This is the Hung Fook Tong Schisandrae Chinensis Fructus and Honey Drink. Schisandrae chinensis fructus is the botanical name for magnolia berries from with the popular Korean beverage omija-cha is made. Alongside the titular magnolia berries and honey, this drink also included cane sugar, hawthorn fruit, licorice, momordica fruit, and ginseng.

The beverage had an opaque golden-brown appearance and emitted an aroma reminiscent of savory herbal medicine, or curiously, Arnott’s Pizza Shapes. Upon tasting, the initial impression was akin to herbal medicine, distinct from the pleasant herbal notes found in grass jelly. It began with a slight sweetness of ginseng, swiftly transitioning to a bold sourness reminiscent of hawthorn, accompanied by an intense sweetness reminiscent of momordica fruit. In the finish, salty and earthy bitter notes emerged, leaving a lingering, unpleasantly sweet-sour earthiness in the aftertaste.

This beverage did not live up to its descriptor as a ‘schisandrae chinensis fructus and honey drink’. It failed to celebrate the magnolia berry, a task exemplified in omija-cha, which is made simply by boiling dried magnolia berries in water on low heat and then adding honey. The inclusion of ingredients other than magnolia berries and honey completely disrupted the balanced nuanced interplay of sweetness, sourness, bitterness, saltiness, and pungency that defines the fruit. It would be challenging to find a less enjoyable beverage.

This Hung Fook Tong Schisandrae Chinensis Fructus and Honey Drink contained 500 mL. It was produced in China and purchased in Sydney Australia in 2024.