Beaver Buzz Green Machine Energy Review

I finally found the last flavour in the current line of Beaver Buzz drinks - Green Machine. This is the old name, the current is Green Melon. The can is also the old style - 473 mL, rather than the slim and tall 355 mL.

The drink really is green, very green in fact, and has a pleasant melon scent. The taste is made up of 3 different stages which are noticeable in every sip. The first stage is the most enjoyable one. Here the melon taste is the strongest and cleanest. In the second stage, you start noticing the taste of the energy ingredients, which by now overpower the melon taste. In the third stage, you start detecting a medicine taste, similar to that of regular Monster. By this time, the melon taste has almost disappeared. The good news is that the pleasant taste comes back in the aftertaste which makes you forget that you had to go through the stages 2 and 3. After the first third of the can, the stages start blending together as the sweetness builds up and you become more used to drinking it. This is where the taste becomes a bit more enjoyable and the melon flavour noticeable through out the entire drinking process.

The can contains the standard amount of caffeine for a 473 mL Beaver Buzz drink - 200 mg. I felt awakened about 15 minutes after consuming the first the first quarter of the can. About 10 minutes after that I was feeling wired, but not very jittery. Wait for another 15 minutes and get ready to experience some uncontrollable energy with some jitters. After half an hour the jitters subside and you are left simply energized. The energy kick lasted for about 3-4 hours and I did not experience a crash at the end. Another great Beaver Buzz that works.

Scores:
Cost - $2.99 CAD for a 473 mL can
Taste - 8.3/10
Energy - 8.3/10

Overall - 16.6/20...I enjoyed the taste, but thought it could have been improved a little. The kick wasn't bad either

Hype MFP Energy Drink Review

Today I am going for something with a bit less caffeine. When I was at the convenience store I was debating between the small Hype MFP and the Hype MFP X2, which is basically Hype MFP in a 473 mL can. The small can cost me $1.99 CAD, which is a bit more expensive than a can of Red Rain.

This energy drink has the generic Red Bull smell and color. The taste is almost the same with the exception of level of sourness. This is far more sour than Red Bull and Red Rain and I like that. There is absolutely no sweetness build up as I sometimes get from drinking a large can of Red Bull. The extra citric acid helps make the finish and aftertaste clean. My tongue also felt extremely clean which made my mouth feel fresh and clean for quite some time. If you like Red Bull and Red Rain, then you will definitely love this one.

As most other energy drinks that come in 250 mL cans, this one also contains only 80 mg of caffeine. That is all I really needed as I had enough sleep and just wanted to satisfy my caffeine addiction. The 80 mg of caffeine don't do much for me anymore, but offer an energized feeling for an hour or so. There was no gradual build up of energy, I reached that elevated feeling in an instant because I drank the entire can almost at once. I didn't experience a crash with this one.

Scores:
Cost - $1.99 CAD
Taste - 9/10
Energy - 6/10

Overall - 15/20...the extra citric acid really helps the flavour

Arizona Black & White Iced Tea Review

I bought another Arizona iced tea import from the US from the local convenience store. I generally buy the Green Tea Iced Tea with Ginseng & Honey because that flavour is sold many places in Canada, so when I saw the Black & White tea variant, I just had to try it and compare.

The black & white tea combination is a rather odd one because black tea is much stronger than white tea. The good folks who make Arizona have, somehow, managed to make both flavours stand out in this beverage. Both the smell and taste are dominated by sweet black tea, but the finish is surprisingly light and tastes more like white tea than black. The iced tea is, of course, sweetened, but not too much. Unlike the Green Tea, the ginseng flavour in this Arizona is lost. The presence of honey is almost lost as well, except in the aftertaste when it comes on top of the white tea taste. I really enjoyed this black & white iced tea beverage and will definitely buy it again in the future.

Scores:
Cost - $1.29 CAD for a 680 mL can
Taste - 8.9/10

Overall - 8.9/10...great iced tea

Rip it Energy Fuel Power Sugar Free Review

A couple of days ago I tried the Rip It Power energy drink and I liked the unique taste. Today I am trying the sugar free version of it, which also retails for only $1.99 CAD.

