POM review.

I was recently sent some of the above product as a "thank-you", and also asked to review it. I was rather chuffed.. My little corner of CyberSpace has really quite blossomed. So, to POM Wonderful.. which, really, I am sorry to say, is POM Meh. It's chock a block full of all sorts of goodies, that will improve cardiovascular issues and kill off all those nasty free radicals, and apparently even help with erectile dysfunction. You can read about all the scientific stuff here.

I have a soft spot for pomegranates. They are steeped in Goddess lore, and are thought to be the original Forbidden Fruit from the Garden of Eden. They are associated with eternal life, Unicorns, Persephone and they were one of the first five domesticated crops along with olives, grapes, figs and dates.

So my little bottle of POM had a lot to live up to.

The marketing is slick, a funky bottle, slick logo.. all stuff I am hardly qualified to comment on, but the overall effect is that it looks pretty schmick.

By itself, the juice is not nearly as hearty as the deep, luscious colour would have you believe. If you're expecting the meaty kick that the colour implies, you'll be sadly left wanting. It is however, 100% natural, with no additives, like flavour enhancers.


It does, however, come into its own as a mixer. Think Grenadine, and you've got it. The first thing I did was concentrate it. 2 bottles of POM, 250g of white sugar, in a saucepan and simmer until reduced by half. This took about 20 mins. Let cool, and I was left with a lovely viscous cordial/syrup. Of course, I probably undid all the health benefits (particularly those erectile ones ;) ) by doing this.

Now, my delightful Furry bought me a new camera for Ex Moose, and of course, all my POM photos were on my OLD camera, so you are just going to have to use your imagination.

I used the syrup as a glaze over this cheesecake. And it was AWESOME!!!! The tartness of the syrup was a perfect foil to the richness of the cheesecake. The Chai spice added a whole new dimension, which was subtly enhanced by the syrup. This one was a HUGE success.

For some reason, pomegranates and ginger are an absolute winner for me, so I also added it to out Ex Moose's Family Punch.

1 bottle lemonade
1 bottle dry ginger
2 cups black tea.
1 can orange/pineapple juice
50ml POM syrup.
1 small handful mint, ripped.

strawberries and other assorted floaty fruity things to garnish.

To de-virginate this punch, add a splash of white rum, and sun 1/2 a bottle of Malibu for the can of juice.

I have some syrup left over, and I am planning something with dragon fruit, POM syrup and sorbet.

SO, to sum up. On its own, POM Wonderful, is more POM Meh. It is, however, pretty bloody good for you. It becomes POM Wonderful the moment it gets anywhere near ginger, or is reduced down to a syrup.

The only problem is, that stuff is 100% imported from 100% USA. It's got a carbon footprint the size of Uzbekistan.

So there it is, readers.. my first review.. warts and all. Make of it what you will.