Monster Hydro Mean Green

I got this bottle from a Petro Canada for $3.79 along with the Tropic Thunder and Manic Melon ones.

Taste

Mean Green smells and tastes like a limeade. A better way to describe it would be a flat lemon-lime soda drink that has sat out a bit too long and some of the water had evaporated thus making it a tiny bit sweeter than it should be. But the lemon near the finish helps cut the sweetness down to a more manageable level and leaves your mouth feeling fairly refreshing.

This flavor is nothing unique, but its non-carbonated nature makes it very easy to drink, especially when you are thirsty and tired.

Energy

As with all the other Hydros, there are 138 mg of caffeine in the bottle. The effects are also similar, which is why I will recycle some words here.

I started to feel the effects within 10 minutes, which manifested themselves through a mild shaky leg. Damn those sugars (25 grams in the bottle by the way). The rest of the energy started coming in another 10 minutes later with my mind clearing up from the morning fog and me getting the urge to go down to the gym. The kick was fairly clean and lasted for almost 2 hours.

Scores:
Cost - $3.79
Taste - 7.5/10
Energy - 7/10

Overall - 14.5/20...standard flavor

Monster Hydro Manic Melon

This is my second flavor of the Monster Hydro line-up. I got all of them from a Petro-Canada gas station for $3.79 per bottle. Check out my review of the Tropic Thunder.

Taste

This smells both amazing and with a hint of some dangerous chemical. The first whiff is of a red Jolly Rancher but if you smell it a bit too long, you get an odd chemical/medicinal scent. Just take short whiffs or don't pour this into a glass.

The taste is a similar blend of awesomeness and danger. It starts off watery, but as the beverage travels along the tongue, the flavors intensify and it does taste at times like a red Jolly Rancher. I also got dried fruits towards the end, which kicked this up a notch. Buuuut, I also tasted a short-lived plastic flavor as if the bottle was left in the Sun for a bit too long. I enjoyed the flavor, but overall, the scent and the odd bits of flavor lost some points.

Energy

As with all the other Hydros, there are 138 mg of caffeine in the bottle. The effects are also similar, which is why I will recycle some words here.

I started to feel the effects within 10 minutes, which manifested themselves through a mild shaky leg. Damn those sugars (25 grams in the bottle by the way). The rest of the energy started coming in another 10 minutes later with my mind clearing up from the morning fog and me getting the urge to go down to the gym. The kick was fairly clean and lasted for almost 2 hours.

Scores:
Cost - $3.79
Taste - 8/10
Energy - 7/10

Overall - 15/20...I generally like melon and this would have been a killer flavor if it had its edges rounded off a bit more

Monster Mango Loco Energy Drink Review

I have been admiring this one for months over at the energy drink subreddit and now it is finally in Canada! I got this from 7-11 where there are having a promotion on these - 2 for $6. Usually they are running closer to $4 each.

Taste

This Mango Loco has an orange color and it is very hazy, like a mango nectar with club soda. The aroma is incredible with a ton of mango but also a bit of tangerine and orange. The mouthfeel is thick and the taste is very similar to Monster's Khaos and Anti-Gravity but heavier on the mango while the orange/tangerine notes are more towards the end. And there is even a tiny bit of guava that develops in the aftertaste once you have a few sips.

The mango flavor is comparable to a fresh, thick mango nectar and it is equally sweet. Pretty good overall flavor but nothing to get excited about over.

Energy

There are 151 mg of caffeine in the can and 55 grams of sugar which is what gets you going and gives you a jittery rush right away. The caffeine kicks in 30 or so minutes later and lasts for 2 - 2.5 hours. Pretty standard for such a drink.

Scores:
Cost - on sale - 2 for $6 CAD
Taste - 8.4/10
Energy - 7.5/10

Overall - 15.9/20...great improvement over the existing mango flavor but nothing new or spectacular

Red Bull Organics Review

Red Bull Organics are a new line of soft drinks, not energy drinks like I thought. I found all of them (4 at the time of this review) at a local 7-11 where they were having a sale of 2 for $4.

Simply Cola

For those who remember, Red Bull actually already made a "Simply Cola" almost 10 year ago. My review is here. I believe this is either the same formula or one that is very close because both cola's state that the caffeine in the drink is extracted from coffee beans. Unfortunately the old Simply Cola did not state the caffeine content so I have no way of comparing the two in that department. This one has 32 mg, which is fairly comparable to a regular can of Coke.

Flavor-wise, both are very similar, if not the same. It has been almost 10 years since I last had the first Simply Cola so I am relying solely on my old review. This version also has notes of lemon, vanilla, cinnamon, and other spices, in addition to your typical cola flavors. The immediate finish is citrusy and sharp, but there are lingering spice notes that I really like.

Overall, pretty good twist on your standard cola flavor but the citrus twist may not appeal to Coke lovers.

Taste - 8.5/10

Ginger Ale

This ginger ale has a very gingery aroma but it isn't as gingery as expected. In fact, the lemon is a bit overpowering towards the finish. Interesting twist on ginger ale, but I think I would have liked to be a bit more intense a little less lemony.

Taste - 6/10

Tonic Water

I can see how Simply Cola and Ginger Ale could be part of the Red Bull family, but this Tonic Water is a complete departure from the regular line up. More so because the choice of flavor just doesn't math anything else that is Red Bull.

