介绍:
Every country has its own distinct beverages, many that only appeal to local palates, and China certainly has its fair share. According to sales volume statistics on Chinese e-commerce platform Taobao, the best-selling local drinks include Wang Laoji herbal tea, Coconut Palm brand natural coconut juice, Hot-Kid milk and sour plum juice. While the flavors of these beverages are enjoyed by Chinese customers, how do foreigners here react to them? The Global Times recently invited four Shanghai expats to a taste test to rate these Chinese drinks according to their own diverse palates.
1) Wang Laoji herbal tea
American Jay Thornhill said the packaging looked more like a warning; he perceived it to be gasoline or some kind of flammable liquid.
"It has so much writing, and it is red and yellow. It just screams 'keep away from matches and small children,'" Thornhill joked.
Indian Kumar Gaurav said that even though the package coloring is quite eye-catching, he wouldn't know what it is.
After they tasted the herbal tea, however, most said the flavor was good albeit too sweet. "It tastes like herbal tea, which should be healthy. But something that sweet is not that healthy. If I want to lose some weight, I won't buy it because it has a lot of sugar inside," Catherine Valley from Russia said.
2) Coconut Palm brand natural coconut juice
Thornhill commented that it looks like a street sign; Valley felt it resembled a newspaper. "Packages in America usually look simpler and have less writing on it," Werner added.
Nonetheless, the participants enjoyed drinking this coconut juice and gave it very high scores.
Gaurav said people in India drink coconut milk quite often and the flavor of this Chinese beverage reminded him of his home country. Valley complained that the drink seemed watered-down compared to pure coconut water. "I wish it could be more concentrated and give me more of a coconutty flavor," she said.
All our participants pointed out that Chinese beverage packaging caters only to local consumers, which makes it difficult for foreigners in China to recognize and figure out what they are drinking.
They suggested that beverage producers in China ought to put more pictures and less words on their packaging to help all consumers immediately know what it is.
It is also noteworthy that people from different countries have different preferences for types of flavors: our Russian prefers sour, not sweet, yet our Indian enjoys sweet. Our two Americans prefer more natural flavors and can't stand anything artificial.
3) Sour plum juice
Sour plum juice is an ancient Chinese beverage and still extremely popular during hot summer months. But most of our foreign participants were unable to deal with its flavor.
"The sour flavor is too concentrated for me and I wouldn't buy it," Gaurav said, adding that most Indian drinks are sweet; this was the first time he'd ever tried a sour beverage.
Thornhill and Werner gave the drink only a 5.5, because they felt the aftertaste was weird. "It is not sourly, but more like dirt and sugar and fruit mixed together," Thornhill said. "It is not awful; it just leaves weird earthy things in your mouth."
In contrast, Valley liked the strong sour flavor and gave it a startling 10. She explained that Russia has similar tasting sour fruit juices.
4) Chrysanthemum tea
None of our taste testers had ever before seen chrysanthemum tea drinks in their home countries, so it was each of their first time to try it.
Gaurav was confused "why people drink flowers." Werner added that some people had told her this particular tea is healthy, but she had never actually tried it.
In terms of scoring, Werner and Thornhill were quite down on this drink, giving it a mere 3 because they felt the flavor resembled a chemical.
"I felt like I was drinking perfume," Werner whined. Likewise, Thornhill felt his whole mouth was filled with a "chrysanthemum smell" after he swallowed.
As for Gaurav, he rated the drink a 5, saying he would consume it if it were free but he would never actually spend his own money on it.
In contrast, Valley gave it a 7, simply because she thinks chrysanthemums are good for one's health.
Talking points:
1. The design of the drinks.
2. Taste of the drinks.
3. Consumers of the drinks.
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