Campbell's Tomato Juice (Regular) Review

When I was a little girl, we always had Thanksgiving dinner at Grandma and Grandpa Bowen's house -- one of the few meals which we ate from the linen-draped fancy table in the dining room (instead of our customary grazing place in the back room next to the kitchen).  The holiday menu was always the same, a memory which I will treasure forever, and we always started off with a small glass of tomato juice at each person's place.  I have loved tomato juice ever since even though I realize the traditional commercially bottled stuff is not without its drawbacks.

An 11 oz. can is considered to be one serving which contains 60 calories with zero calories from fat.  There are zip, zip, zero saturated fat, trans fat and cholesterol.  Alas, lurking in a can of this great beverage are no less than 1,080 mg. sodium or 45% of a person's daily recommended intake but OH WELL!, there are also 610 grams potassium, 13 grams total carbs, three grams dietary fiber, ten grams sugars, and three grams protein.  Vitamins and minerals are redeeming factors here with 15% (D.V.) Vitamin A, 170% Vitamin C (!), and 4% each Calcium and Iron.

A conscientious code of reporting obligates me to admit that there are also low-sodium versions of this beverage (and Campbell's other signature brew, V-8 Juice) out there in the stores.  Gamely I have tried those low-sodium versions and while I can't speak for anybody else, I've got to say that I couldn't even finish a single glass of the healthier alternatives.  It may be just my own taste prevailing here but in my opinion if everything tasted as bad as those low sodium vegetable juices, I would probably be skinnier than Nicole Ritchie and never have to worry about my weight AGAIN!

TASTE TIP:

If you have to seriously watch your sodium intake -- or if perhaps you are fortunate enough to not really care for salt much -- the lower sodium vegetable beverages may be for you.  Who knows, they might just be an acquired taste that even I might get used to with some trying.  For the time being, however, I'm sticking with an occasional dose of this wonderful red stuff which I partake of not as an extra snack but as a part of a meal -- in place of a salad or a vegetable.  Let's face it, reprobate that I am, if I eat a fresh tomato, I'm going to salt it a little, and a fresh salad would also end up containing some salt even if it was doused with a "light" salad dressing.  (Because of its high Vitamin C count, during cold and flu season I will sometimes have a can of Tomato Juice or V-8 with a slice of whole grain toast or maybe a whole grain tuna sandwich as a light but satisfying lunch.)  Campbell's Tomato Juice might not be a good thing to drink every day but now and then I'll cut back on sodium somewhere else to make room for it.