My love for coconut water started way before it was cool or hipster. With the craze of coconut water on lifestyle blogs (and my before-the-curve love of coconut water), it can be hard to tell which ones are the best. So why not rate some brands by how much they taste like they were straight out of a coconut?
Here’s my list, from worst to best.
7. Harmless Harvest Coconut Water
Yes, it’s pink. Why? According to their packaging, “coconut water contains varying levels of antioxidants that can make it turn pink. Instead of hiding this harmless and natural color change, we embrace it. Pink or clear—they’re both delicious.”
This brand had a strong pungent smell when opened. The taste was the worst, it had a cardboard after-taste, and resembled nothing like the real thing. It tastes like almonds are in it, which I didn’t sign up for.
6. O.N.E. Pure Coconut Water
This brand tastes like there is coconut oil in it. I’m not joking—it even left an oily residue on my lips. This was not at all what I expected and deserved a spot on the bottom of the ranking. The extra oomf was not needed; they overdid the coconut flavoring.
5. 7-Select Go! Smart Coconut Water
This one tasted way too sweet, and definitely had some added sugars or flavoring in it and was therefore deemed artificial by my tastebuds. Definitely not natural.
4. Naked Pure Coconut Water
This also had a weird oil taste to it but it was not as bad as O.N.E. The taste was more on the authentic side of the spectrum, just with a hint of that slightly disturbing coconut oil.
3. Zola Natural Coconut Water
I was pleasantly surprised with this brand but it was definitely watered down. It tasted too light but it was not bad either since it did not have any strong flavors. It did have an odd aftertaste, though.
2. Zico
The only thing off about Zico was that it had a weird aftertaste but other than that it was pretty decent compared to the rest. There is a weird essence to it that is not quite coconut but it’s pretty close.
1. Vita Coco
The winner in my book had to be this one. There were no weird after tastes, or strong smells and flavors. Vita Coco tasted very pure, like it was straight out of a coconut!
Why drink coconut water?
In its most purest form—aka straight out of a coconut—coconut water is low in calories but has more potassium than four bananas. It is known as nature’s gatorade, high in electrolytes and it’s super hydrating.
Coconut water aids in feeling nausea, helps with digestion and makes you feel fuller. You can even use it topically as a toner since it contains antioxidants, enzymes, and a multitude of vitamins that aid in healing blemishes. And because of its hydration benefits and mass amounts of nutrients, it also serves as a perfect hangover cure.
After this experience, all I can say is there’s nothing quite like the original.