I grew up with fresh coconuts.  I also grew up with canned coconut juice (sweetened), frozen coconut juice, and recently bought some Naked coconut water from the supermarket, so I'm familiar with how coconut water should taste.

It's hard to get fresh coconut where I am now so I thought I'd give Zico a try since it was the cheapest available on Amazon.  Big mistake!  I should've listened to the recent negative reviews posted here.

The first pack of Zico was sour.  I took a sip and made a face.  Crap, I thought, I got a bad one.  I then opened another pack and that too was sour.  I have never tried Zico before and I hope that this isn't what it's SUPPOSED to taste like because it tastes nothing like coconut water.  If I had been blindfolded and somebody handed me this drink, I would never be able to guess it was supposed to be coconut water.  Packaged coconut water is supposed to taste similar to the juice you get in fresh coconut, right?

I understand that it's not going to taste just like fresh coconuts but there should be a marked resemblance, as there was with the Naked brand I tried.  But the Zico I tried tasted NOTHING like coconut.  It MIGHT taste like the water that comes from a totally unripe coconut (never having had an unripe coconut, I can't say), or it could be the taste of coconut water gone rancid.  Whatever the reason, the taste is totally wrong and I am pissed because I've now got a 12-pack that's too disgusting to drink and isn't eligible for a refund through Amazon.

UPDATE: Grocery items are not returnable, per Amazon policies (NOW they tell me).  However, I contacted Amazon to explain the situation to them and they generously offered to issue me a full refund.  Excellent customer service by Amazon--though the Zico still stinks!
I grew up with fresh coconuts. I also grew up with canned coconut juice (sweetened), frozen coconut juice, and recently bought some Naked coconut water from the supermarket, so I'm familiar with how coconut water should taste. It's hard to get fresh coconut where I am now so I thought I'd give Zico a try since it was the cheapest available on Amazon. Big mistake! I should've listened to the recent negative reviews posted here. The first pack of Zico was sour. I took a sip and made a face. Crap, I thought, I got a bad one. I then opened another pack and that too was sour. I have never tried Zico before and I hope that this isn't what it's SUPPOSED to taste like because it tastes nothing like coconut water. If I had been blindfolded and somebody handed me this drink, I would never be able to guess it was supposed to be coconut water. Packaged coconut water is supposed to taste similar to the juice you get in fresh coconut, right? I understand that it's not going to taste just like fresh coconuts but there should be a marked resemblance, as there was with the Naked brand I tried. But the Zico I tried tasted NOTHING like coconut. It MIGHT taste like the water that comes from a totally unripe coconut (never having had an unripe coconut, I can't say), or it could be the taste of coconut water gone rancid. Whatever the reason, the taste is totally wrong and I am pissed because I've now got a 12-pack that's too disgusting to drink and isn't eligible for a refund through Amazon. UPDATE: Grocery items are not returnable, per Amazon policies (NOW they tell me). However, I contacted Amazon to explain the situation to them and they generously offered to issue me a full refund. Excellent customer service by Amazon--though the Zico still stinks!