to observe that it looks like children’s cough medicine. Upon tasting, about half the team was quick to note that it did, in fact, taste like children’s cough medicine! However, others appreciated the nostalgic flavor: As Julia said, “It makes me think of my childhood and my juice-drinking days.”
4. Cherry Cola (Tied)
Score: 4.1/10
Tied with classic grape is Olipop’s cherry cola flavor, which elicited very few strong reactions from the team. Those who love cherry cola were obsessed with this flavor (present and voting!), and those who aren’t big fans… weren’t big fans. In other words, reach for this flavor if you love cherry cola!
3. Orange Squeeze
Score: 4.2/10
If you’re looking for a soda to replace your orange Crush, you’ll be disappointed here. However, if you want something that tastes like a carbonated version of watered-down orange juice or like a sparkling vitamin C packet, you will love this flavor. That might sound gross, but many of our taste testers would choose this flavor again. Compared to the sugary sweetness of several of the other drinks, the mellow flavor was quite refreshing.
2. Strawberry Vanilla
Score: 6/10
Keeping with the light and sweet theme, the strawberry vanilla flavor proves that when Olipop flavors are less heavy-handed, they’re more delicious. Strawberry vanilla was a universal team favorite, deemed perfect for a mid-afternoon pick-me-up. We loved that this flavor was fruity without being sickly sweet. Personally, I want to sip this soda on the beach, and Jenna insisted that it would be delicious over ice.
1. Tropical Punch
Score: 6.5/10
And our all-around winner for The Everygirl’s official Olipop ranking is… tropical punch! Our taste testers loved how citrusy this drink was without being too sweet or too sour. You know those juice boxes you used to get as a kid that had seemingly every fruit you could think of and tasted like summertime in a single sip? This is the grown-up version of that. It’s pineapple-forward, very bright, and perfectly carbonated. This was the final flavor we tried, and it sure did deliver. Next time you’re taking your afternoon soda break, this is the one to reach for.