13 Health-Ade Kombucha Flavors, Ranked

If you, too, down a bottle of kombucha every chance you get, we are one. Well, maybe not every chance (after all, you can definitely drink too much kombucha), but you get the picture. I adore the fizzy, probiotic drink, which is on the very long list of things I'd like to make at home eventually. But until I have enough capacity to embark on a homemade kombucha adventure, I'll stick to the store-bought stuff, preferably from Health-Ade.

I've been enjoying Health-Ade's kombucha for over a decade now, and my go-to flavor has always been Bubbly Rose. In fact, I'm not sure I've ever veered out of Bubbly Rose territory until today. I still love the flavor, so imagine my surprise when it didn't even make the top half of this ranking! As it turns out, Health-Ade deserves more credit than I've been giving it, and I didn't try a single kombucha flavor I didn't like for today's piece. Thus, my ranking was primarily based on the strength and balance of each flavor profile; bottles with stronger tasting notes came out on top, while those with fainter flavors take the bottom spots on my list. 

Some recommendations are based on firsthand impressions of promotional materials and products provided by the manufacturer.

Again, I hate to put Health-Ade's Pomegranate Blueberry flavor in "last" place, because I don't want to imply it's bad — it's definitely not, and I'm sure it's the go-to for some consumers. However, I ultimately felt it was a little lacking, especially compared to some of the impressibly strong flavor combinations listed below. 

Both the pomegranate and the blueberry are pretty subtle in this drink, which I actually think could be a strength for anyone looking for an entry point into kombucha-land — it makes this drink less punchy than some of the others. I actually got more blueberry than pomegranate notes here (again, not a bad thing). It's definitely not a sharp beverage and the effervescence was muting the flavor some, but given that effervescence was a factor with every drink here, I didn't give it any leeway for that. Pomegranate Blueberry is a nice, gentle bottle, but it wasn't my favorite.

As a pineapple fanatic, I was super excited to try this one, and slightly disappointed when it underdelivered. As I said regarding Pomegranate Blueberry, I think Tropical Pineapple saw some of its notes muted by how bubbly the drink was. That said, this bottle will still appeal to pineapple fans, but don't expect it to knock your socks off. 

The pineapple in this bottle was apparent, but subtle — a little too subtle for me to feel really satisfied. I'd call this about even with the previous in terms of the strength of each flavor, and the only reason this ranks higher is because I adore pineapple. However, this could be another great entry point for those new to kombucha, and it'll bring a little tropical flair to whatever you might want to mix your kombucha with. While I could have done with a stronger pineapple essence, I wasn't upset with this one, even though it didn't make the top 10. 

Yet another flavor I can't get enough of is mango. Actually, I'm also a huge fan of lemon, so I thought Mango Lemonade would knock it out of the park. But at the end of the day, it wasn't strong enough to impress, causing this flavor to fade into the background among all the other offerings you'll see here. 

"Gentle" was yet again one of my first thoughts upon sipping this bottle, and for a girl who likes her kombucha to be punchy as anything, "gentle" wasn't exactly my cup of tea. I still liked it, though. I got more mango than lemonade (actually, I hardly got any lemonade at all), but I still found myself wanting more mango, which may just be a personal problem. As a general fan of the flavor profile, I couldn't rank it last; in fact, if it was stronger, I likely would have ranked it way higher. 

Ginger and lemon is as classic a health drink combination as they come, and that's the sole reason it only made the number 10 spot here. I love lemon, and I love ginger, but it's too obvious to impress. That said, this bottle is an undeniably safe choice for members of the lemon-ginger fan club, and I can't knock its likely widespread appeal.

Yes, the kombucha tasted like ginger, and yes, it also tasted like lemon. In other words, it boasted the notes of about half of the health drink marketplace. Moreover, I wouldn't recommend this bottle to consumers who are at all ginger-averse — ginger is definitely the defining note here, and while I adored it, I think it may be too strong for some consumers. All in all, this bottle gets points for being pretty bold in its tasting notes, but I had to dock points for being a very run-of-the-mill flavor combination. 

I always look forward to trying health drinks that have cayenne as an ingredient, and Health-Ade's Cayenne Cleanse kombucha proved a worthy competitor in the cayenne beverage space. If you've never had cayenne in a drink before, don't flip — it doesn't make the drink burn-your-mouth spicy, but it does give it some heat that I always enjoy. 

You'll taste some very mild spice in this bottle, but after swallowing, I got a tongue-warming heat from the kombucha that lingered for a minute. I found this bottle to be really flavorful, especially considering that it only boasts cayenne, which is another reason it made the top 10 in this ranking. It still couldn't hold a candle to some of the flavor combinations below, but I did really enjoy it for what it is. 

Ah, Bubbly Rose — we've been acquainted for a long time, so the fact that it only made the number eight spot here was pretty shocking. I still love it, but I liked the following more, and found them to be more impressive on the whole. If you want a light and floral kombucha, though, this would probably be the first bottle I'd recommend. 

If you haven't already had rose flavors, I'd even call this a decent entry point. It's not too perfume-y at all, and will let rose newbies get a sense of what the flavor is like before diving headfirst into drinks made mainly with rosewater. I found the floral notes here to work very well in contrast with the somewhat sharp base kombucha, and though I could use more rose, it can be an off-putting flavor, so I won't knock Health-Ade for not leaning into it more. 

My second favorite flavor in baked goods has to be apple (it comes in right behind lemon), and autumn is undoubtedly my favorite season, so I expected some pretty good vibes from Health-Ade's Pink Lady Apple kombucha. And I'm happy to report that it mostly delivered. This is the final single-flavor bottle you'll find on this list, and I found it to be my favorite of the "simpler" bottles.

