Pete's Natural - Ling and Zing Raspberry Kola product reviews

I have tried several of the Pete's natural range through KIWIreviews in the past and was also lucky enough to win a selection through the KIWIreviews Christmas promotion so I am quite familiar now with the range and the different flavours and am a huge fan of the taste of the natural soft drinks. Having tried the Kola before and loving the natural version in comparison to say a coca cola I was excited to try this raspberry cola version and thought it was pretty cool that Ling and Zing from the Block NZ had contributed as I loved watching them on the television.

As with the kola I loved the natural taste, to me the level of fizz is perfect I don't like my drinks too fizzy as I find it quite harsh the lower level of carbonation makes it very easy and pleasant to drink. The kola flavour is there but you can tell that it doesn't have huge levels of sugar that the big brands of soft drinks tend to add. The addition of the raspberry was good it is quite subtle but definitely there I found it added the raspberry flavour without making it too sweet which I enjoyed, other raspberry cola's I have tried are very sweet so this was more enjoyable.

The bottle design is awesome I love the animated versions of Ling and Zing along with Pete and think the bottles are too good to throw away as they are so very cool looking. Definitely a fancy enough bottle that you can drink out of at a party or occasion where you are not drinking alcohol. For me these are perfect for those summer barbeques easy to drink without that fizzy drink bloating or excess sugar and very refreshing on a hot day a huge hit for me.

I have always been a lover of soft drinks with my personal favourite having to be raspberry cola. I remember several visits to Grandad's house and visiting the local Cobb & Co for a meal and choosing raspberry, coke and cloves as my drink. Nowadays it seems there are only a few brands that still produce raspberry cola, so when I saw that Pete's Natural was releasing a natural version I was excited. The fact that it is a "KOLAberation" with my favourite team from The Block, Ling & Zing is a wonderful added bonus.

I have tried several different flavours from the Pete's Natural range and enjoyed them all so I was expecting that this Raspberry Kola would not be an exception. All of the bottles of drink produced by Pete's Natural have funky labels and awesome pictures that are eye-catching and definitely stand out. The price per bottle is similar to other soft drink brands on the market and I feel it is a reasonable price. The only downside I found was that when I wanted to purchase another bottle, I checked online for a nearby stockist but the nearest one was over 200km away, or I would have to order online.

When I opened the bottle there was an undeniable aroma of raspberry and I was excited about my first taste. I took a large gulp and enjoyed the fact that unlike other raspberry cola drinks I have tried, this one did not have the effect of bubbles going up my nose hehe. The taste was nice but to me, I don't know what it was but it tasted like watered down cola with a hint of raspberry. Sadly I was expecting the flavour of both the raspberry and cola to be stronger and pack more of a punch.

I may purchase this flavour again, but I wouldn't necessarily go out of my way to search for a bottle. I will continue to purchase Pete's Naturals drinks and look forward to seeing what they produce next.

The first raspberry and cola drink I tried was from Coca-cola and I absolutely loved it so I had high expectations for Pete's natural Ling + Zing Raspberry Kola before even trying it. I pulled out the ice tray, dropped a handful of ice into a glass and poured the Kola over it. I smelled the drink and it had a very nice raspberry aroma and I naturally thought I am in for a treat here. To my disappointment, I found the drink had a flavour more of a weak cola with stronger hints of lemon and lime than raspberry. That's not to say I didn't like it because I really did enjoy it but it's just that it didn't really live up to its title. I also found the flavour to be a bit too sweet but still refreshing.The fizz itself is a little flatter than what I'm used to from Coca-cola drinks but it was a welcoming flatness that suited the taste.

The thing I have really come to love about the Petes natural drinks are the artistic packaging and illustrations on the bottles. They have a really down to earth vibe and put off a real sense of community feel rather than the big corporation buzz. It's good to see a collaboration (KOLAboration) with Ling and Zing from The Block NZ to give it a real New Zealand touch.

I really enjoy the Petes natural range and out of the ones I have tasted, I would say this is sitting in the third spot for me. At $3.25 a bottle that is on par with other branded drinks and I feel it is a decent price for this. The biggest positive I see for this drink is it's made with all natural New Zealand grown fruit and is Gluten free and vegan-friendly. I will be checking where to purchase more from Pete's natural range including this Raspberry Kola drink.

