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Where To Buy
Redline Ultimate Energy and Power Rush
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Today we have a double review. Redline Energy is a drink that comes in an 8oz bottle and a 2.5oz energy shot. Both of the bottles are berry flavored and come in a blue bottle with a screw on cap.
Starting with the energy shot, this variant of Redline comes in the 2.5oz bottle and contains 350mg of caffeine per bottle, which is quite a lot! The bottle suggests only 1/2, or 1/4 at a time, as to avoid over stimulation. Because I’m checking out two drinks today, I think I’ll follow their advice. The Redline Energy shot smells fruity and ‘exotic’ just as the bottle advertises. The taste is pretty good at first, but after a few seconds, it becomes extremely sour, as there’s no sugar in this. The bitterness will go straight for your cheeks and cause a soft of an involuntary puckering. While the taste leaves a bit to be desired, the kick is worth the flavor. Redline Power Rush! also contains 2083% of your daily B12 (per serving, so double that if you have the whole thing). The nice thing about the Power Rush! is that there’s no sugar so there’s no crash after the energy boost.
Moving on to the Redline Triple Berry Ultimate Energy Rush (that’s quite a mouthful). After I opened this, I realized it smells just like the Power Rush!, but smells sweeter. Lo and behold, this drink is a lot less bitter than the other power shot. While this one is sweeter, and less bitter, there is still a small hint of bitterness that will make you pucker just a little. Once again however, there is a trade off; the Triple Berry Redline contains only 250mg of caffeine per bottle, 100mg less than the power shot, even though the Triple berry is 3x the size. The kick of Redline Energy Rush is still good though, as 250mg is still a hefty amount of caffeine.
Both of these products are worth it, while I don’t like the bitterness them, there’s not much else that can be done with their low sugar content and high concentration of caffeine. Both are worth it though if you need a quick boost during the day.
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Buzz Bites: Chocolate Energy Chews
The folks at Vroom Foods were kind enough to send a sample of two of their products, Buzz Bites, for review (just a side note, that I don’t bias reviews even if the supplier provides the product). Buzz Bites are caffeinated, chocolaty, candy chews that pack a whopping 100mg of caffeine, some taurine, and some ginseng per piece. Each tin contains 6 chews (only 25 calories a chew for anyone out there watching their figure), and costs around 4.00, or less, depending on how many you buy. This makes each chew average to a little over 50¢ a chew, which is a steal considering the chews contain more caffeine than some energy drinks and as much as a cup of coffee. So while 50¢ may be a lot for a plain old piece of candy, it’s worth paying for 100mg of caffeine instead of paying 2.29 for a less caffeinated Red Bull, or 2.00 for a cup of coffee. Buzz Bites come in two flavors: Chocolate, and Mint Chocolate. The chocolate ones taste like chocolate and have an ever so slight hint of bitterness after you chew it, which is to be expected considering the amount of caffeine in each mint. The mint chocolate ones, in my opinion, are better than the plain chocolate ones. They pack the same kick as the chocolate ones and are the same in every way, except for the flavor. They taste a lot like those Andes Mints, and they don’t have any bitterness, as the mint masks it. While I do prefer the mint ones, I really enjoyed both of these products a lot! The chews melt in your mouth and you feel the kick right away, faster than the kick from a cup of coffee. The chews are individually wrapped and easy to open, making Buzz Bites a great product to keep handy for when you need a quick boost. Finally, Buzz Bites didn’t give me a crash, making this product one of the best I’ve come across. You can get these Buzz Mints here, and they are becoming more available as they increase distribution.
