The purée is only the beginning.

Old Orchard is proudly based in Michigan, home state to Smooj: the pioneering brand of smoothie seltzers.

This trending beverage category has popularized the pulp and haze so often seen as faults in other alcoholic beverages. The starring ingredient needed to create that thick texture? Fruit purée, of course.

As breweries and other craft beverage operations jump on the smoothie seltzer bandwagon, each brand wants to bring its own twist to the category.

Enter: a smoothie seltzer series from the Untitled Art beverage brand. They've mastered the delicate balance between smooth texture and sparkling flavor. And when you look at some of their ingredient statements, it's easy to see why: Untitled Art has combined the mouthfeel of purées with the stronger flavors and aromas and colors of concentrates.

There's only so much you can do with banana and mango purée or coconut cream, after all. Those ingredients are key to a creamy profile, but the addition of concentrates is what brings it all together.

 

EXAMPLE #1: PASSION FRUIT CONCENTRATE

Untitled Art's Vanilla Mango Guava smoothie seltzer has a secret powerhouse ingredient: passion fruit. While the mango and guava ingredients are purées, this brand strategically chose the passion fruit in concentrate form—possibly because the puréed version would offset the consistency achieved from those other fruits. The winning combo got a thumbs up from this Untappd reviewer:

Feeling tropical? Check out Old Orchard's Passion Fruit, Pineapple, and Mango craft concentrates

 

EXAMPLE #2: STRAWBERRY CONCENTRATE

What's interesting about their Strawberry Shortcake Imperial "Pastry" Seltzer is that Untitled Art uses both purée and concentrate for the same ingredient: strawberry. Did the purée lend a quality finish but not enough in the flavor department? Whatever they gained by adding strawberry concentrate, apparently it was impressive enough to earn this Untappd reviewer's high praise:

All about the berries? Consider Old Orchard's Raspberry, Blackberry, Strawberry & Blueberry craft concentrate blends

 

 

EXAMPLE #3: CITRUS CONCENTRATE

Let's be honest: the overly pulpy content of citrus fruit does not lend itself well to purée. So you can imagine why Untitled Art infused orange flavor into their Painkiller Imperial Seltzer with a concentrate instead. The blend would already be plenty thick from the base of pineapple purée and cream of coconut. Extra points for the can art which so beautifully matches its golden contents:

Citrus aficionado? Consider Old Orchard's Tangerine, Grapefruit & Margarita Lime craft concentrates

 

 

NEXT STEPS

Ready to begin blending, but short on ingredients? We've got your back, and we'd love to hear about your smoothie seltzer project. Feel free to contact us or place your order below, and we'll take care of the rest.

Syrah "Sy" Linsley is the manager of Old Orchard's bulk supply program, which primarily serves the craft beverage industry with craft juice concentrates. Her passion for fruit-forward beverage evolved from the three years she spent as a fruitarian (only eating fruit) as well as the few years she worked in product development and fermentation. The highlight of Sy's day is to connect with craft beverage makers, so don't be shy: schedule a "Taproom Chat" or hear back from her through our contact form.

Want Brew Blog posts and bulk program updates emailed to your inbox monthly?

Just create an account with us and you'll be subscribed to our "Best of the Zest" Newsletter.