And, before you ask, yes — this kombucha immediately tasted like fall, which endeared me to it from the start. It was like a bubbly apple cider, almost akin to a hard apple cider. Apple was instantly identifiable, and though I still would have appreciated it to be stronger, I'm going to call that a personal issue at this point — I could be drinking straight apple juice and still want more. If you, too, are an apple fan and can't wait for fall to roll around every year, don't skip this bottle. 

I know Mango Lemonade didn't make it very high on this list, but Berry Lemonade fared much better, mostly because it was way stronger than the previous lemonade flavor. Usually I'd pick mango over berry any day, but shockingly, I have to vouch for the berry iteration in this case — its flavor profile was punchy and really well-balanced. 

Whatever berry mixture is used to flavor this drink is sublime. I found a lot of depth in the berry element, while the subtle flavor of lemonade just helped to brighten everything up a bit. I was more than fine with letting the berries do the heavy lifting here. If you're looking for a kombucha that's plenty flavorful but still not too wild in its tasting notes, this would be a great starting point — you'll feel a sense of familiarity from this drink without getting bored. 

I have to applaud Health-Ade for its Ginger Lemon Berry Kombucha — this is one of the most well-balanced of the bunch, and I think it offers a little something for everyone. Berries take the simple ginger-lemon flavor combo into a whole new stratosphere, which is why this ranked so much higher than the Ginger Lemon kombucha; it really felt like a new drink entirely. 

Berries help tone down the ginger here, so while it's still apparent, you won't get as much of that sharp quality that accompanies many ginger beverages. That might make this a good entry point for those who want to get more accustomed to ginger beverages. Lemon brightens up the bottle and keeps it from being too heavy. All in all, this kombucha won't feel too exotic for any consumer — it's familiar enough to be grounding, which is part of the reason I didn't score it higher than fifth place. 

If citrus makes up the bulk of your favorite flavor profiles, don't pass up Health-Ade's Passion Fruit Tangerine kombucha. It sounds simple on the surface, but just one sip reveals that it's anything but. This kombucha is bright, zesty, tropical, and insanely fruity, with a very bold profile that took me quite by surprise. 

Seriously, "bright" was the first word to cross my mind when considering how to explain this drink, and I can't use it enough. Passion fruit acts as the grounding element here, and it lets tangerine soar. Tangerine lingered on the back of my tongue and on my lips with a bit of sour appeal, and I loved how long a sip lasted — I felt like I was still tasting it well after I'd swallowed. It's a very interesting, loud flavor profile that still isn't too unfamiliar. I'll easily be having this one again. 

Mint Limeade was a difficult flavor to place. If I'm being honest, I can't call it my favorite — I probably enjoyed the previous one more, but again, strength and interest were the primary ranking factors here, and this drink had those in spades. Zesty, cooling, and a little bit wild, I've no doubt that this is the go-to for many consumers, and I felt it was well deserving of third place on this list. 

When my first reaction upon tasting something is to actually say "Wow" out loud, I know I have a top-spot contender on my hands. Such was the case with Mint Limeade. It was wildly flavorful, but more than that, something about it almost reminded me of dessert — it tasted a bit like a bright lime-mint sorbet. Mint was very apparent and lime was clearly there as a balancing, lifting element. It really felt like a kombucha-ified frozen mint limeade, and the bottle got some bonus points for the incredible accuracy of its name. Still, it couldn't beat the following two flavors.

I recently tried all of the juices from Suja Organic, and one of my favorites was the juice that contained carrots. So, I wasn't surprised to find myself similarly attracted to Health-Ade's kombucha that features carrot with the addition of blood orange and ginger. I'm sipping on it as I type this, because I really can't get enough of it. 

I absolutely adore the earthiness from the carrots in this kombucha, and if that element wasn't present, I'd have ranked this drink at least a few spots lower than number two. Carrot alongside the warm, intense blood orange citrus was a very good idea — the two complement each other well. 

Ginger is also apparent but less so than in the other ginger drinks on this list. It helps lift the drink and gives it a little bit of fresh spice, keeping it from being too grounded. If you don't love carrot drinks, I could see this not being a favorite, but I'd still suggest everyone try it — you might be surprised at how good it is. 

Still, though, not even the former kombucha could surpass Health-Ade's Guava Dragon Fruit flavor. This kombucha will practically slap you in the face with tropical fruit energy, and it's as interesting as they come, which is probably helped by the fact that I don't have guava or dragon fruit all that often. 

Guava is incredibly strong here, with dragon fruit making an entrance behind, and I found the strength of this flavor to be pretty stunning — in no way does it try to hide itself. I also noticed a depth to this flavor that I don't normally find in drinks that only boast fruit flavors, something warm and tropical that made each sip feel very long. The guava and dragon fruit layered in such a way where it wasn't too bright or one-note. In other words, I adored it, and it was an easy top-spot contender among the lineup of Health-Ade's flavors. 

Given that I didn't dislike any of Health-Ade's flavors, ranking them wasn't an easy task, and I couldn't use personal preference as the primary criterion when ordering these. Instead, I chose to rank these based on the strength of each flavor. Bottles that were loud and proud about their tasting notes ranked higher than those whose notes were more muted. I also took into consideration the uniqueness of each flavor, which is part of why Ginger Lemon didn't rank higher than it did — it's a fairly typical flavor combo, whereas Mint Limeade is far less common.