17 Beverages That Stood Out at the McLane National Trade Show

ORLANDO, Fla. -- The McLane Co.'s Sun, Sand and Sales theme for its National Trade Show in September made it the perfect place to get a glimpse at new beverages coming to store shelves. The event in September brought retailers from across the country to see what is new from manufacturers big and small. Here's a look at 17 drinks that caught CSP's eye ...

Photographs by CSP Staff

PepsiCo's North America Nutrition division debuted Naked Plus Sunshine, a juice fortified with vitamin D. It also sampled Tropicana Essentials Probiotics and its Kevita Kombucha lines in a healthy beverage set.

Coca-Cola Co. also featured its healthier drinks, including Fairlife milk, Simply Smoothies and Odwala Protein Shakes in three flavors: Vanilla, Chocolate and Strawberry.

Gas Monkey Energy will add a new Tropical flavor to its lineup in January 2019. The "cleaner energy option" now includes three flavors, including Original and Lite.

Premier Protein featured two protein-filled lines during the expo, including shakes in Vanilla and Chocolate and Clear Protein in Tropical Punch and Orange Mango flavors.

Promised Land Dairy is bringing on-the-go convenience to its natural lines of milks and smoothies. Promised Land Midnight whole and 2% milks are now available in 12-ounce bottles. And Lala Yogurt Smoothies come in three flavors: Tropical Mango, Wild Strawberry and Mixed Berry.

X2, a green-tea based energy drink that initially launched in Subway restaurants, is now available to c-stores in two varieties and seven flavors. The original version contains no artificial ingredients, while the Sport version is made with coconut water for a hydrating benefit.

GT's Kombucha highlighted its newest flavor, Watermelon Wonder, noting its quick rise to one of its best-selling SKUs right behind original Gingerade, according to the company.

Met-Rx featured its NOS Pumped pre-workout drinks in new packaging, as well as its Met-Rx 51 and Pure Protein smoothie drinks.

Nestle Waters North America is preparing to take its new Perrier & Juice nationwide after an initial launch on the West Coast. It also unveiled a new children's line of bottled waters called Nestle Pure Life Kid Buddies.

Campbell's featured its V8 Energy Sparkling line, calling attention to the lightly carbonated drinks as a better-for-you energy-drink alternative. The drinks are available in four flavors: Blackberry Cranberry, Orange Pineapple, White Grape Raspberry and Kiwi Melon. Each includes 80 milligrams of caffeine from green tea.

Chobani resized it Chobani Drink smoothies from 10-ounce bottles to 7 ounces for a more well-rounded nutritional profile. The drinks are available in several flavors, including Mix't Berries, Straw 'Nana and Coffee & Cream.

Shamrock Farms showcased the redesigned packaging for its protein drinks, Rockin' Protein Builder, and its Cold Brew line. Intended to better stand out on cooler shelves, the repackaged protein drinks come in three flavors, Chocolate, Vanilla and Strawberry, and its Cold Brew line is available in Original, Mocha, Vanilla and Caramel Macchiato.

Rhino Rush Energy has extended its energy-shot brand into the energy-drink category with a beverage formulated with ephedra. The drinks are available in three flavors: Blue Raspberry, Kiwi Strawberry and Grape.

Optimum Nutrition is bringing the branding power of its protein powders to the beverage category in three product lines: Amino Energy, Isopure and Pure Pro 50 high-protein shakes. Amino Energy drinks contain 100 milligrams of caffeine in four flavors: Grape, Watermelon, Blueberry Lemonade and Juicy Strawberry. Zero-carb Isopure contains 20 grams of protein in three flavors: Apple Melon, Grape and Alpine Punch. And Pure Pro 50 contains 50 grams of protein in six flavors: Banana Cream, Chocolate Peanut Butter, Cookies & Cream, Milk Chocolate, Vanilla Bean and Strawberry.

Jumex is marketing its nectar-based drinks as a flavorful alternative to soft drinks, juices, flavored waters and more. The drinks are available in four natural flavors: Mango Nectar, Strawberry-Banana Nectar, Guava Nectar and Pineapple-Coconut Nectar.

5-hour Energy will capitalize on the success of its Lemonade green-tea-based energy shot with two line extensions this fall: peach and raspberry.

Zero-calorie Spike Hardcore Energy is available in three package sizes and four flavors, including a 4.2-ounce Double Shot, 8.4-ounce cans and 16-ounce cans. The flavors include Original, Blue Raz, Strawberry Lemonade and Orange Gold.