Annals of Island Beverages

There’s a new brand of iced tea in down — UrbanZen-brand iced tea has replaced Honest Tea in the “health food” section of Shoppers Drug Mart on University Avenue. Their ginger flavoured tea is excellent, the lemon is an acquired taste, but is very refreshing, and the honey jasmine in almost undrinkable (it may also be an acquired taste, but one that I cannot acquire).

As with their handling of Honest Tea, Shoppers Drug Mart can’t seem to stock a regular supply of UrbanZen, so you’re just as likely to find them without stock as with; if you’ve a taste for ginger and iced tea, however, I suggest you invest $2.99 in a bottle of the ginger brand (yes, it’s $2.99 a bottle, which is expensive; worth it for the ginger, however).

I stopped by the PEI Preserve Company Café on Queen St. for lunch this afternoon (wasn’t there supposed to be a contest to name their restaurant?) and found, to my surprise, that they’re carrying Orangina, a carbonated citrus drink from France. I had something of an addiction to Orangina back in the late 1980s in [[Peterborough]] that culminated in ordering a case of 1 litre bottles and a subsequent overdose that kept me Orangina free for the longest time. I ordered one for lunch today, however, and it was quite refreshing.

It won’t be long before the carbonated beverage cops crack down, I imagine, so if you’ve a hankering for one get it now. Remember what happened with the Jones Soda fiasco.