So I went to an Ethnic Market...(Part One)

So while I was home in Michigan over Christmas break, I happened across an Ethnic Food Store. At least I think I did. This was literally the only picture I could find online of the place, and they have no social media presence or web presence, so it's very possible I was tripping on mushrooms and just robbed a Greek family of all their sodas. But it can't be true because I was there dammit! And it was...ethnicy? I don't really know what ethnicity you have to be in order to fall under the label of ethnic at Novi, Michigan's Ishtar Ethnic Food Store. There was sushi next to the challah, Jesus candles next to the shawarma, and I'm pretty sure I saw a Mexican guy eating vegemite while high-fiving a Somali woman. So I guess ethnic at this place pretty much means - nothing mainstream America. Which means I was in for a treat when I got to the beverage section. What follows is my three part series chronicling the six "ethnic" beverages I found in a land far, far away...from my parents' house. 

#1 - Shahia's Premium Fruit Nectar: Cocktail Flavor

This one comes to us from the ethnic land of Egypt and distributed from the even more ethnic land of Dearborn, Michigan. I tried to look up Shahia's beverage company online, but all I got was results written in Egyptian and a link to join some guy's Linkedin profile. So we're taking a shot in the dark with this one. What caught my eye about this particular soda was the name. Now obviously it's probably meant to taste like fruit cocktail, but all of the other juices by Shahia were given fruit names: strawberry, cherry, etc. This one was simply called cocktail, and not only do names like that make me giggle like a schoolgirl, but I was intrigued by it's cocktailly siren's song. So let's crack it open and drink some cocktail. (bottoms up). What strikes me at first is just how overwhelmingly sweet and thick it is. It's like the leftover juice sludge at the bottom of a can of fruit, but ten times more dense and sweet. This 8oz glass of syrup water has 15 grams of sugar in it! But does it taste like fruit cocktail? No...it taste like guava. Just guava. Not guava and other flavors to bring forth the guise of a fruit cocktail but just guava. And sugar. Lots of sugar...

#2 - Sparkling Vimto: Fruit Flavored Drink

I don't really know what I'm getting myself into with this one. Vimto was freaking everywhere in this store. There were about a hundred different flavors, sizes and even merchandise for this soda. I don't know why it was so popular in an ethnic market, and this can is all in French, so I had to go to the internet for more info. So like most fizzy beverages invented in the 1800s, this was originally made as a health tonic. And much like other crazy sodas I've tried recently, it's traveled around the globe. The soda itself is manufactured in England. This particular can was then sent to Quebec, Canada only to be imported by Cicero, Illinois and finally to the doorstep of Ishtar Ethnic Foods. So many hands have touched my can of Vimto that I may cry. I also may die as this little 12 oz can of mystery has 46 grams of sugar!  After this and the Cocktail drink, I'm going to need to donate my blood to a slurpee machine. Vimto is said to be a carbonated beverage with the juice extract of grapes, raspberries and blackcurrants, along with herbs, spices and uh...acidity regulator. Huh? Alright, enough stalling, let's Vimto! I just smelled it...it's totally Faygo Rock and Rye - quite possibly the tastiest and Michigan exclusiveiest (?) pop on the planet. Vimto - I think I love you. Thanks for the sugar coma. See you next week for more ethnic treats!