Jelly Belly-Flavored Sparkling Water Is a Sweet Concept
The company behind those famous 'gourmet' jelly beans is wading into the crowded seltzer biz.
Justin Joffer
You know those Jelly Belly jelly beans? The “gourmet” ones that come in all sorts of different “true-to-life” flavors, like “Strawberry Daiquiri” and “Chocolate Pudding,” and can be combined to make even more flavors? (See recipe suggestions, including using the two aforementioned flavors to make “Chocolate Dipped Strawberries,” here.)
Now the family-owned company that makes them is getting into the seltzer business, launching a new offshoot, Joffer Beverage Company, to bring the world Jelly Belly Sparkling Water, with flavors inspired by several original Jelly Belly flavors.
At launch, the lineup will include eight flavors -- French Vanilla, Lemon Lime, Orange Sherbet, Pina Colada, Pink Grapefruit, Tangerine, Very Cherry and Watermelon – featuring only carbonated water and natural flavors. The drinks will include no sugar, sweeteners or sodium and zero calories and are making their debut, in cartons of eight 12-ounce cans, this week at Hy-Vee stores in the Midwest and online at JellyBelly.com.
The idea to wade into the sparkling-water biz was hatched at a Mother’s Day celebration at which the Joffer family, which has owned and operated Jelly Belly Candy Company for seven generations, had gathered.
“We were on the back patio, drinking a couple of the more popular sparkling water brands, when I said out loud, ‘If only someone could nail a sparkling water with really stand-out flavors,’” Stephen Joffer, a co-founder of Joffer Beverage Company, recalled in a press release. “The lightbulb came on when my dad suggested, ‘Why not our own Jelly Belly flavors? We are known for flavor innovation after all.’”
Shortly thereafter, five members of the family’s fifth and sixth generation joined forces to introduce Joffer Beverage Company and bring the world sparkling water flavors inspired by the iconic jelly beans.
Given the fact that there are 100 different Jelly Belly jelly-bean flavors, it’s probably only a matter of time before the Joffers expand their lineup of sparkling water flavors. Mango, Kiwi, Raspberry, Pomegranate, Peach and Plum -- those all sound ripe for the picking on the sparkling-water front. Maybe not Buttered Popcorn though. That one’s just a no.
Photo courtesy of Jelly Belly
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