Until yesterday boza and I had a hate-hate relationship.

I hated it and I was convinced that it hated me too. The thing was, I wanted to like it. So I gave it a number of different chances in my first couple of years but I just didn't like it.

The texture was strangely thick. The sugar levels were cloyingly sweet while also tasting incredibly artificial. Oh, and here was an odd after taste. In a word, it was not good. So I gave up on it.

This all changed yesterday.

Yesterday was the day I tasted <a href="http://harmonica.bg/produkti/boza/" target="_blank">Harmonica boza</a>. I'd all but given up on boza but A. and I were downtown checking out a music/beer festival and Harmonica happened to have a stand set up there. The music/beer festival was a bust--I don't think this was for a lack of planning or effort. Nope. It was pretty clearly the rainy weather which impacted the event.

Anyhow, back to the boza. A. bought the boza which I then very tentitively tried. I first smelled it. It smelled like bread. Then I took a little sip. One doesn't want to take a big drink of something she knows that she doesn't like. Here's the thing, I didn't hate it. In fact, I wanted to have another drink. This has <em>never</em> happened to me before when trying boza.

It was this second sip which made me think that I might actually <em>like</em> this boza. So I had another.

Here's what makes this boza different than others I've tried. There are actually little pieces of rye suspended in the drink. It gives the drink some texture as opposed to just being thick. I think it also give the drink more flavor. The rye is the first flavor you get and it tastes bread-y. The next flavor is sweet. But it's not too sweet and there's nothing chemical-y about the sweetness of this boza.

Sure this is is neither a texture or a flavor that I'm used to but this boza made me curious about the combination rather than turned off by the drink which is what had happened in the past. Okay I don't know that I am a boza convert and that I'll be drinking it for breakfast every morning now but I was very pleasantly surprised by my boza experience.

I think part of what makes the Harmonica boza different from the others that I've tried is that it's bio which is basically the same category as organic in the States.  The boza has three ingredients rye, sugar and water. That's it. Three ingredients. So, I'm not someone who seeks out bio/organic products at the store but this experience has made me wonder if I should reconsider. Especially after I realized that Harmonica also makes <a href="http://harmonica.bg/produkti/" target="_blank">bio yogurt and ayran among a pretty wide selection of bio items</a>.

After my good experience with the boza, I'd like to try some of these other items as well. The only thing is, I can't remember if I've seen this brand at Billa or at Hit.

Dear readers, have you seen this brand in Sofia grocery stores? Do you buy other