6 Joyba Bubble Tea Flavors, Ranked
The tradition of drinking boba tea originated in Taiwan in the 1980s and has become a trendy fad in the U.S. Boba itself refers to both the sugary gelatinous tapioca balls found in sweetened tea and the tea itself. This black tea historically included sugar and creamer within which these sweet popping balls were suspended.
Joyba took this tradition and ran with it, turning it into an entirely new and exciting concept. It combines tea with fruit, each flavor bursting with joyous little popping boba made from fruit-filled seaweed extract or alginate. These fruity teas come in six unique flavors ranging in caffeine levels, including Blueberry Pomegranate Tea, Strawberry Lemonade Green Tea, Mango Passion Fruit Green Tea, Raspberry Dragon Fruit Black Tea, and its two new botanicals, Strawberry Rose and Sweet Peach Honeysuckle. These teas are available in 12-ounce plastic cups, each with a straw attached for quick and easy drinking.
As boba lovers, we were eager to sample all six of Joyba's unique fruity tea flavors. We honestly loved them all, but since our task was to rank them, these are our choices from least to most favorite.
6. Strawberry Lemonade Green Tea
Last but certainly not least was the Strawberry Lemonade Green Tea. Like all the Joyba varieties, this beverage is gluten-free, made without artificial sweeteners, and packaged in a non-BPA plastic container. The caffeine level of this flavor is 29 milligrams, which is on the modest side. It contains 120 calories, most of which comes from sugar, which is substantial at 28 grams, 56% of the recommended daily value.
This flavor was refreshing, with a good balance between the strawberry and lemonade infusions. We did think the flavors slightly overpowered the green tea in this, and the amount of sugar was a bit excessive. It could have been less sweet and still pleasant. That said, it was delicious.
In our opinion, the amount of popping boba was on the scant side for our liking, and all of the boba sank to the bottom, which was exceedingly challenging to reach. When you did get one in your mouth, however, the burst of fruit flavor was exciting. We know that the gelatinous nature of these bubbles is something you either love or hate, but we think they are super fun.
5. Blueberry Pomegranate Tea
Next to last on our list was the Blueberry Pomegranate Tea. This infusion of black tea has the characteristic tartness of pomegranate with a hint of sweetness from the blueberries. Tannic black tea is omnipresent in a good way. It helps to balance out the sugar in this beverage, which is 26 grams, 52% of the recommended daily value. This drink has 120 calories per container and a modest caffeine level of 24 milligrams.
Now is the time to address our issues with the easy-sip packaging. The idea of these self-contained units is fabulous. The execution, not so much. The straws are inconsistent. Some would not lock into place, which made them hard to drink out of. They were also hard to stab into the plastic lid of the container. It took us three to four tries every time to get the pointed edge to pierce the plastic lid.
And, finally, we found the straws clunky. They didn't fully reach the bottom of the drink, which made getting to the boba difficult. We also noticed that the boba would sometimes clog the straw, making it impossible to slurp it. When the straw worked, it was great, but when it didn't, you ended up with sticky goo all over you.
4. Raspberry Dragon Fruit Black Tea
The Raspberry Dragon Fruit Black Tea ranks fourth on our list. For those unfamiliar with dragon fruit, it looks like a spiky fuschia orb with creamy white flesh dotted with tiny black edible seeds. This fruit grows on a cactus plant called a Hylocereus. Its flavor is often characterized as having elements of a kiwi, a watermelon, and a pear. In our experience trying this fruit on several occasions, it has little flavor and a nice aqueous texture, which makes it a desirable accompaniment to raspberries as an infusion in this black tea beverage.
This variety had the most aggressive tea-forward flavor, which we didn't mind. It was also quite sweet, likely to counterbalance the tartness of the raspberries. Each container is 120 calories and has 25 grams of sugar, 50% of the recommended daily value. The caffeine level is similar to the previous two flavors at 24 milligrams.
We did not rank this flavor higher because we thought it was too sweet. Though we did enjoy the prominence of the black tea, making this a great morning pick me up.
3. Botanicals Sweet Peach Honeysuckle
One of the newest flavors of Joyba landed in third place on our ranking, the Botanicals Sweet Peach Honeysuckle. These botanicals are the perfect choice for anyone looking for a caffeine-free option. They are made with the popular herbal tea rooibos. According to Healthline, Rooibos, or red bush tea, is purportedly loaded with antioxidants, may support heart health, is likely anti-carcinogenic, and can help regulate blood sugar levels.
This infusion has 120 calories and 26 grams of sugar, 52% of the recommended daily value, which might counteract any potential health benefits related to blood sugar regulation. Despite this sugar content, this flavor doesn't seem overly sweet compared to the other varieties. It has a nice balance of peach with the mild floral aroma and taste of honeysuckle. We found this infusion refreshing, nuanced, and something we could enjoy later in the day when we typically avoid caffeinated beverages.
2. Mango Passion Fruit Green Tea
Our second place Joyba flavor was the Mango Passion Fruit Green Tea. We are suckers for anything mango flavored. The passion fruit combined with mango and green tea is a tropical delight, transporting us immediately to a beach in Hawaii or the Caribbean. This flavor didn't come across as overly sweet despite its sugar content, which at 28 grams is still on the high side at 56% of the recommended daily value.
This tea has the highest number of calories, at 130, and the most caffeine, at 29 milligrams. While this is still not a highly caffeinated beverage, it may be notable for those who need to avoid caffeine for health reasons. With 75 reviews and an average score of 4.2 out of 5 stars, this is currently the highest-rated variety of Joyba. Among the one and two-star ratings, the most common complaint was that these boba are made of seaweed extract rather than tapioca and have a distinctly different flavor and texture than is typical for boba. This is a fair assessment, but not something that bothered us all that much.
1. Botanicals Strawberry Rose
The new Botanicals Strawberry Rose variety ranks at the top of our sampling of Joyba boba flavors. This variety has so much going for it. It has no caffeine, the fewest calories at 110, and the lowest sugar level at 24 grams, 48% of the recommended daily value. This is still a tad high but an improvement over the other flavors. It also has vanilla extract and cardamom extract, which amp up the complexity of the infusion.
All of that is fine and dandy, but ultimately, where this variety outperformed all the others was its flavor. We loved this one. The strawberry and rose were perfectly balanced. Rose can be tricky to work with. We often use rose water in desserts, like homemade baklava or pistachio ice cream. If you overdo it, you can quickly turn something from delicious to an overpowering perfume flavor. This was not the case here. The rose flavor was incorporated with the ultimate finesse. We give this one an enthusiastic A++ grade.