So a couple of weeks ago I was in a Wegman's supermarket near Rochester, NY, when I saw something new. They were fruit smoothies in a pouch, from a company called Noka. Most of them were fruit combos that I've had before, but one caught my eye. The blueberry/beet flavor also contained something called maqui berry. The label mentioned it was a superfood, and that it had crazy amounts of antioxidants, four times more than blueberries, even. Therefore I got one to see what the fuss was all about.
Maqui berries are native to parts of Southern South America, in Chile and Argentina. Which is why an alternate name for this fruit is Chilean wineberry. The local American Indian tribe, the Mapuche, has reportedly been eating maquis for thousands of years. (I know that's awfully vague, but it's the best that I could learn.) Maquis are consumed in berry form, as a dried powder, and as a juice. (And I didn't see this listed specifically, but from the alternate name, maybe they're fermented into wine, too.) From what I read, they're not technically farmed, either--they're so ubiquitous in the Chilean/Argentinian countryside, that people just gather them up, and don't need to plant and cultivate them. In recent years they've become known away from Chile and Argentina, and are now grown in other areas with suitably similar climates and soil.
I'm used to seeing incredibly detailed, very optimistic healthy claims about the "superfoods" I've consumed over the years, but maquis may well take the cake, to use a non-healthy food-related expression. Here's a list of the benefits that maqui berries are supposed to provide: helping in weight loss, combating fatigue, battling heart disease, diabetes, colon cancer, arthritis, high cholesterol, dry eyes, skin problems, leukemia, viruses, digestion problems, and kidney issues. Oh, and they're supposed to aid the immune system, boost the metabolism, and provide better general health and wellness. And probably other things--I stopped consulting websites after a while. But regular readers will see where this is going. One site did mention the key, important statement--"large scale clinical trials are needed to confirm these claims." As with all the so-called "superfoods," maquis are surely good for you, but it seems unlikely that they're the miracle, magic substance that some folks think they are. (Of course, if extensive scientific testing does indeed confirm all these claims, I'll happily eat both my words, and more maquis to treat and cure all potential diseases and conditions.)
The website for the California-based Noka company was one of the tersest I've ever seen. They essentially just showed their product line. Other flavors of their smoothies include cherry/acai, blackberry/vanilla, strawberry/pineapple, sweet potato/goji, and mango/coconut. Also, another website mentioned that blueberries have slightly more antioxidants than do maquis (instead of maquis having 4 times the amount of blueberries, as Noka claimed), so somebody's mistaken, or lying.
Noka blueberry/beet flavor superfood blend organic smooothie. Aside from blueberry, beet, and maqui, this product included banana, apple, flax seed, brown rice protein, and lemon juice concentrate. Came in a 4.22 ounce (120 gram) pouch. It was a thick brown liquid. Had a distinct fruit/banana-y odor. Tastes like a fruit smoothie. I couldn't pick out individual fruit flavors, really. Kind of sweet and tart at the same time. Okay, but not great.
I realize this one was a bit of a stretch for maqui berry, since it wasn't really a fair trial of the food. The smoothie I tried was chock full of other fruit juices, and other vegetables, so I couldn't pick out the actual maqui berry flavor. But, to be frank, it's sometimes tough to come up with 2-4 of these exotic/disgusting foods and beverages every month, so I hope readers can cut me a little slack. And obviously if I can locate actual maqui berries on sale, or just pure maqui powder or juice, I'll come back and edit this post.
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