Trader Joes' New Ginger Beer Has One Noticeable Flaw

Up until recently, Trader Joes' store-brand ginger beer had a pretty solid fan following. Reddit threads from nearly a decade ago excitedly announced the store's ginger beer being back on the shelves. According to a comment on the eight-year-old discussion, shoppers had to "call the store to place [the ginger beer bottles] on reserve" when they came in, thanks to the drink's demand.

"Trader Joe makes their own Ginger Beer only once a year and it's HIGHLY sought after by fans," gushed a six-year-old thread, stressing that it tended to sell out like hotcakes. And only three months ago, another Redditor posted a picture of their prized bottle of TJ's ginger beer, lovingly writing, "Ginger Brew, How I've Missed You."

So, when @traderjoeslist announced this month that Trader Joe's had launched a new ginger beer with one major change, fans expected the most shocking thing about the news to be the revamped packaging of the drink. But comments on the post indicate that the beverage's move from glass bottles to cans is far from the most astonishing thing about the new drink. As disappointed comments flood the page, it seems that the supermarket's ginger beer is losing some of its support.

According to Trader Joe's, the store thought that its cult favorite ginger beer "could use a bit of a packaging upgrade." Neither the recipe nor the supplier of the ginger beer has changed, and the only difference is that the drink now comes in packs of four 12-ounce cans instead of bottles. However, it seems that the packaging makeover has shed light on another problem: the drink's high sugar content.

On @traderjoeslist's post, fans noticed that the ginger beer has 34 grams of added sugars — making up a whopping 68% of the recommended daily value. Comments also point out that the FDA classifies any consumables with 20% or more of the daily added sugar value as being "high" sources of added sugars. This is not to mention the fact that one can of ginger beer alone exceeds the entire daily recommended sugar intake cited by the American Heart Association (24 grams for women and 36 grams for men, per the Harvard School of Public Health).

Since Trader Joe's didn't change the recipe for its updated ginger beer, it seems that the older version was also high in sugar. Per the website, the old glass bottles of ginger beer actually packed slightly more sugar at 36 grams. For those who would rather not buy the sugar-laced drink, fans recommend trying the Reed's zero sugar ginger beer, which Trader Joe's also stocks. Others prefer diluting TJ's ginger beer with some sparkling water.