Here's a Hint: Just drink water

In October (2006), on the op-ed page of the New York Times, one of my favorite mystery/suspense authors, Harlan Coben, was on a rant about what he calls the "American Snack Tyranny." The rant was focused on what soccer parents [are required to] bring to games. He wrote "Do our kids need yet another...juice box with enough sugar to coat a Honda Odyssey? Can't they just finish playing and have some water?"

This point of view is echoed in the trademarked mantra of Hint, Inc., a San Francisco-based company that produces bottled water with just a "hint" of flavor and no sugar. (Oh, yeah, the mantra: Drink Water, Not Sugar™.)

Hint was founded by Kara Goldin, a mother of four who noticed that while there were a lot of bottled waters on the market promising to make you smarter or boost your energy or calm your nerves, there was really nothing that replaced all the thirst-quenching juice and soda that her family was drinking. An entrepreneur at heart (and a former AOL exec), Kara decided to fill this obvious gap in the market. This is how Hint waters were born.

When I got a number of their flavors to taste (there are 13 of them), I was skeptical. But they actually deliver on their promise. The Raspberry-Lime really tasted--and by tasted I mean smelled--like both raspberry and lime. I saved the Cucumber sample until last, because I was pretty sure I wouldn't like it. To my surprise, it was oddly refreshing and very true to the essence of cucumberness (so to speak).

Hint, which retails for about $1.69 for 16 ounces, is sold in specialty markets and some grocery stores. You can get a case of 24 bottles for $44 on the Hint website or 12 packs at Amazonfor $22.