Taste Test: Hansen's Junior Water from GoFatherhood®

Hansen's Jr. Water Sometimes being a blogger is crazy fun, like when the PR agency from Hansen Beverage Company contacted me and asked if they could send along some product samples for the kids to try. The product? Their new “Junior Water” product.
I said “sure, but no guarantees anyone will like it, that we’ll write positively about the product or that we’ll ever actually write about it in the end.”
They were okay with that clause and sent us a box of little juice boxes and a nifty little USB flash drive with product pictures thereon.
Unfortunately….

Before I tell you the results of their taste test, let me first say that my kids, A-, 11yo, G-, 8yo and K-, 4yo, are all big fans of Glaceau’s Vitamin Water product, and it’s not uncommon for each of them to drink a bottle and even ask for a second each day. I figure that it’s a good compromise between sweeter children’s drinks and plain water, the former they like but don’t really need that often, the latter they find too boring to drink.
Anyway, so the kids eagerly tried the Hansen’s Junior Water boxes, after making comments about how tiny they are (the boxes are only 4.23oz each which might be a standard size for little kids, but even my 4yo has more of a thirst than that!). Verbatim:
A- said: “Yech”
G- said: “Ah, it’s okay, but I prefer Vitamin Water”
K- said: “Yecho. No more, thanks.”
So there you have it. The danger of real taste tests and real tasters: candor.
As far as I can tell on the Hansens’s Web site, this particular product hasn’t been launched into the marketplace yet, so maybe you’ll never see it. Maybe that’s just as well. 🙂

11 comments on “Taste Test: Hansen’s Junior Water”

I think Hansen is smart to go after Bloggers who speak about and to parenting. I imagine they also contacted quite a few Blogger moms for their thoughts as well.
I believe this type of product testing provides a better sense of how the product will do in the market versus the old days when they’d dump us in a room feed us hoagies and beer, then ask for our “honest” opinion.
The flash drive serves as a mini “bribe” to the parent in this case, however kids don’t care about schwag and are more likely to tell it like it is.

Way to go kids!! .. I dunno if the flash drive is a bribe.. it’s a cheap way to deliver you the graphics to blog with.. those things are cheaper than the water wholesale in the volume they buy.
As to the idea that you consider vitamim water a compromise between sugar drinks and water.. well.. your kids have you number.. “aww.. daddy.. water is so boring.”
I bet if you said that, “yes.. water is plain. But vitamin water costs money… tell ya what. Drink the water and I’ll give you the money we save… right now.. in cash.”.. they’d pick water.
Just my two cents.. and.. good job getting swag!.. that’s a successful blog!

I can’t help but wonder if the water was cold when served??? 🙂

Great question. The first time the kids tried it the water was room temp. The second time, it had been in the fridge for a while. The cold verdict was a bit more positive, but they’ve rolled back to Vitamin Water without ever asking for the Hansen’s Jr. Water, so….

Did you serve it to your children in their own packaging or in a cup etc? Was it the same cup? I find vitamin water pachaging very thirst quenching.

Fair question, Anna! We served it in the little boxes, not cups.

I picked this up from Safeway last week and my kids like it so far. They have only tried Fruit Punch (of course their favorite flavor) and they finish the entire box. The serving size is perfect for my littlest guy (he’s 5) and my 9 year old can go through 2 boxes but she’s a bigger girl. I’ve never given them vitamin water before and this was my first time giving them this kind of flavored water – I tried this out mainly because of the packaging and because of Hansen’s reputation. It’s worked out for us. I wish I had a blog where I could get free drinks! How do you find the time, Dave? I can barely wrangle my brats for school. 🙂

i just bought these at sams club for 2.01 for a 36 pack. My kids loved them 5-4-2 yr old. The boxes are small but at that price they can drink as many as they want.

My grandson loves the water and I can’t seem to have enough of it around. Working at a dental office I can appriciate this water more than the high sugar vitimin waters out there!