Osu Blueberry and Pomegranate

ABV: 0%
Calories per 100ml: 177

You may have seen the intriguing television adverts for Osu vinegar drinks during mid-2021. The suggestion in them is that many people in Japan live to a ripe old age and stay very sprightly indeed by drinking apple vinegar. The evidence about whether vinegar actually has such remarkable effects is mixed and unclear. What is clear is that lots of people enjoy these drinks, and so we thought we’d better give them a try – especially since they are wholly alcohol-free.

Osu Blueberry and Pomegranate comes in a really nice bottle decorated with cherry blossoms – one of the icons of Japan. The drink itself is made in the UK but draws on two centuries of Japanese expertise. It’s a dark-coloured drink, somewhere between brown and purple. Since it’s made with blueberry and pomegranate juice, it’s a bit sweeter than some vinegar drinks. It’s a good place to start, maybe, if you’re new to drinks like this.

The producers suggest mixing one part Osu with nine parts still or sparkling water. They also propose using it in cakes and puddings, sprinkling it on salad, or using it as a cocktail ingredient. Like all of the popular vinegar drinks, this one includes “the mother”: the bacteria that turn alcohol into acetic acid. These probiotic bacteria are said to be good for our guts; although, again, the evidence for that is mixed.