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Wired X3000: Mango Passion Fruit
Well, I got this drink on the West Coast and have never seen this in my area; the can is bright yellow and has red stripes stretching vertically along the can. I wasn’t sure what to expect from this drink, because I wasn’t sure if it was a generic drink or not as I’ve never come across it (it isn’t by the way, it’s a brand name drink) but I was pleasantly surprised by it. When I first cracked the can open, a familiar aroma over came me, this drink smells just like NOS, and so far, this drink is already doing quite well in my opinion. Wired X3000: Mango Passion Fruit also tastes a bit like NOS, a very fruity and smooth taste. The taste is a little weaker than NOS, but still very good. The color is a light yellow-orange, and the drink isn’t overly carbonated, but isn’t flat either. Another aspect of this drink that certainly isn’t flat is the kick; this drink contains a whopping 3000mg of Taurine, 188mg of Caffeine, 100mg of Inositol and lots of Vitamin B, putting this drink ahead of most of it’s competitors in caffeine content. The kick stayed with me throughout the day and I didn’t crash from it. It is only available in a 16oz can, and the price was a little less than $2.00, making this drink one of the best deals I’ve come across to date.
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Duff Energy Drink
Doh! Introducing Duff Energy Drink, that’s right, it’s the same Duff from the Simpsons (only this is the Energy Drink version of it, not the Beer in the show). This is the second novelty drink I’ve had and I was worried it would taste just like Power Up! (they are both made by Boston American Corp and available from Xoxide). Luckily, Duff is it’s own drink, not a generic formula with a different label. Duff looks just like the Duff in Groenig’s the Simpsons and carries both Groenig’s signature and the Simpsons logo. This clever energy drink version of Homer’s favorite beverage has an orange citrus taste to it; it smells and tastes a lot like Orange Crush. When I had this drink, it didn’t seem to be thy carbonated. However, one I had finished it, I couldn’t stop burping. Once it gets in your stomach, it seems to stet bubbling and you can’t control the burping! I’m not sure if this is intentional - Homer always burps after having Duff, maybe they do this to make it more similar to the show - or not. Duff Energy contains 120mg of caffeine (the can is 12fl oz) and isn’t any worse than the kick of name brand drinks. Duff energy tastes great, but it’s a little too carbonated for me to drink on a day to day basis, and while the 2.99 price may be worth it for Simpsons fans, it’s a little too pricey for me.
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Red Panax Ginseng Extract
I’ve had this case of Red Panax Ginseng for a while (back to when I got the Chinese RedBull and the Korean Ginseng Drink), and it’s about time I get around to writing a review of it. Ginseng is a common ingredient in many energy drinks due to belief that ginseng may help increase alertness, longevity, and overall health (some studies have shown it to help reduce risk of cancer and act as an anti-biotic). Regardless to whether or not this is completely true, ginseng is found in almost every energy drink on the market. While ginseng is a fruit bearing plant (little berries, not fruit like pineapples) the extract comes from the roots, and can be bought in liquid form, or the root as a whole. This ginseng isn’t nearly as bad as the last stuff I tried, and can be taken several ways.
1) Pure Extract: The case comes with a bunch of little straws, so you can just drink the ginseng straight from the bottles. If you use the straw, it only takes a second to finish a bottle. If you don’t use the straw, and pour it into your mouth, you’ll get the taste while you’re drinking it and it’s pretty strong and bitter. In my opinion, it’s better to get the aftertaste after you drink it, not while you’re drinking it.
2) Ginseng Tea: The sales person told me that the most popular way to drink ginseng was in tea form. You just heat a cup of water and pour the ginseng in the cup; it’s as simple of that. The tea has somewhat of a bitter, root-like, taste to it, but it actually was pretty good. The dilution gets rid of the strong taste and makes it milder, and at the same time more enjoyable.
3) In Coffee: If you don’t want to drink it plain, and don’t feel like boiling a pot of water, why not just add it to your coffee. The taste of coffee is able to mask most of the ginseng’s taste, so the coffee only tastes a little different. This works well as you get the caffeine and the ginseng (like in energy drinks) without having to shell out money for an energy drink.
Overall, this stuff isn’t half bad, and makes a pretty good tea. Also, the case (total of 300 mL of ginseng) only cost a few dollars, so it’s not pricey at all. I know it’s not caffeine, but it’s so common in energy drinks, and shares some properties of caffeine that it would seem almost wrong not to review Red Panax Ginseng!
