Pop & Bottle Cacao Almond Milk: This nourishing bottle of organic almond milk is like chocolate milk for adults – it's more creamy than sweet, has a bit of texture, and finishes slightly bitter. It's the type of drink that provides natural energy and makes you feel good about your purchasing decision – especially since it meant saying no to a can of soda. 4.0/5.0
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I-Tea Roasted barley milk tea with grass jelly: Returning again to the Kearny St. location of this bubble tea chain, I decided to try a drink with 0% sweetness and opted for the roasted barley milk tea. Like the last drink I had from i-Tea, the grass jelly was excellent. However, I found the tea to lack flavor, verging on bland. This may be my fault, since there was no sugar, but places like Asha do a fantastic job with barely sweetened teas, so I think this particular flavor just might be not so great. Still, there are other better o... (read more) 3.0/5.0
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Trader Joe's Triple Ginger Brew: I was super excited to finally get a chance to try this seasonal item, which our cashier informed us was an item people protest about once it leaves the shelves. It comes in a really handy and reusable glass soda bottle and is well sized for a small gathering. Wanting to impress my Taiwanese family, who knows a thing or two about ginger, I brought this out during a dinner and poured everyone a cup. My aunt said it tasted like Spirte with a tiny bit of ginger aftertaste, but I disagree – o... (read more) 4.5/5.0
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I-Tea 3G milk tea with boba, grass jelly, and pudding: I made a dangerous discovery that my new favorite bubble tea shop has a location in San Francisco, much closer to work than the Downtown Oakland spot. I ordered their third most popular drink, the 3G, named because of its three toppings: boba, grass jelly, and pudding. It comes with classic milk tea, and, by default, is served in a "chubby" container that's short and squat. I opted for the more portable standard cup (all drinks come in a single size). The black milk tea was done just right -... (read more) 4.5/5.0
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New Silverstar Deli Limeade: At my new favorite lunch spot near work, a small banh-mi shop called New Silverstar Deli, they make their own limeade, a traditional offering from Vietnamese shops. Generally, I try to order fresh-made drinks without ice so I can more accurate assess the flavor without any dilution. When I requested the drink iceless, I was asked whether I wanted any additional water added as the limeade is "very concentrated." I said no, and they retrieved a pre-poured cup from their fridge, filled slight... (read more) 3.0/5.0
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Ito En Milk Tea: A "Hawaiian Exclusive," I was able to purchase this canned milk tea from Tokyo Fish Market in Berkeley. It is definitely sweet, like at 100% sweetness from a bubble tea shop that lets you adjust, but it does have black tea undertones and an herbal aftertaste. Now that I've had this drink, it will now be a baseline for how decent black milk tea is from a boba tea shop. As far as I'm concerned, if I can buy it for half the price at the local grocery store, it's not worth getting it "fresh." 3.0/5.0
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