The drink smells a lot like the regular Power, but its color is a bit lighter. The taste is also almost identical up to the finish, where you really taste the artificial sweeteners. The aftertaste is not as clean as the diet taste lingers for quite some time. Oddly, the diet aftertaste morphs into a coffee/chocolate one after some time. It is not something bad, just something I wasn't expecting. Hm, I can't think of anything else to write here as this an excellent sugar free version of an already great tasting energy drink.

The sugar free version also contains 200 mg of caffeine, but I did not experience the effects as quickly as I did with the regular Power. The initial experience was rather an odd one for me. I felt my brain being stimulated, but my eyelids were just as heavy as before. It took a few more minutes to start feeling physically energized. The effects of the energy drink lasted for several hours until past lunch time when I started experiencing a headache but no crash.

Scores:
Cost - $1.99 CAD for a 473 mL can
Taste - 7.9/10
Energy - 8/10

Overall - 15.9/20...great tasting sugar free version of an already great tasting energy drink

Rip It Energy Fuel Power Review

Today I am trying the next flavour of the Rip It energy drink family. I hope this is a little more original than the last one, Sting-er Mo. The price is the same - $1.99 CAD.

My hopes disappeared as soon as I pulled the tab and was greeted by the intense medicine aroma. For a moment there I thought I was smelling an open container of cough syrup. I don't think I have ever had an energy drink with a medicine smell this strong. At least the flavour is unique and does not taste like cough syrup. The drink has a sweet, citrusy taste but with a twist I cannot quite put my finger on. Quince is what came to mind at first, but as I kept drinking the flavour started shaping. Hints of strawberries started appearing and quickly disappearing in the finish. The thing I noticed about this drink is that it does have a very clean finish which kills absolutely any traces of flavour, but leaves your mouth feeling refreshed. I was too quick to judge the drink by the aroma as this definitely has a pleasant unique taste with a clean and refreshing finish. A huge improvement over the Sting-er Mo flavour.

As with the previous flavour, this one also contains 200 mg of caffeine. I was very tired and drowsy in the morning, but 10 minutes after starting to drink this I felt awake and more energetic. The unique taste helped me drink this quickly and soon I was feeling the negative effects of taking so much caffeine at once - jitters. The jitters subsided within 30 minutes and I was back to just feeling awake and energetic.

Scores:
Cost - $1.99 CAD for a 473 mL can
Taste - 8.3/10
Energy - 8/10

Overall - 16.3/20...pleasant unique taste with enough caffeine to wake you up...and crash you into a wall

Arizona Watermelon Review

I came across about a dozen different kinds of Arizona beverages at the local convenience store a couple of weeks ago. Since they were all imported, they weren't the standard 99 cents, but $1.29 CAD, which is still not bad for a drink that is 680 mL. The red label of the watermelon flavour attracted my attention today when I was looking at the energy drinks so I just had to pick up a can and try it. How could I say no to a watermelon flavoured drink? I love watermelons.

Upon opening the can, I was hit by the sweet scent of watermelon. The aroma reminded me of a watermelon Snapple and watermelon flavoured Jolly Rancher. This felt promising and just like that I took my first sip of this imported Arizona drink that I have never seen for sale anywhere else in Canada. The taste was fantastic - bold watermelon flavour, similar to that of the watermelon Jolly Rancher, and slightly sour from the citric acid. The next several sips revealed the sweetness of the beverage which started to slowly build up. As I continued to sip, I couldn't help notice that there may have been another flavour added to the watermelon cocktail - strawberry. Well, the back of the label did not indicate the presence of strawberries, but it did reveal the presence of several other fruits - mango, kiwi, pear and pineapple. I was surprised at how quickly I finished the huge can and I was also surprised at how sweet it was towards the end. Perhaps the sweetness was due to the fact that I did not shake the can, or perhaps that the drink contains a lot of sugar. Either way, I really enjoyed the taste of this Arizona fruit juice cocktail.

Scores:
Cost - $1.29 CAD for a 680 mL can
Taste - 9/10

Overall - 9/10...the sweetness builds up a little, but apart from that, this is a fantastic drink at a very low price

Glacéau Vitamin Water Energy Review

I am not one who buys Glacéau vitamin waters, or any vitamin waters for that matter, but today I wanted to try something different. It was lunch time and I was a bit tired, but didn't want to consume anything with too much caffeine. Then came Glacéau Vitamin Water Energy with Vitamin B and caffeine. The drink cost me $2.29 CAD, which is border line expensive for what you get. The label of this beverage will certainly not win any awards, but it gives you something to read between sips. I also like how half the front label is a paragraph containing all the ingredients.

