Notable Nosh: Soursop Juice – Sybaritica

Soursop anyone?

I have to confess to having never heard of Soursop before but one of the best things about my trips down south is getting to try exciting new foods and drinks from around the world. This particular beverage you see pictured above was produced in Vietnam and was very interesting indeed…

The Soursop is, so I discovered, a fruit grown on a tree native to Central and South America but now cultivated in Africa and South-east Asia. The fruit is apparently related to the Cherimoya and Wikipedia describes it as tasting like a as a ‘combination of strawberry and pineapple, with sour citrus flavor notes’. Personally, I didn’t really get that from the beverage, however…

The can lists the ingredients as Soursop Puree, Water, Sugar, Citric Acid and a bunch of chemicals I didn’t recognize. In appearance, the juice is very much like lemonade and the flavor very nice. It was only slightly sour (despite the name), with much more sweetness and a taste that was somewhat like blackcurrants. In fact, it reminded me of a drink I remember from childhood called Ribena. I liked it but I found that it was a bit too sweet to make a refreshing drink on a hot day.

In a very unusual coincidence, the very day after I purchased this beverage, I happened to come across these fruit in a nearby produce store. They were labeled ‘Geneps’ (although I am fairly sure this is a misspelling of  ‘Genips’) but also, beneath, as ‘soursop’. I discovered that Genip is one name for a fruit (also Central American) known formally as Melicoccus bijugatus, and it is curious that they happen to look a little bit like the fruit pictured on the can. I am not sure why the soursop name was put on the sign as well as it seems fairly certain that different fruits are involved.

Stupidly, although I took a picture of these fruit, I never though to buy a couple to try and now I am kicking myself for not doing so. Has anyone else tried them, or know anything about them?

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