Berryhill Strawberry Flavored Syrup

Nearly 10 years ago, Aldi committed to removing artificial colors from its house brand products. That means Aldi private labels contain no certified synthetic colors, or what we might call food dyes. Research is mixed on the effect food dyes may or may not have on the body.

Artificial colors are purely cosmetic. They don’t affect how a food tastes. They might make cherry-flavored candy look more like the color of real cherries, or they might give popsicles or sugary drinks bright hues to match fruity flavors like grape, lime, or orange.

The strawberry syrup that we commonly squeeze into a glass of milk to make strawberry-flavored milk is another example where food dyes are typically used.

Except that, because Aldi house brands don’t contain artificial colors, Aldi bottled strawberry syrup is different.

Social media has been alight the last few months with photos of people’s Aldi strawberry syrup-flavored milk that looks … mostly like the color the regular milk. It’s not pink.

I bought a bottle of the strawberry syrup in question at Aldi the other week and brought it home to give it a try.

Berryhill Strawberry Artificially Flavored Syrup cost $2.09 at the time I purchased it for review purposes. It’s sold in a 22-ounce bottle, which comes out to about 10 cents per ounce.

I found this on the room-temperature shelves. The label states to refrigerate after opening.

It’s not clear to me whether this syrup is an everyday Regular Buy or if it’s a summer Seasonal Item, or even an Aldi Find. The way I’ve seen people talking about it for what seems like several months makes me think it’s in stock for longer than an Aldi Find. However, I can’t always find it in my local store, and it hasn’t been stocked alongside the everyday Regular Buy chocolate syrup in my local store. I found this bottle in the limited-time Aldi Find aisle.

If any readers can offer clarification on whether this is a year-round product or a limited-time special, feel free to speak up in the comments below.

Even though this contains no food dyes, it still has other ingredients you might want to limit your intake of. The first ingredient is high fructose corn syrup, and it has plenty of other ingredients that qualify it as an ultra-processed food.

Ingredients are high fructose corn syrup, water, sugar, corn syrup, and less than 2% artificial flavors (propylene glycol and sodium bicarbonate), citric acid, sodium benzoate (preservative), xanthan gum, and natural color.

It is certified kosher.

One bottle has about 32 one-tablespoon servings. One tablespoon has 50 calories, no fat or sodium, 12 grams of total carbohydrates (4% DV), no dietary fiber, 11 grams of total sugars, 11 grams of added sugars, and no protein.

This product was, not surprisingly, clear when I squirted it into a small bowl. It has a faint pink hue, but that disappears when you add it to milk.

There are no directions for how much of this syrup to use in a glass of milk. So, essentially you just follow your heart. I recommend squirting a bit into your milk, stirring, tasting, and adding more in small amounts until you reach your desired flavor level, tasting after every addition.

Some people might want to top ice cream with this syrup as well, although I prefer using it in milk. It will definitely sweeten your milk, although I’m not sure it tastes exactly like strawberries. I’m not certain any strawberry syrup tastes just like true strawberries, though; it’s mostly just very sweet, like some types of strawberry-flavored candy.

It does feel a bit odd to drink strawberry-flavored milk that isn’t pink, since that pastel color is what most of us have been conditioned to think strawberry milk should look like. It has all kinds of potential as a joke to play on friends or family if you’re that kind of person.

The Verdict:

Berryhill Strawberry Artificially Flavored Syrup tastes like regular strawberry syrup. The main difference is that because this is an Aldi private label, it contains no artificial colors. Therefore, it doesn’t turn your milk pink like traditional strawberry syrup does. It has all kinds of potential as a cool party trick.