Not having had Glacéau Vitamin Water before, I was expecting a burst of flavour, but what I got instead was colored water with some flavouring. It is my fault. I was expecting something along the lines of Gatorade, but this really is water. The flavour is not bad, but it is not very strong. It starts off with a hint of tropical fruits, passion fruit, mango, pineapple and tangerine, but quickly loses its flavour. The finish is slightly bitter and hints of the energy ingredients can be noticed. The flavour does build up as you continue drinking, but it starts off too plain. The drink is a bit sour from the citric acid, but I think it could use a bit more for that extra refreshing aftertaste.

The bottle contains only 50 mg of caffeine, which is not very much compared to popular energy drinks like AMP, Monster and Full Throttle, but for those not addicted to caffeine, this could be a great morning or afternoon boost. I felt the effects within 10 minutes and my head was a bit clearer. With such a low caffeine dosage I didn't have to worry about jitters or being overwhelmed by the caffeine. The caffeine boost didn't last very long for me, but it certainly pepped me up for a while.

Overall this is not a bad drink and has its niche, but it certainly cannot be compared to real energy drinks, some of which are even better tasting.

Scores:
Cost - $2.29 CAD for a 591 mL bottle
Taste - 7.7/10
Energy - 5.1/10

Overall - 12.8/20...flavoured water with some caffeine. Not bad, but not a real energy drink. I will still tag it as one though

Rip It Energy Fuel Sting-er Mo Review

There is nothing better than a good night's sleep, but when you can't get any, there are always stimulants to help you get through the day. Good thing I woke up to a fridge full of energy drinks. When I say full, I mean I had a few. When I was buying some things from the local mall I saw some new energy drinks at the newspaper stand - Rip It. I have never heard of, or seen, these drinks. The newspaper stand had 3 different flavours and I did what anyone in my position would have done, I bought them all. Priced at $1.99 each, they are comparable to buying a large coffee. I think this is a great price for energy drinks. Today I will be trying the drink that was closest to the fridge door - Sting-er Mo.

As soon as I popped the tab and went in for the sniff, I recognized the scent - Monster!!! The drink tastes like it too with the exception of the aftertaste. Sting-er Mo has a cleaner aftertaste without too much of the sweet and medicinal Monster build up. I am not sure if I should go into any more details as Monster is like the Budweiser of the energy drink world. I will say that I would rather pay $1.99 for a 473 mL energy drink that tastes exactly like Monster, than buy a Monster for $2.99. What a shame, I got tricked, just like I got tricked with Lost.

Other than the price, there is another difference between Monster and this - the caffeine content. This can of Rip It contains 200 mg of caffeine, which is more than any of the 473 mL Monster drinks. The Java Monsters do come close with over 190 mg, but this beats them too. The energy started coming in 10 minutes after popping the tab and taking the first sip. It came the same way as many of the Monster-like energy drinks - slow at first, then with a huge, uncontrollable burst led by jitters. After 30 minutes or so, the jitters subsided and I was left feeling refreshed and wide awake. The feeling did not last very long and 2 hours later I was starting to feel tired. By lunch I was quite exhausted and started to experience the symptoms of a crash. In total I got 2.5 to 3 hours of energy which is not good enough for a drink with 200 mg of caffeine.

Scores:
Cost - $1.99 CAD for a 473 mL can
Taste - 6/10...I will give it 0.1 more than I gave Lost because of the aftertaste
Energy - 7.7/10

Overall - 13.7/20...Monster clone with a slightly better aftertaste and a lower price tag

Tetley Infusions Liquid Tea Mix Green Tea Review

This is the first time I have seen something like this. There have been on-the-go powders for a while, ones you simply pour into a 500 mL bottle of water and shake. But why liquid? Why not powder? I couldn't wait to try this and see if it is any good. I like the package and I like the way you open it. I am so glad this is not a rectangular packet because I struggle with everything that comes in rectangular packets - soy sauce, ketchup, mayo, etc. I rip the corner off and the contents spill all over my fingers. The Tetley's package has some space for errors and faulty openings in the neck.

