Sometimes Foodie: Visions of Sugar Plums danced down my drain...

Continuing the trend of knocking out seasonal stuff before it gets too late, I have this wintery kombucha I picked up at Lidl.
I used to grab kombucha at Aldi, they had an in-house line with three main flavors and the Cherry Cassis was my favorite, but they've been MIA for a few years now. Thankfully Lidl keeps the kombucha coming. They have in-house brands, name brands, and rotating seasonal flavors. I could have sworn I had already tried this one, but it is no where to be found on the blog, so, here we go!

Opened, it smells like those fruit slice candies. The ones that look like this. I've never cared for those. They look like they'll be flavorful and fruity, but they taste muted and overly sweet. Like sugary petroleum jelly. To me, this kombucha smells a lot like the purple-colored fruit slices, with a tangy hint of fermentation.
Taking a sip..., this is the most un-kombucha-like kombucha I've ever had.
It's very sweet, but with a name like, "sugar plum," I guess that's to be expected. It's like carbonated Kool-Aid. Not really what I am looking for when I reach for a fermented tea.
As far as fruitiness, I assume they are aiming for actual plums given the image on the label, and if so, it's kind of accurate. If you didn't know, "sugar plum" was a term used for small sweets like hard candies. I think the most famous use of the term can be found in, "Twas the Night Before Christmas," when they mention, "Visions of sugar plums danced in their heads." They don't mean literal sugared fruit, it's just candy. But it seems like this drink went for a more literal approach.

The aftertaste is tangy, kind of like a fruity salad dressing, (which is one of the things I love about kombucha,) but it's also sickeningly sweet. The kind of sweetness that clings to your throat.
Sugar Plum is distinctly different from any other kombucha I've ever tried, but I'm having a hard time deciding if that is a feature, or a bug.
The first few sips to describe the flavor were fun, but as I wrap up this post, I am reaching for my glass of water, not this.
It's official, I don't like it.
It took 1/8th of the bottle for me to make-up my mind. It's way too sweet for my tastes, in fact, I feel like if I drink the rest of this, it might give me a headache. It's so strange. I love sugary sodas, and kombucha, and actual plums, by all accounts I should love this, but I don't.
This just isn't for me. I'm trying to think of a way to salvage it...because we all know I hate wasting food, but this might be destined for the drain. On the bright side, I've been removing the labels, sanitizing the bottles, and reusing them for homemade horchata, coquito, and vanilla extract. So at least the glass itself will have a second life which makes me feel better.
If you really like purple Kool-Aid, and are new to kombucha, this might be the starter-flavor for you. But if you are an OG kombucha drinker this just won't do.