I was excited to try Ling & Zing Raspberry Cola, as I have tried a few of Pete's Natural products and like them as an alternative for big branded cola or similar. The thing that really grabbed my attention on the bottles was the design - they are pretty cool and honestly worth keeping! After opening my KIWIreviews box, the first thing was to pop this into the fridge to chill.

Reading the ingredients on the back, the main ingredient is sparkling water, and the lemons and limes are used/bought in line with Pete's Natural fair trade ideas - which is a HUGE plus in my eyes, and to add to that - made in the beautiful Marlborough region (my home area) - just over the hills in Nelson - yay - support New Zealand sourced and made.

As I have mentioned - the bottles are very eye-catching, and the graphics really appeal to my children too - and they are easy to open - twist and you are done. They give a slight fizz as opened but not like other cola brands, which is great - I prefer less carbonated drinks.

The flavour is really nice - fruity, with the raspberry definitely being the dominant flavour. I could taste the cola and the lemon, but they are much more subtle. I did not find the flavour overly sweet - which is great. With subsequent tastes - the flavour remained the same - not ever feeling too sweet or overpowering. I gave the bottle to hubby to have a try also - and he had the same conclusion - mostly could taste raspberry, and a great level of sweetness.

I am now wanting to try the other flavours of Pete's Natural drinks - so will be searching them out around Marlborough!

I have been lucky enough to have tried several of the Pete's Natural drink range now thanks to KIWIreviews and from doing so I always make sure to buy more of them whenever I happen to come across them, which tends to usually be at food shows and similar,even better they always seem to have new flavours out which is even better, the Ling and Zing Raspberry Kola sounded like the perfect combination to me as growing up Raspberry Coke was always my drink of choice when I could buy a treat drink.

As soon as you pick up this bottle of drink (or any of the other Pete's Natural drinks for that matter) you can't help but look at the cute, eye-catching label which features some cartoon comic like people who all look so happy, the label also lists details of how to follow the company on both facebook or instagram. There is nothing not to like about the design of this bottle from the graphics and the clear glass bottle which allows you to see the actual drink it's great. If Iwas to find one flaw about the product it would be the fact that after leaving the drink in the fridge a few days to chill I found I couldn't unscrew the cap off it and that this proved impossible until it was at room temperature, luckily for me it proved to be well worth the wait.

The colour of the drink closely resembles that of other Coke and Cola flavoured drinks. However the taste is one of a kind, from my first smell of the drink I thought it smelt a lot more like a cola than it did raspberry though on taste it was a different story as I could really taste the raspberry coming through, with a hint of lemon. I really loved the flavour a good amount of fizz, but not to much and being quite low in sugar means it is something I can enjoy without feeling guilty, as bar the small amount of sugar all the ingredients listed are 100% natural.

I can't wait to come across the Pete's Natural drinks again one day soon so I can stock up, especially on this one which is my new favourite. A great drink to enjoy at home or at a BBQ and one you can feel good about, especially knowing you are supporting NZ made.

Petes natural ling + zing raspberry kola is refreshing and a nice drink to enjoy with your friends or by yourself. I tried this drink first at home and the first couple or mouthfuls I was unsure if I liked it but after a couple more it grew on me. My partner tried it and he really liked it, he loves coke and also raspberry drinks so he thought this was the best drink he had tried in a while. I decided to keep an open mind on the flavour.

I then tried the drink again when we were camping on a nice hot day and had the drink chilled, I had half a bottle left. This was probably a week later since I had opened it and I noticed it the drink still had its fizz when I screwed the lid of the bottle. I really liked it this time and I finished the bottle satisfied and my thirst was fulfilled. I really liked how it was still as fresh as the day I opened it a week ago and I also noticed the little burps I got after drinking it was refreshing and had that raspberry flavour.

The bottle is very cool and I love the design of cartoon characters on the bottle. The see through bottle works well and the extra added information is great, like how can follow them on different social media sites like Instagram and Facebook. I also liked reading that the drink is brewed in Nelson, New Zealand which is always nice to support your local and New Zealand made products. Overall I enjoyed the drink and I would buy it again and recommend it to friends to try. I know my partner will be on the lookout for it so he can purchase more of the drink and he will be telling his friends.

I love Cola and especially Cherry Coke but am aware that it's not very good for me and I'm always on the lookout for healthier alternative so I was looking forward to try Pete's Natural Ling & Zing Raspberry Kola. I've seen The Block a few times so am aware of who Ling and Zing are but have no idea what the relevance of this relationship between them and Pete's Natural is! It does say on the back of the bottle in small print that they have a 'secret alliance' but apart from the catchy name and a nice cartoon like image on the bottle, I'm left wondering!

