Copra Raw Coconut Water Review

Copra Coconut Water recently reached out to me to try some of their coconut water! By now, most of us are familiar with this beverage. Coconut water has been increasing in popularity these past few years, but Copra is trying to stand out from the crowd–it’s raw and all natural! This is new to me because I don’t normally buy the drink, so I wasn’t aware there was a raw version of it. What’s the difference between raw and regular coconut water, you may ask?

The main difference is that Copra raw coconut water:

• Is not heated or pasteurized. Normally pasteurization is used to kill/prevent bacteria growth and increase shelf-life of foods–they also claim that this destroys important vitamins and minerals in the drink.
• Is pink in color due to antioxidant levels.
• Uses High Pressure Processing to kill microorganisms and keep micro-nutrients intact, instead of pasteurization.
• Coconut water comes directly from raw coconuts in Thailand.

Nutritional Stats:

One bottle of Copra is 80 calories. The coconut water is high in potassium and  has no fat, so its definitely a better choice than sodas or fruit juices that are sweetened with sugar and contain empty calories.

One of the biggest claims of coconut water in general is that it’s “nature’s sport’s drink”–because it provides electrolytes. Copra boasts five – potassium, sodium, calcium, magnesium and phosphorus, all in low levels except potassium as you can see from the nutrition label above. I’ll admit that when I first tried coconut water, one of the reasons was because of the electrolytes. But, now that I’m learning the science behind food (and that I need to research everything to back up health claims) I’ve found that some coconut water health claims seem to be a myth. Coconut water is highest in potassium and low in sodium. After intense exercise, we lose salt in our sweat (this is why after long bouts of exercise you may find a coating of grit on your skin–its salt!) so, your best bet would be to rehydrate with plain water (especially if your goal is to lose weight!), and if you sweat a lot, electrolyte or salt tablets (like Nuun) or a drink that contains sodium, like veggie juice.

All that aside, it doesn’t mean that drinking coconut water is bad! I enjoy like the taste of it, and I find it adds a tropical flavor to my favorite smoothies. I really enjoyed the smoothie I made with a bottle of Copra. I don’t use it for re-hydrating after exercise, but I do like to drink it as a treat on occasion. If I see some on sale at the store I will grab some for my smoothies, but at regular price it is just not in my budget. I found that Copra had a slightly different taste than some of the varieties that I’ve tried, which is most likely due to the fact that it is raw.

Tropical Protein Smoothie

Ingredients

1 bottle of coconut water
1 cup of frozen mango chunks
3/4 cup of frozen cherries, blackberries and blueberries
1 cup of plain Greek yogurt (or 1 scoop of protein powder)

And blend away! It makes one refreshing, tropical smoothie!

Would I recommend Copra? My answer to someone looking to lose weight: no– stick with water and don’t drink your calories. To someone looking for a natural sports drink: no–there are better options out there for re-hydrating. But, if you can spare the extra expense (its $3.99 a bottle at most stores) and if you are looking to add flavor to smoothies and treat yourself to a tropical, all natural, tasty drink? Sure!

Now, the fun part. Copra is offering to give a lucky reader a week’s worth of raw coconut water to try! Enter here by leaving a comment on this post answering this question: how do you prefer to drink your coconut water?

Giveaway ends on Monday 11/24.

Disclaimer: Copra sent me some of their coconut water to try, free of charge. All opinions are my own.