Jones Soda Fallout Vault Tec Supply Kit-Review
Two things I adore: Fallout and soda. Funnily enough, I also love how much Fallout loves soda as well, from the in-universe brands, the bottle cap currency and the fact that the game has soda be something you can actually use in the game at times and it’s viable. This whole Fallout-soda vortex has been a home run so far. But then….shit got real.
The Jones Soda company, a Canadian premier soda company, in collaboration with someone who I assume has the rights to do this, have released these amazing Fallout sodas that are probably limited edition but hopefully not because, guess what, they are awesome. There’s three flavors, the Sunset Sarsaparilla, Nuka-Cola Grape and Nuka-Cola Quantum and when I say that I know now what premium soda means….Holy hell.
SUNSET SARSAPARILLA
This Western themed soda is a simple but punchy root beer. There’s not a big twist or anything jumping out at you, it just is what it is and that’s a fundamentally perfect root beer. There’s no aftertaste, no weakness in the flavor profile. It tastes exactly how it should, but better because it’s so well executed. I don’t even like root beer than much but this one really left an impression on me. I thought I was gonna be “getting through it” and instead I finished it in like 4 minutes. It was excellent. And then the packaging- very aesthetic and kind of lo-fi but just enough of a hint of that off kilter Fallout vibe that makes drinking the whole thing feel cooler.
NUKA GRAPE COLA
Another fine soda, this one taking a classic grape soda and making it sparkle. This one is a little more adventurous. It nails a grape soda, but then it reaches out and bites off a little more with a sparkling effect that tails in at the end and while it’s subtle, it does elevate the soda. This didn’t blow my mind or make me realize I liked grape soda (I already did), but I liked this one a lot. I also like what they did with it aesthetically. It’s a little less kitschy than the other two bottles, but it feels a little more authentic and vintage because of it. The simple purple bottle, with the also purple grapes, dashes of stylized white- it’s minimalist but still eventful.
A big deal needs a big picture and this soda is a big deal. The Nuka-Cola Quantum is a slam dunk soda. A cool berry lemonade flavor, which surprised and delighted me. It was more nuanced and drawn out than I thought and I could actually taste all the notes they were trying to hit. It goes down easy, not too sweet or carbonated. That being said, I still felt the urge to sip rather than slug, to savor it. Of all the three sodas, this was the most distinct and interesting. The packaging is obviously the most awesome of all the three. Look at that bottle. It’s a beauty. When I got this, this was the one where I was like- that’s gotta be good. And boy was it ever. Jones Soda Co. really hit it out of the park with this one.