I did like the fact that this is brewed in Nelson and is make with 100% New Zealand grown fruit. It boasts it is lower in sugar (it contains 2.7g less sugar per 100 ml than regular Coca Cola) and I was pleased to see that the ingredients consisted of lightly sparkling water, sugar, raspberry juice (from concentrate), cola nut extract, lemon juice and lime juice. There was no mention of caffeine, food acids and flavourings so this sounded great and a healthier treat for my girls who are always hassling me for a glass of coke!

The metal screw lid meant the cola had plenty of fizz when opened but the cola only had a faint smell of raspberry and more of lemon and lime, despite being a dark red colour. I was pleasantly surprised by the taste of this cola and it is unique in that it tastes nothing like the mass produced Coca Cola and is not as sweet. Because it uses lightly sparkling water and not carbonated water, you don't get the burping or bloated feeling although it feels a little 'thinner' than regular coke. There is a subtle taste of raspberry but more of lemon and lime and you could tell that this was made with natural ingredients. I decided to make a coke float for my daughter as a treat and the first words she said were yum! It fizzed nicely with the ice cream and she loved the flavour and also noted it was a pretty colour.

Although this is quite expensive compared to other brands of cola, you know you are getting a healthier and unique New Zealand made cola with natural ingredients. It's not something that I would personally consume on a regular basis but I will definitely be buying some to treat my girls!

I've always enjoyed variations of cola flavoured drinks, I remember when Vanilla Coke and cherry Coke came out and more recently raspberry Coke. I was keen to try Pete's Natural Ling and Zing Raspberry Kola. Getting this, the kids were right away drawn to the bottle and all three stated that they like the picture that is on the label. I love that not only is this a New Zealand product but the fruit used to make this drink, is grown in New Zealand as well, always great to see some good homegrown stuff.

Looking at the ingredients, we have raspberry, lemon, kola and lime. I cracked this open after letting it chill in the fridge and was happy to get a lovely big whiff of the raspberry with just a small zing of lemon to it. I let my three kids all try a little bit of this each first and my youngest loved it and begged for more whilst my eight and ten year olds weren't impressed with the flavour and didn't care for more. I decided that I wanted to try it both cold and at room temperature and luckily enough I'd won some bottles and so could do this easily.

I managed to half half a bottle worth of nice cold drink and found that it tasted nicely of kola but I couldn't really discern any difference between the lime and lemon and just a smidge more of the raspberry than the citrus. I had some warm and found I couldn't taste any of the raspberry, so it was kola with a hint of citrus. I ended up with half a bottle left and found myself having a late night making a Lego table, so I added some Coruba rum to my drink. I found the kola was made a much stronger taste but once again the raspberry and citrus was lost.

If I wanted a flavoured kola drink, this wouldn't be my go to.

I love the idea of Pete's Natural beverages, as I love sweet things, but don't want to remain an overweight beast forever. So I'm always searching for a win-win solution where I can get an affordable drink that is tasty, healthy, and affordable. That trifecta is a difficult thing to manage with one aspect generally getting neglected in order to cater to the others. With only 6 ingredients, This beverage is well on the way towards being one of the healthier kola/colas available right now, but even though it's raw sugar, it gives the product a total of around 112 calories, just shy of what you would get if you consumed a bottle of corona (or other light, mass-produced beers).

I love the minimalistic style of the label; using the darkness of the beverage itself as the background for their label font. it gives a very clean feel to the product and fits with the whole minimal, and natural theme that they are going for.

Opening the bottle, the beverage is very aromatic. A strong raspberry-esque scent is noticeable with a slight twang that one would assume to be the kola. As a man that has always enjoyed his raspberry cola concoctions whenever pouring his own drinks at Burger King, I've come to love that dark blood red colour that the colas get when tinged with raspberry. But the important part is the flavour. Of which there wasn't enough. While I could easily discern the flavours of raspberryish and citrusy notes, neither the raspberry or kola stood out at all. It came across as a flavoured beverage that while inoffensive, it also wasn't revolutionary in flavour.

The carbonation levels were good, so unlike Coca-Cola brands, that make me burp and hiccup every time I sip on them, I was easily able to drink this beverage, and you get a full hit of the flavour. Unfortunately, it just wasn't a very strong flavour. Almost feeling diluted from something stronger, I wasn't sold on it. Would I buy it? It's not a bad drink, but I wouldn't go out of my way to find it. It tends to happen; every step towards a healthier, affordable drink, takes away from the perfect taste.

