Open season for thirst-quenching beverages

It may be raining outside, but marketers want us to think it's summer. I’ve noticed a lot of Crystal Light commercials on TV, as well as Tim Hortons spots for iced coffee beverages.

Perhaps a better option: the Ontario-based company Camino has just released a new line of fruit juices. The Tetra Pak juices from concentrate are touted as the first organic and fair-trade fruit juices on the Canadian market. The fruit comes from organic and fair-trade farmers in Central and South America and the Caribbean

Flavours with no added sugar include Tropical (with mango, guava, pineapple, and passion fruit), Mango, and Orange Mango. The Limeade, made from filtered water and white grape juice, has organic, fair-trade certified cane sugar along with lime juice.

I tried the Limeade and found it pretty thin and not very zippy, like lime-flavoured water. The Mango juice, however, was thick (almost like a smoothie), flavourful, and much more satisfying.

A 946-millitre box sells for $4.49 at grocery and health food stores.

Follow Carolyn Ali on Twitter at twitter.com/carolynali