Caliente – “A new kind of kick”
I first tried Caliente chili drink in Malmö a few years ago when I was there attending a barber convention and EKMS – Caliente was the main sponsor of the barber convention and they handed them out to everyone who attended. I had never tried anything like Caliente before, I don’t even know if there were anything like it before?! Oh, and to clarify, this is NOT a sponsored post, this is my own words and thoughts!
Caliente is marketed as a “New kind of kick”, a chili flavoured alcohol free drink, and there are 4 different flavours at the moment (June 2017). The first ones I tried was the Cranberry Pomegranate Chili and Ginger Lime Chili, and that was at the barber conventions in Malmö. I was skeptic at first, I’m not one for hot and spicy food for starters, but trying these kind of won me over to the chili side. The drinks have a very refreshing taste followed by a distinct heat and spiciness.
Shortly after the barber convention Caliente made it’s way to the shelves of Seven Eleven and other select stores, and I found myself buying these on a regular basis. The third flavour they released was the Blueberry Lemongrass Chili, and it was sooooo good. They really hit the spot during the winter because of the heat, but today I drank two bottles while I was hiking the local mountain, and it was really refreshing. I had some doubts about drinking it while outside in the hot sun, and that the heat of the chili would make me even hotter (…) – but I was really surprised that I felt so good when drinking it, and it really quenched my thirst perfectly.
The ones I drank today was the newest Caliente flavour Plum Rosemary Chili, with a chili strength of 3 out of a 5 scale. I think the Plum Rosemary Chili is my favourite Caliente flavour at the moment, with Blueberry Lemongrass Chili as a close second.
I very very very rarely drink alcohol, I mean VERY rarely. Maybe one beer at a social gathering one or two times a year, but at the barber convention in Malmö, they made fancy drinks with vodka and Caliente in them, and I must say, it was really good. I’m not promoting alcohol use, but if you are planning on throwing a get together and serving drinks, try mixing some drinks with some of the Caliente chili drinks – and Ice, use Ice. They are so very tasty when ice cold!
Another great thing is that they use only organic ingredients in the drinks. For example, the Plum Rosemary Chili drink contains only water, 19% juice from concentrate (apple, plum, lemon), raw sugar, natural aromas (inc. chili) and sea salt. And the nutritional facts are pretty sweet as well, if thats something you think about – per 100 ml: Energy: 103 kJ /24 kcal, Fat 0 g, Carbohydrate 5,9 g (sugars 5,8 g), Protein 0g, Salt 0,02g.
I really like these drinks, but they can be pretty hot for some – specially the Ginger Lime Chili, which is the strongest one of them all with a chili strength of 4 out of 5.
Be sure to try one and enjoy them ice cold, thats when they are the best. Now I just need to find them here in Järvsö somewhere!
Here’s a link to their website!
