I know, I know, you're saying, here it comes, the wonder juice of the week. What's this one going to do? Flood my immune system with flavanoids? Saturate me with vitamin C? Keep me from coming down with Alzheimer's? Help prevent suburban sprawl?

The answer is yes, yes, yes, and maybe. Black currant berries are bursting with nutrients: twice the antioxidants of blueberries; four times more vitamin C than oranges; twice as much potassium as bananas. And the compounds that give black currants their deep purple pigment have the potential to protect brain cells and prevent Alzheimer's, according to several recent studies.

Black currants are also one of only three known sources of gamma linolenic acid. That's the "good" omega-6 fatty acid that's also found in evening primrose oil and borage oil. This fatty acid reportedly boosts your immune system, reduces cholesterol, relieves arthritis and PMS, and may fight cancer. Oh, and it's great for your complexion, too, because it helps combat collagen loss.

That's quite a resume for one little berry; a veritable fountain of youth. So why aren't we all guzzling gallons of the stuff?

Well, in Europe, they are. And have been, for a long time. If you've ever been to England, you may recall the very popular beverage Ribena, a black currant-based drink marketed by the pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline.

Sound medicinal? It's actually quite tasty, if a bit sweet. Black currants are naturally tart, so you can't drink pure black currant juice; Ribena is sweetened and sold as a concentrate, in pre-mixed cartons, and as a fizzy soda. It's as quintessentially British as Smarties (England's answer to M&M's), Marmite, or McVitie's digestive biscuits.

France has its own black currant drink, crème de cassis, a liqueur created by monks in the 16th century and said to cure "snakebites, jaundice, and wretchedness."

Americans have had to wait nearly a hundred years for our own black currant beverage, but finally, we have CurrantC, thanks to the fanaticism of a fellow named Greg Quinn.

Black currants are nearly unknown in the U.S. because of a ban that dates back to the turn of the last century, when it was discovered that black currants played host to a disease that afflicts white pines. Once a thriving New York crop, black currants were all but forgotten after being declared a "public nuisance" in 1911, making the planting, cultivation, sale, and transport of black currants illegal.

But Quinn, a Hudson Valley farmer, was convinced of the black currant's tremendous potential and determined to get the ban overturned. As disease resistant black currant varieties became available in recent decades, experts at Cornell University questioned whether the ban was still justified.

Quinn succeeded in getting a new law passed in 2003 that allowed farmers to grow several varieties of black currants that are immune to the white pine blister rust that made them contraband in the first place.

With black currant production legal again, Quinn set to work producing the not-too-sweet, slightly syrupy black currant concoction he named CurrantC. It's sweetened with pure cane sugar, not the dreaded high fructose corn syrup, and he calls it a nectar, not a juice.

Quinn markets this stuff as if it's some kind of magical elixir, and who could blame him? CurrantC is a delicious, refreshing drink crammed full of health-giving compounds. It's currently (pun intended) sold in 20 or so states, and adding more all the time thanks to word of mouth.

That's reason enough to try it, but there's another bonus; it may also be an antidote to suburban sprawl, if Quinn has his way. An agricultural consulting firm studied the market potential for this barely-known berry and concluded that black currants could become a $20 million business in New York State and a $1 billion business nationwide.

So Quinn set up a management company to assist all those affluent second home owners with plenty of acreage who might want to reap the agricultural tax breaks that come with planting a black currant crop. This strategy could save untold acres from being subdivided and conquered by condos.

The pressure to develop the rich, rolling farmland of the Hudson River Valley gets worse every year, as property values skyrocket. My own vinyl-clad fixer-upper's quadrupled in value since we bought it a few years back (just think what it will be worth if we ever get the sheetrock up!)

Quinn's dream of black currant-covered hills is a far more appealing prospect than the McMansions and cookie-cutter condos that might otherwise crop up on these green pastures.

"You never bulldoze 100 houses and make a farm," he told the New York Times. "You bulldoze a farm and make 100 houses. When it's gone, it's gone forever."

CurrantC Premium Black Currant Nectar

Why We Like It: a delicious, healthy drink whose purchase helps preserve open space

Cost: 16 fluid ounces $3.99

Where to Buy It: At supermarkets and health food stores. If you are not within 25 miles of a store that carries CurrantC, contact Christine at cbreitenbach@thecurrantcompany.com, and they'll pay for the shipping costs.