Abstract
Hibiscus sabdariffa L., also known as edible roselle, belongs to the Malvaceae family and is native to West Africa. In Nigeria, its dried petals are processed by boiling and filtration into a non-alcoholic beverage called Zobo. Commercial Zobo often includes artificial sweeteners that improve its taste. As a result, local food science needs new formulations with natural and health-beneficial sweeteners. The research objective was to produce a Zobo drink with different blends of date fruit juice as a natural sweetener, as well as evaluate its proximate, physicochemical, and sensory properties. 
 The control Zobo drink (Zcon) involved an artificial sweetener. The ratios of Zobo to date juice were 90:10 (ZD10), 80:20 (ZD20), 70:30 (ZD30), 60:40 (ZD40), and 50:50 (ZD50). The samples underwent proximate and physicochemical analyses, as well as a sensory assessment on a nine-point hedonic scale. 
 The physicochemical analysis showed that Sample ZD50 with the 50:50 ratio had the highest pH (3.5) and sugar content (9.5°Bx) while the control sample had the lowest pH (2.5) and sugar content (0.9°Bx), with all samples showing significant (p ≥ 0.05) differences. The proximate analysis also showed a wide range of results (p ≥ 0.05). The control sample demonstrated the highest moisture content (97.0%) whereas Sample ZD50 had the highest ash and lipid content of 0.8 and 4.8%, respectively. Sample ZD50 also had the highest protein (2.23%) and crude fiber content (2.49%). Sample ZD40 with the 60:40 ratio had the highest carbohydrate content. In terms of mouthfeel and taste (p ≥ 0.05), the control sample demonstrated the highest scores while the lowest score belonged to Sample ZD10 with the lowest proportion of date juice. The best results for general acceptance belonged to the control, followed by ZD40 (60:40) and ZD50 (50:50). 
 Date juice proved to be an effective sweetener that improved the nutritional profile of Zobo. However, the sensory analysis showed that consumers preferred the control sample with the artificial sweetener.
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