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Monster Assault
Monster Assault is one of the original members of the lineup, and it’s about time we check it out. Monster Assault, like all the other Monster products, contains the same energy mix and caffeine content (10mg/1oz, 160mg in a 16oz can) so Assault isn’t going to give any more, or less, of a kick than it’s kin. However, it does have a nice packaging, and a different taste. Monster Assault has a brownish red color, and a distinct flavor. It’s hard to describe, as it’s not an identifiable one like other drinks, but it’s not bad. Monster Assault is also very aerated and carbonated and when I’m drinking it, it feels like I’m swallowing a breath of air along with each sip, which is fairly annoying. I’ve gotten this sensation with other Monster beverages in the past as well, which is why I’m not a huge Monster fan, but it may just be me. The kick of this drink was very pleasing though; the Monster energy blend has always been good and got me going this morning. Monster Energy contains 2500mg of their Energy Blend per 8oz of drink (so this has 5000mg of it). The blend consists of: L-Carnitine, Glucose, Caffeine, Guarana, Inositol, Glucuronolactose, and Maltodextrin. The beverage doesn’t say how much of each compound it contains, but that doesn’t matter, as long as it delivers a good kick. Monster Assault has a good taste, and a great kick. If it weren’t for the high amount of carbonation, I would like it a lot more. However, if you are a Monster fan, Monster Assault is the way to go and will not let you down!
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Jolt Power Cola
For this update on Caffeine Guru, I’ve decided to try out Jolt Power Cola. It comes in a bright, shiny red can with big letters in an obnoxious font. How could anyone resist this?- their packaging screams caffeine. Jolt proudly boasts that its line of sodas (theirs some other flavors, I’ll review those later) contains “twice the caffeine of regular soda”. In reality, it packs a little more than twice. A 23.5 oz can of Jolt (pictured) contains 220mg of caffeine. Not bad! My first impression of Jolt Power Cola was that Jolt is just your average generic cola. It tastes a lot like a generic cola, a little flatter/bland than Coca-Cola or Pepsi, and a little better than the wholesale food market cola brands. So unless you’re a snobby, self-proclaimed Cola connoisseur, you’ll be fine (I do agree with Jolts saying “The Energy Drink that Actually Tastes Good.” it is tasty like I said). Jolt is also jam packed with caffeine, taurine, guarana and all the other good stuff energy drinks come with nowadays. Again, Jolt also comes in a variety of flavors, and you can check them out at the Official Site or buy them over at the caffeine friendly ThinkGeek Caffeine Department . Jolt is distinctive for its tall can with a screw on top, which is certainly a plus because it doesn’t make you have to drink it all at once and allows you to take it on the go without worrying about spilling. Most importantly Jolt certainly does it’s job caffeine wise. Its energy mix supplied me with plenty of energy (the equivalent of a little over 4 cans of Coke) without any jittering or twitching. So, if you want the taste of a soda, and the kick of a cup of coffee or two, head on over to the local store (or ThinkGeek Caffeine) and try a Jolt Power Cola.
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Rockstar PUNCHED
One of Rockstar’s newest products, Rockstar PUNCHED, well, it packs a punch. At 120mg of caffeine per 8oz, this can packs 240mg of caffeine. For $1.99 at the local Shell Gas station, this is a great buy.
Rockstar PUNCHED gives off the aroma and taste of your basic fruit punch (think Hawaiian Punch or Tahitian Treat) and its bright red color is just asking to stain your favorite dress shirt or oriental carpet. Rockstar’s basic energy mix is what gives this drink such a kick: Taurine, Ginkgo, Caffeine, Guarana and Ginseng combine to get your body and mind up and running. In addition, Rockstar PUNCHED is fairly fizzy so the carbonation factor keeps you from downing this drink quickly, you would be better off sipping this energy mix.
After downing my can of PUNCHED, I was very pleased. The energy mix got me awake and focused, without making me jittery like some drinks will. I was ready for the day ahead thanks to this new product. Because of its great taste, price and energy Rockstar PUNCHED is definitely one of the better drinks out on the market.
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