The Best and Worst Flavored Waters

Water is an essential for life, for plants, animals, and humans alike. The only problem for us humans is that we’re spoiled and picky. Now that we’ve found a way to give our water some flavor, some brands have gone overboard with fruitiness to give water a little kick. I’ve tried just about all of them at this point, and wanted to share my opinions on some of the best and the worst of today’s flavored, purified water beverages.

1) Fruit2O. I adore this flavored water. No, I love this flavored water. It is the perfect combination of pure water and fruit. I never feel like what I’m drinking is heavy, nor do I feel that it is lacking that extra bit of flavor I need to down the bottle. Zero calories, zero carbs, and zero sugar. Because it has no juice, it is without that syrupy taste that some other drinks have. I don’t want a sugar high off a bottle of water, and thankfully I don’t get that with Fruit2O. Between its simple packaging, great taste, and healthy appeal, I would recommend this product without hesitation.

2) FruitWater. From the makers of VitaminWater, FruitWater has a crisp, clean taste that’s enjoyable as well as pleasing to the eye. The scent that comes with each of the four flavors is pleasant and no overwhelming. It does have a few calories and carbs, but not enough to throw you off course. It comes in the same Glaceau bottle as its predecessor, but with a lighter label. The disadvantage to the packing is the lighter label on top of clear liquid makes it more difficult to read, but the brand has made enough of a name for itself that it’s distinctive by the bottle shape alone.

3) Nestle Pure Life. This one hits mid-range for me. This brand hosts seven different flavors, all combining Splenda Brand sweetener with natural fruit flavors. It is 100% carbohydrate free and calorie free, and has no juice. It doesn’t have an overly powerful fruit taste, but it’s enough that it makes drinking the recommended eight glasses of water a day more enjoyable. The only real issue I have with this Nestle product (as I could go on for days about how much I adore their foods) is that the product itself is cheap. The bottles are flimsy, and the labels fall right off. I had a case of 24 bottles, and 19 of them fell apart in my hands, most before I had even taken my first sip. I initially purchased this brand because the store had run out of everything else. Plus, it was pretty cheap. If you don’t care about the presentation and only about what’s inside, then you should be golden.

4) Vitamin Enhanced Fruit2O. This, for me, was the worst. A spin-off from the original Fruit2O, this features four flavors, each possessing a different “enhancer” (Hydration, Relax, Immunity, Energy), much like VitaminWater. They are extremely sweet. So much so, that I have to mix a fourth of this drink in with three-fourths water to dilute it enough for me to tolerate. These also possess zero calories and zero carbohydrates contained in a much higher quality container, but that’s not enough reason for me to purchase this again.