Jones Soda's Gingerbread Man Flavor Misses the Mark

Jones Soda is the beloved company behind such Christmas favorites as Turkey & Gravy flavored soda. Each year the company markets a series of holiday inspired favorites for both Halloween and Christmas. While some of their flavors have been hit or miss, I had high hopes for one of their new 2007 flavors: Gingerbread Man Soda.

First of all, this was probably a bad choice for me. I've never been very fond of gingerbread in any form. I think its too sweet, and it can be very heavy if made wrong. That said, the picture on the cover was simply too good to pass up.

When you first open the bottle of Gingerbread Man Soda, your nose is immediately hit with the overpowering scent of gingerbread. It doesn't quite smell like someone is baking fresh gingerbread cookies in your house, but it smells more real than most candles or air fresheners. The problem with most gingerbread scented items is that they overcompensate, which makes the scent smell more like generic cookies than real gingerbread. That isn't an issue with Jones Soda. This soda actually smells like a real gingerbread cookie.

The next thing I noticed, after the smell, was the color. Its kind of a dark amber color. Some people have said that it looks like ice tea, but mine was a lighter color than most ice teas on the market. It actually looks very pretty, and a little festive when poured in a glass.

Once I got the chance to try the Jones Soda Gingerbread Man Soda, I wanted to spit it back in the bottle. I've tried some of the less popular flavors from Jones during the holidays, and this one really takes the cake. Though cinnamon isn't listed on the ingredients label, I had the overwhelming feel of cinnamon in my mouth. It wasn't just a cinnamon taste, but my mouth literally felt gritty, as if there were dry spices in the soda.

To accurately review the soda, I made myself take another drink, and it only got worse. With additional sips, the taste seems to worsen slightly while the spice flavors grow stronger. I only managed to get 1/4 of the way through the bottle before I put the cap back on, and stuck it in the refrigerator.