Frützzo Brand Yumberry Juice

The first thing I had to find out before writing this review was the origin of the name. It seems the name is part marketing-genius and part coincidence. The fruit, which is enormously popular in China and has been grown there for over 2,000 years, is called yang-mei. A garden products importer from Indiana, Mr. Stenftenagel, thought the name sounded a bit like 'yummy' and as a result had the idea to call it yumberry. 

Who knows? Maybe as the fruit's popularity grows (as I suspect it will after tasting Frützzo's juice) all other known names will fall out of use in English-speaking nations.

As the US market is the envy of the world of business, sales, and capitalist endeavor it is no wonder new and exotic products are being introduced and popularized faster than you can say "third party certified."

Goji berries have made leaps and bounds and now occupy regular shelf space at even the smallest health food stores. Pomegranates have always been just around the corner, on the bottom shelf and behind the spelt noodles, but only recently gained a spot in the sun owing to the antioxidant content and marketing campaigns. Also, flax seeds are beginning to feel pressure from chia seeds of the lower americas.

Juice is a bit of a treat for me. I don't indulge, no, rather I savor and enjoy the fine tastes to be had from a what is an astonishingly healthy drink. I recently tried three Frützzo brand juices. One pure and simple yumberry, one yumberry-blueberry mix and one yumberry-pomegranate blend.

Many other companies create fruit blends, but most do it wrong -- adding apple or grape juice as filler. Frützzo, on the other hand, has created a line of juice blends matched by nothing else I have tasted. They are a bit like fine wine blends of, say, merlot and cabernet sauvignon from an up-and-coming winery -- the new and wonderful taste of the juice world.

The taste of the yumberry itself is not unlike a sweet cherry or pomegranate, but sugar remains significantly lower than many other comparable fruit juices. The blended yumberry-blueberry and pomegranate retain flavors of each distinct fruit, giving the beverage a pleasant and complex taste. As with most dark juices, appreciable amounts of antioxidants make the prospect of regular consumption an increasingly tempting prospect.

[Yumberry information at Frützzo's website]