Established in 1938, Ribena is a classic go-to drink for many people on a sunny day. But it is considerably more expensive than supermarket own brand squashes. As my kids are drinking lots in the heat, I decided to buy squashes from Asda, Tesco, Aldi, Lidl, Sainsbury's and Morrisons to see how they compared in terms of price, strength, calories, sugar content, ingredients and flavour.
We found two brands that tasted great and were half the price of Ribena and four times the strength, making them considerably better value for money. Here's what we discovered.
Ribena Blackcurrant Squash
Ribena Blackcurrant Squash costs £2.25 for 850ml from Sainsbury's, which works out to £2.65 per litre (I got it on offer for £1.50 from Morrisons). Said to be rich in vitamin C, it is made with sugar unlike most of the supermarket brands which contain no added sugar. The ingredients are Blackcurrant Juice from Concentrate (25%), Sugar, Acidity Regulator (Sodium Gluconate), Acid (Citric Acid), Vitamin C, Natural Blackcurrant Flavourings, Extracts of Carrot and Hibiscus, Preservatives (Potassium Sorbate, Sodium Bisulphite), Sweeteners Acesulfame K, Sucralose). The bottle is said to provide 17 servings, which works out to 13p a glass, and a 250ml serving contains 45 calories. This was super fruity and had a lovely rich texture but it didn't smell of anything. It was refreshing but not at all sharp and equally not too sweet. We gave it 4.5 out of 5 stars.
Tesco Quadruple Strength Blackcurrant Squash
Tesco Quadruple Strength Blackcurrant Squash costs £2.20 for 1.5 litres, which works out to £1.46 per litre. Boasting 35% blackcurrant juice, this is said to make 100 servings (just over 2p per serving), and contains no added sugar, artificial colours or flavours, and just three calories per 300ml glass. It's made with Water, Blackcurrant Juice from Concentrate (35%), Citric Acid, Acidity Regulator (Sodium Citrate), Colour (Anthocyanins), Flavouring, Sweeteners (Sucralose, Acesulfame K), Malic Acid, Preservatives (Potassium Sorbate, Sodium Metabisulphite), Antioxidant (Ascorbic Acid). This smelt more blackcurranty than Ribena and it had a stronger blackcurrant flavour too. This was probably because it was made with 10% more fruit juice than original Ribena. We found it zesty and refreshing and gave it 5 out of 5 stars.
Sainsbury's 4X Concentrated Blackcurrant Squash
Sainsbury's 4X Concentrated Blackcurrant Squash costs £2.30 for 1.5 litres, which works out to £1.53 per litre. Boasting 35% fruit juice, it's said to make 120 servings (just under 2p per serving) and contains three calories per 250ml glass. It contains no added sugar and Citric Acid, Malic Acid; Acidity Regulator: Sodium Citrate; Colour: Anthocyanins; Flavourings, Sweeteners: Sucralose, Acesulfame K; Preservatives: Potassium Sorbate, Sodium Metabisulphite (Sulphites). This one had a strong blackcurrant aroma and was a darker colour than the others. It seemed stronger than all the other quadruple strength brands too. This meant you didn't need to use so much, which made it good value. We gave it 5 out of 5 stars.
Morrisons Quadruple Strength Apple & Blackcurrant Squash
Morrisons only had summer fruit or apple and blackcurrant options so I went for the latter. This bottle costs £1.85 for 1.5 litres, which works out to £1.23 per litre so cheaper than Tesco. It's said to make 120 servings (less than 2p per serving) and contains no added sugar, artificial colours or flavourings, and just three calories per 300ml glass. And it's made with 40% fruit juice. However, when I read the ingredients list I discovered this was made up from 99% apple and only 1% blackcurrant juice. There was also Citric Acid, Sodium Citrate, Flavourings, Sweeteners (Acesulfame K, Sucralose), Colour (Anthocyanins), Preservatives (Potassium Sorbate, Sodium Metabisulphite). This one had a tangy apple flavour and it was stronger than some of the other brands, but not as strong as Sainsbury's. We felt the flavour wasn't as pleasant as some of the others so we gave it 3 out of 5 stars.
Lidl Quadruple Strength Apple & Blackcurrant Squash
There wasn't any blackcurrant squash options when I visited Lidl so I went for the Quadruple Strength Apple & Blackcurrant Squash instead. It costs £1.85 for 1.5 litres, which works out to £1.23 per litre. Said to make 120 servings (less than 2p per serving), it contains no added sugar but slightly more calories at eight calories per 250ml glass. Just like the Morrisons squash, this was made with 30% juice but it had more blackcurrant - 36% apple juice from concentrate and 4% blackcurrant from concentrate, plus Citric Acid, Malic Acid, Flavourings, Sweeteners (Acesulfame K, Sucralose), Sodium Citrate, Colour (Anthocyanins), Preservatives (Potassium Sorbate, Sodium Metabisulphite). This had a really tart apple flavour, like cooking apples out of a garden. It was strong, which would make it long lasting but not a fave for us. We gave it 2 out of 5 stars.
Aldi Sun Quench Fruit-O Mixed Fruit Squash
Aldi didn't have any blackcurrant squash in store when I visited so I picked up a bottle of Sun Quench Fruit-O instead. It looked a bit like Ribena but it was made with mixed fruits rather than just blackcurrant or blackcurrant and apple. A one litre bottle cost £1.09 and is said to make 20 servings, making it more than 5p per serving so considerably more expensive than many of the other supermarket brands. Unlike the others, it contained just 10% juice from concentrate and it didn't boast the 'no added sugar' label but it did have added vitamin D and vitamin C. Similarly to Ribena, it also contained carrot and hibiscus. The ingredients list was 10% Fruit Juices from Concentrate (grape, apple, raspberry, blackcurrant), Citric Acid, Flavourings (contains Barley), Plant Concentrates (carrot, hibiscus), Preservatives (Potassium Sorbate, Sodium Metabisulphite), Sweeteners (Sucralose, Acesulfame K), Sodium Citrate. A 250ml glass contained 43 calories so significantly more than the others. This bottle had a lovely summery aroma as soon as I opened it, like fresh raspberries. However, it tasted more synthetic than the others. This could be due to the raspberries but it wasn't so fresh flavoured as original Ribena and it had a lower fruit juice content. We gave it 3 out of 5 stars.
Asda Double Strength Apple & Blackcurrant Squash
Asda Double Strength Apple & Blackcurrant Squash costs £1.14 for a 1.5 litre bottle, which works out to 76p per litre. One bottle is said to make 60 servings (around 2p per serving) and contains four calories per 250ml glass. It's made with 18% fruit juice from concentrate (16% apple, 2% blackcurrant), Citric Acid, Malic Acid, Acidity Regulator (Sodium Citrates), Sweeteners (Acesulfame K, Sucralose), Fruit and Vegetable Concentrates [Black Carrot, Hibiscus], Preservatives (Potassium Sorbate, Sodium Metabisulphite), Flavourings, Antioxidant (Ascorbic Acid). This had a sharpness due to the apple and I felt it caught the back of my throat as I drank it. There was zero aroma from the bottle. We weren't so keen on this one and gave it 3 out of 5 stars.
Overall Verdict
We all agreed that we still loved original Ribena but that there were two supermarket brands that were even better - and they were considerably cheaper. Sainsbury's and Tesco blackcurrant squashes contained more fruit juice than Ribena. They were both half the price of Ribena per litre and they were much stronger, making them good value for money, especially the Sainsbury's one, which lasted for 120 servings compared to just 17 from Ribena. This made it less than 2p per glass whereas Ribena cost 13p.
