The Twelve Days of POPmas Day 8: Kazouza Pomegranate Sparkling Drink

Lebanese Party Time!!!

Well we've managed to touch down on pretty much every continent, except African and Antarctica, but they didn't return my calls. But what about those mysteries of the middle? Those alchemists of Arabia? Those...well you get the picture. Let's put on our spring break bikinis because we're heading to the party capital of the world, Lebanon?

Surprisingly, I don't know much about Lebanon or the Middle East in general. I know there's always some sort of religious war, and as a result, the country hasn't even had an official census taken since 1932. All Lebanese are depicted as "pretty much Arab". Though 35% of the country practices a form of Catholicism called Maronite, which sounds like a real hoot. What I'm learning though all of these countries I've researched is that pretty much everyone has adapted Christmas in one way or another, and like most Eastern countries we've looked at, most celebrate the fun stuff and not so much the Jesus stuff. However, unlike most countries, the Nativity scene is the decoration of choice, far more popular than the Christmas tree. And they do have a Santa Claus there too; he's named Baba Noel and apparently likes to rock out on his electric guitar or something like that. The Lebanese are also not known to party too hard as their idea of a Christmas bender involves hot almonds and strong coffee...cancel my flight.

Secaucus, Land of the Free

So around September, I revisited the Ishtar Ethnic Market in my home town again and picked up a few random sodas from other countries. This one, a pomegranate pop, comes from the Kazouza company. They were founded in 1941 and used local fruits in the recipes. They are distributed to the Americas via the ethnic capital of the world: Secaucus, New Jersey. This is another flavor I've come across where I have to pause and wonder: have I had this in pop form before? The answer is, I can't remember, and I'm too lazy to find out. Let's try this 9oz glass bottle of pomegranate soda with, you guessed it, not a single ounce of real Lebanese or Secaucus fruit at all. Even though I bought this awhile back, it's still good until 2018. Upon opening it up, it smell very vaguely of cherries. I take two sips and I realize I've almost finished the bottle. There's almost no carbonation even though it's advertised as a sparkling drink. It's OK. Nothing really special. Slightly lime. Slightly cherry. Slightly sticky. It's like eating ribs; it's all sticking to my throat as I swallow it. I expected more from the Cancun of the Middle East. 2.5 out of 5 Rudolph Noses. 

*Editor's note: I did have another one of these, lemon mint, from the first time I went to the Ishtar market. It tasted like toothpaste. Thanks for the memories, Blogger.