Zukay Fruit Kvass Probiotic Drink – Review and Giveaway

What is fruit kvass?

Kvass is a raw, naturally fermented (probiotic) beverage made from a blend of fruit, vegetables and herbs.  Zukay Live Foods sources raw, organic fruits and vegetables.  They use a few dry roots, herbs and spices from Mountain Rose Herbs, and a small amount of raw, organic stevia for sweetness.  The salt they use is Celtic Seas Salt from Selina Naturally, which has a full range a natural minerals.  The vegetables and fruits are naturally fermented (think sauerkraut), then juiced and bottled – that’s it.  The fruit blends are a new product that has just been introduced by Zukay.

You can view full ingredient lists online  on the Products Page.  (Currently I think just the veggie blend ingredients are posted, but the fruit blends should be up soon.)

A typical ingredient list (in this case, the Berry Blend Kvass ingredients) is as follows:

Ingredients: Water, Organic Blueberry, Organic Pineapple, Organic Cantaloupe, Organic Strawberry, Organic Beet, Organic Spinach, Organic Chard, Organic Blackberry, Organic Pomegranite, Celtic Sea Salt, Hand-Batched Live Active Culture, Organic Raw Green Stevia

What does Zukay Fruit Kvass Taste Like?

These are not your average fruity drinks.  The fermentation process and vegetable blend makes them a bit salty, and they definitely have a pronounced “cultured food” flavor.  For those who have never tried live cultured foods, it may take a bit of getting used to the flavor.  The funny thing is, once you try it, you start to crave it – at least I did.  I have the bottle of Berry Blend sitting on my desk as I type this (reading the ingredients off the label).  I took a sip… then I took another sip… then another.  I noticed that the first sip tasted more veggie (in this case, beet), but as I drank more I got more of the berry flavor.  The Melon Loves Mint tasted more minty/cucumbery at first, more melon later.  The Green Gingerberry tasted more like ginger and lime at first, then more fruity later, and so on.

The texture is more like a tea than a smoothie – smooth, not chunky.  You can see the kvass is translucent in the glass.

What health effects might the Zukay Fruit Kvass have?

Most of us don’t get enough vegetables in our diet, so this is a great way to get more fruit and vegetable nutrients in an easy to drink, easy for the body to use form.  The drinks contain natural antioxidants.  Probiotics are known to improve digestion, and may also give your immune system a boost.

From the Zukay website:

When you’re talking about Veggie•Biotics, you’re talking real, traditional, life sustaining food. Zukay’s Veggie•Biotic kvass drinks and salad dressings are made only from raw, organic, farm fresh veggies that are fermented in the ancient traditions, using only wild cultures we hand-batch ourselves.

Why does this mean so much? Probiotics have become huge news in the natural food world, and for good reason – they’re necessary for good health, and the modern American’s guts are under siege. But they’re not all made equally. While many companies offer all kinds of lab-made lactobacilli and probiotic blends, Veggie•Biotics like Zukay’s kvass and salad dressings offer you the original probiotic – the one that kept mankind healthy and vibrant for millennia. The only other thing you get from Veggie-Biotics is something you want and need – a tremendous amount of pure, untouched raw vegetable nutrition. Our Veggie•Biotic products have no added sugars, no fillers, no natural or artificial flavors, gelatins, or any other ingredient that you just don’t need.

Where is Zukay Live Foods located and who owns it?

Zukay live Foods is located in Eastern Pennsylvania in beautiful Butter Valley on the edge of rural Berks and Montgomery counties in the Pennsylvania Dutch countryside.   It is a small business founded by Scott and Cathy Grzybek – not a subsidiary of some global food giant.

Where can I buy Zukay Live Foods Kvass?

Zukay has a store locator on their website to help you find a store location near you.  It may also be purchased online at Wild Mountain Paleo Market.

Win Zukay Live Foods Kvass

Zukay’s Live Foods will be sending one lucky Common Sense Homesteading reader a Kvass sampler worth $32:

• 4 bottles of Zukay’s top selling veggie kvass blends (Super Green, Super Root, Veggie Medley and Beet) and
• 4 bottles of their new Fruit Kvass (Green Ginger Brew, Melon Loves Mint, Tropical Veggie Twist and Berry Blend)

To enter, simply use the rafflecopter widget below (those who are receiving this post via email must visit the site).  For your first entry, leave a blog post comment telling us which Zukay Live  Food Kvass Flavor you’d like to try.  Facebook and Twitter users can earn additional entries.

Be daring!  Try something new!  Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

All entrants must be over 18 years of age.  Contest sponsored by Zukay Live Foods.  Open to residents of US and Canada only.  Winners will be chosen within 48 hours of contest completion.  If winner does not claim prize within 48 hours, a new winner will be chosen.

The post Zukay Fruit Kvass Probiotic Drink – Review and Giveaway appeared first on Common Sense Homesteading.

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