Manzana Soda from Ecuador
Manzana is a soda with a strange orange color for something that supposedly tastes like apple. The name "Manzana" means apple in spanish, and there aren't really any other identifying clues on the bottle besides a cap which has the logo of RC Cola on it and a quote on the side saying "100% Ecuatoriana."
This mystery manzana drink smells a little bit like non-sour "green apple flavor." It's not at all like real apple though, and barely at all even like that fake apple flavor. It's got even a slight tinge of orange flavor, but it really just tastes like pure chemical artificial flavoring similar to a slush puppie or sno-cone.
Ecuadorian Manzana reminds me of apple jacks, which are also orange and taste nothing like apple. Hey, I guess you can ignore the label and drink what you like, but I'll probably be drinking something else.
Pony Malta
I found Pony Malta in the back of a liquor store in Guayaquil, Ecuador. It comes in a little bottle for only 15 cents. It claims to be a natural and refreshing energy drink, but I still didn't feel any increase in energy after 5 minutes, and still not much after drinking the entire bottle.
It's a malt beverage like kvass, so it tastes similar but a bit better and is also slightly carbonated. The flavor also reminds me of tamarind. For a more familiar flavor, it also tastes a bit like prune juice. It's dark and not very fruity though.
Overall as an energy drink I wouldn't rate it very high. I'm not sure about the caffeine content of Pony Malta, but if you're just looking for something to wake you up I would say go with coffee. This particular brand of Malta comes from Colombia.
Blackberry Juice from Ecuador
I tried this blackberry juice for the first time at my hotel in Guayaquil, Ecuador. In Spanish it's called Jugo de Mora. It's maroon or magenta in color, and sweet, not bitter or sour at all. I'm not sure that it had such a strong blackberry flavor though. It tasted a bit like it had pineapple juice in it as well. It also had slight flavors of strawberry and raspberry. Blackberry juice is very refreshing and went well with my breakfast.
Avena Casera Toni with Naranjilla
This was a strange drink, and looking from the juice box that it came in, it was very hard to tell what it is. The first sip was a very confusing mix of sour, sweet, and milky flavors. It's very thick like a thick cream. It has a slightly orange flavor, which comes from the naranjilla, a fruit with green juice and a slight orange-citrusy flavor. It also tastes a bit like candy, but papery like those "dots" or "buttons" that come on a sheet of paper.
Avena Casera is not entirely smooth though, there is a little pulp. I'm not sure if the pulpiness comes from the naranjilla or the avena, which is the other main part of this drink. Upon further inspection, the box reads " oatmeal drink, naranjilla flavored." I didn't expect for a second that this drink was made of oatmeal. It turns out that Avena is a type of oatmeal drink, not just a brand name as I originally assumed.
Avena Casera is 100% natural and the ingredients include passion fruit, oatmeal, naranjilla fruit flavor and cinnamon extract.