On its own, the tonic water is not great but not horrible. The aroma is sweet, like candy. The flavor is lacking at first but then develops into more of a sweet, rather than bitter soda. Sure, there is a moment of bitterness, but it goes away rather quickly and all you are left with is more sweetness and a tiny bit of citrus. The mouthfeel is also sticky and creamy, rather than sharp and bitey. It needs more of an edge.

Taste - 6/10

Bitter Lemon

This one has a very refreshing and full lemon flavor up front with a delayed light bitter finish. If you take frequent sips, you won't even get the bitterness because that's how long it takes to emerge. If you are afraid of it being too bitter, don't be. The bitterness is short-lived and light enough for most to enjoy it.

Overall, this is a very refreshing flavor and is my favorite of the bunch.

Taste - 9/10

Monster Hydro Tropic Thunder

Finally a new product from the US made its way across the border. I spotted all of the new Monster Hydro flavors at a Petro Canada gas station and bought them all. There were no special deals at the time so I paid $3.79 per bottle.

So what is Monster Hydro? This, essentially is Monster's delayed response to Vitamin Water. The label talks about all the waters that are available to you and how this is a lightly sweetened version to give you a boost.

Energy

First off, this Tropic Thunder smells incredible! It is a mix of various citrus fruits and mango. The label led me to believe this would be a slightly sweetened, and lightly flavored water, but in fact, this tastes a lot like something from the Rehab line. The flavors are light to medium at first, but intensify towards the middle of each sip and end on a strong note, leaving lots to linger.

The flavors start off with the citrus, but the mango moves in quickly which is then followed by a bit of pineapple. The citrus comes back towards the end and join with the mango to give you a refreshing aftertaste. The label is right about the sweetness level, though. There is just enough of it to compliment the flavors, but not enough to build up to astronomical levels like some other sugary energy drinks...some Monster ones included.

I loved this flavor, especially in combination with the non-carbonated nature of this beverage. I found myself consuming this bottle very quickly because not only was it a good thirst quencher, but also the flavors were good.

Energy

There are 138 mg of caffeine in this 550 mL bottle, which is on the low end, but still enough to give you a nice kick. I started to feel the effects within 10 minutes, which manifested themselves through a mild shaky leg. Damn those sugars (25 grams in the bottle by the way). The rest of the energy started coming in another 10 minutes later with my mind clearing up from the morning fog and me getting the urge to go down to the gym.

The kick was fairly clean and lasted for almost 2 hours. No crash at the end because this was early in the morning and I had plenty of sleep.

Scores:
Cost - $3.79 from Petro Canada
Taste - 9.5/10
Energy - 7/10

Overall - 16.5/20...awesome flavor that would have found a great home as part of the Rehab line

Red Bull Winter Edition Plum Twist

This is Red Bull's first Winter Edition that I have seen...or at least the first Winter Edition that managed to make its way to Canada. Since its recent release, you can find this one almost everywhere Red Bull cans are sold. I got mine from a Mac's.

Taste

Surprisingly the liquid has the same purple hue as the can. The aroma is sweet and reminds me of cream soda. The taste also starts off like a cream soda, but a moderately sour fruity twist appears within moments. The sourness is definitely similar to plums (mostly unripe Damsons) but the fruitiness reminds me more of wine gummies mixed with ume, and a subtle, yet easily recognizable Red Bull cough syrup note. So I guess the "twist" must refer to the variety of plums this drink is trying to imitate.

In any case, I liked this Red Bull's unique new flavor, but I can't say I loved it too much.

Energy

There are 114 mg of caffeine in the can and its effects are similar to any other 355 mL can of Red Bull - fairly quick energy kick with jitters, followed by 1.5 hours, or so, of a ton of energy.

Scores:
Cost - $3.50
Taste - 7/10
Energy - 7/10

Overall - 14/20...interesting and unique new flavor but could be better

V8 Energy Drinks in Canada - Round 2

V8 recently released another round of energy drinks and I was lucky enough to score a few. For the first round of their Canadian releases, check out my post from 2016.

Orange Pineapple

I actually reviewed the US version of this a few years ago. This one is a little different and not in a good way. The US one had an amazing, intense aroma with a ton of fruits and vegetables, while this one has a more subdued one that reminds me more of a cheap soft drink than a fruit-packed beverage.

The flavor is a little different too. The tea and artificial sweetener (rebiana, a stevia leaf extract) are much more pronounced to the point where the sweetener is pretty much the aftertaste. The orange flavor is subtle to light while the pineapple barely comes through.

Not as big of a fan of this one as I was of the US version. I used to buy it and drink it by the 6-pack.

Taste - 6.5/10

Raspberry Grape

The aroma on this one is amazing, but the flavor is very sweetener and green tea heavy which almost completely decimates any berry and grape flavors. I say almost, because there is still a light raspberry undertone at the start and a subtle grape note towards the finish that lingers in the aftertaste...and that's it.

I think this will be better sold as a rebranded V8 Green Tea flavored beverage.

Taste - 5/10

Energy

These V8s performed like all other V8 energy drinks so I will recycle some old text to describe these - the effects if these 80 mg cans are not as intense as a can of Red Bull since there are only 10 grams of sugar, but you still get a brief sugar rush within 10-15 minutes. I did not experience any jitters and even felt focused for a bit. When the caffeine kicked, it gave me about 1.5 hours of energy which slowly went away without any drama.

Energy - 6/10

Overall - 11/20 to 12.5/20...not the greatest batch of new energy drinks