Listerine Cool Mint Alcohol Free Mouthwash, 1 L

The Good: I've been using Listerine for years. A few months ago my dentist recommended that I stop using mouthwash containing alcohol that could be slowly damaging my teeth. So I switched to the Listerine without alcohol. It freshens my mouth and breath much the same as the old Listerine did. The taste is slightly different though; to me; it's less minty and almost has a flavor note that reminds me vaguely of licorice. This is not necessarily a bad thing, just ... different. I kind of like it. The Bad: I don't think I've ever cussed out an inanimate object as much as I did this #*%&(#(#$#% Listerine bottle. It is *very* hard to open, I had to try to get through two nearly impenetrable layers: First was the shrink-wrap plastic that has the cap seemingly cemented to the bottle. There is NO apparent easy way to remove it. Somebody could get hurt trying to use a knife to cut through it... and even with a knife it is frustrating and very difficult. C'mon, manufacturer! I get that you're trying to protect yourselves by making sure it can't be tampered with. But this is WAY overboard. It would be easy for them to put some sort of tab on the shrink wrap cap cover so it can be removed by the consumer with a reasonable amount of effort; that would keep it tamper proof without making it so difficult for the user to remove. (There should be a warning on the bottle that this product is not suitable for senior citizens or those with arthritis). Once I finally managed to cut off the shrink wrap on the cap without slicing up my fingers, the next challenge was OPENING the cap. I'm used to similar products having squeeze- or push- to remove bottle caps but this is downright ridiculous. They've made it virtually senior-proof. I'm not weak, but no matter how much I squeezed the cap where it's marked, it would not unscrew past the protrusions on the bottle neck that are designed to make it so it can't be removed without special manipulations. When I tried to use the mouthwash, I had just brushed my teeth and wanted to go to bed. Instead I got frustrated and angry because I could not open the bottle. I've never had this problem with any other product. I literally ended up getting out my toolbox and using a large pair of pliers to force the cap off the bottle, then I used a pair of heavy wire cutters to cut the tabs off the bottom edge of the cap so next time I would be able to just open it. And those tabs were hard to break off. That whole experience just to simply open and use a bottle of mouthwash was just not worth it. Surely I cannot be the only consumer who has experienced this issue. Once I finally got it open, rinsed my mouth and went to bed, I looked up on my phone to see who the manufacturer of this so-badly-packaged product is. I found that it is "McNeil Consumer Healthcare division of Kenvue, which is a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson." I lay awake for a long time after this fantasizing about walking into a J&J board meeting with a case of this Listerine mouthwash and forcing each board member and marketing executive to try to open the bottle. Apparently no one in the company adequately tested it for consumer use before allowing this poorly designed packaging to actually be sold. If they had to try to open it, maybe there would be an improvement.