My go to drink when out is Raspberry and Lemonade without any ice. I find you can tell a good restaurant/cafe/bar by the taste of the drink and I have to say the majority of people out there can not make a good drink. While working for Princess Cruises up in the Northern Hemisphere they had never heard of Raspberry and Lemonade and neither had most American places - they would look at me as though I was crazy. So when returning home to New Zealand it was my first purchase. On more than one occasion I have been served Coke with Raspberry and I always get them to return it and give me my lemonade. To be honest I have never tried Coke with Raspberry so when I saw this I knew I had to try mainly because I was curious to see what the Raspberry in it tasted like.

I actually expected the colour to be more red then what it was and was rather surprised looking at it, it reminded me more of a raspberry tea. Its not black like cola and its not red like raspberries - its more brown. The bottle is very cute especially the picture and it is definitely eye catching.

After having initial troubles removing the cap, my husband had to take over - who had no issues at all. He smelt it and said he could definitely note the raspberries in it and then had a mouthful and said he liked the natural taste of it. I smelt it and found it was extremely sweet, actually a little too sweet. I had my first mouthful and it reminded me of Soda Stream mainly because I expected bubbles where there were none, well they were there but more of a subtle kind. It was also not the fake syrup I have become accustomed to but instead it was dryer and a weaker taste and you could note the lack of sugar - which is so weird considering the way it smells. It is definitely not as sweet as I was expecting it to be.

Honestly, this is not my cup of tea and is not something I would have again, it is mainly due to the after taste which I just did not enjoy. Whereas my husband said he found it refreshing and would have it again if offered but would not personally purchase himself. He ended up drinking the majority of the bottle as I just couldn't.

I am a total fan of Pete's Natural products. I have tried all the flavours, and the bottles are so eye-catching I can't bear to throw them away - I have a row of them filled with coloured glass pieces decorating a windowsill in my kitchen! This bottle is just as attractive as the rest in the range, and will shortly be joining my collection now that I have finished the contents.

Add to my appreciation of Pete's Natural range my predilection for cola drinks and there was no way I would not like this new flavour. I chilled it before serving it - I was visiting a friend and the only glasses she had available were huge so that slightly dwarfed the contents. However, as she said, that left lots of room for the bubbles! Not that this drink is over carbonated, but it is definitely sparkling and the space at the top of the glass meant that you got the full effect. So maybe that was not such a bad thing.

The flavour was exquisite. Very fruity, with the raspberry slightly dominating the cola and lemon flavours, and really thirst quenching on an unbearably hot afternoon. I did not want to dilute it with ice, but we had chilled the bottle in the fridge so it was nicely refreshing. My friend likes her drinks very sweet, but I don't, so the degree of sweetness was just right for me. I suggested, if she wanted hers a little sweeter, she could serve it with a dash of lemonade. Personally I liked mine just as it was. But she is going to try it next time with lemonade or sarsaparilla (probably half and half) as she did like the raspberry taste and said it was really just as flavoursome as real fruit. There was none of that artificial taste you get with some raspberry drinks (and some "flavoured for children" medicines which I still recall with shudders from my childhood!).

I made raspberry extract myself once, with lightly stewed then liquidised and sieved fresh raspberries. We grew our own raspberries when we lived in Europe, and the taste of this drink reminded me strongly of our own brew. We used to sweeten it with a little honey (yes, we had beehives too!) and give it to the children as a hot toddy when they had sore throats. In some ways this drink reminded me of those days, probably because the fruit flavour does taste so authentic, and partly too because the ingredients are all natural - just as I would have used them. I don't have time to do brews like that these days so it is good to know you can still get real foods even if you live in a city. I can't wait to sample the next flavour in the range.

Just as a PS, I had to drive home from my friend's place later that day. It was a five hour drive on a very hot day so I filled a couple of bottles of water for the trip. One was the Pete's bottle which I had not bothered to rinse as we had not long finished the contents. It was a pleasant surprise to find that the raspberry residue had flavoured the water so it was just like one of those "fruit waters" you can buy at exorbitant prices from a garage or supermarket. It was really nice, thirst quenching and with just enough hint of flavour for me to imagine that I was drinking designer water rather than just ordinary tap water from my friend's house!