If you are adding this to a bottle of water, make sure you take a few sips from the bottle as this would otherwise overfill. The mixed beverage smells almost like the Korean cold green teas, but it doesn't taste quite like them. The flavour has a similar start, but soon the sweetness comes in. Yes, this is lightly sweetened but not as much as iced teas. The finish is not like other iced teas, it is rich in green tea flavour...but hold on, before you get too excited, this doesn't have a good green tea taste, just slightly better than the packaged crap you buy from supermarkets. The green tea finish lingers for a while and slowly turns into a dry, clean mouth-feel without much taste. I found this tea mix to be pretty good, better than some of the powdered drinks you can buy.

Scores:
cost - unknown
Taste - 7.1/10

Overall - 7.1/10...not bad

Cobra Green Apple Energy Drink Review

This is the cheapest energy drink I have purchased - $0.48 CAD. There was some corrosion near the base of the can and the top was a bit dirty, but it's not like I will be drinking from the base of the can.

The drink is a little weird - it poured like a beer with a medium, creamy head. Its color was deep and green, not a very natural one. It didn't smell very appetizing. It smelled like Ben-Gay with mixed with Tiger Balm and an apple scent tossed in to cover the medicinal ingredients. Yep, it tastes similarly with a horrible, very hard to swallow medicinal taste. Once again, the apple flavouring has been added in an attempt to mask the horrible taste. They should have added a lot more of it and some more citric acid for that sour taste and burn. I had two sips of this and had to stop there. Cobra Green Apple, you are the worst tasting energy drink I have ever had. Congratulations.

No need to describe the energy effects of this drink on me since I only had 2 small sips. The label does not state the caffeine content, but I think it is low since the only possible caffeine sources is guarana. There is ginkgo biloba, but I don't think that contains any caffeine. The nutritional information label does not state the the serving size, but I find it hard to be one can, 355 mL.

Scores:
Cost - $0.48 CAD for a 355 mL bottle
Taste - 0/10
Energy - unknown

Overall - not worthy of a score as everything about this drink from the label to its taste is absolutely horrible

XL Energy Drink Review

I got this from the local bargain store for only $0.97 CAD. The can is a bit dirty and most of the ones in the fridge were a bit banged up, which leads me to believe that these have been there for quite some time. Who am I to complain, this cost me a $1. All I had to do was get a glass and wipe the top off a bit.

As soon as I popped the tab, the familiar smell of Red Bull hit me. The beverage has the same color too, dark yellow. The only difference so far is the sweeter aroma. Yes, the taste is almost identical to the Red Bull one except that it is sweeter and a bit less sour. The aftertaste is cleaner at first, but sweetness slowly starts building up. I like the taste because I love the Red Bull/Red Rain/Red Rave taste and the price is right too.

I cannot find the caffeine content anywhere on the can, but I am almost positive, it is 80 mg - the same as Red Bull, Red Rain, Red Rave. I drank a can of this at lunch and I was feeling peppy within 10 minutes. The boost only lasted for over an hour, which is a bit sad. I think I am getting too used to energy drinks with much higher amounts of caffeine. I will give this the same rating as Red Rain and Red Rave simply because there are people out there who only need 80 mg of caffeine, or even less.

This is where I have to let you know that when I was looking for the caffeine content, I came across the "Product is certified Kosher." statement on the back of the can.

Scores:
Cost - $0.97, on sale
Taste - 8.1/10
Energy - 6/10

Overall - 14.1/20...almost a Red Bull clone, except sweeter and with a very low price tag

Red Bull Cola Review

I was walking around the neighborhood, looking for new energy drinks, killing time during lunch, when I came across some cans of Red Bull Cola. I have heard of it before, but have never seen it. To my surprise, it was the local convenience store that had the drinks. They were selling both sizes - 250 mL cans and 355 mL cans. The little ones were 2 for $4 CAD while the large ones 2 for $5.

The drink is very carbonated and has a mild vanilla/cinnamon smell and taste. It is a bit spicy with a slight lemon taste. The mouth feel is pleasant without any sugar build up. The long term aftertaste is of lemons. My mouth was dry 10 minutes after finishing the drink.

There is no indication of the amount of caffeine present in the drink, but whatever it is, it comes from coffee beans. I felt the drink kick in, but it provided just enough energy for me not to fall asleep. I assume if I had consumed the 2 drinks I bought, I would have felt much better. Don't buy this if you are looking for energy, go for the Red Bull.

Scores:
cost - 2 for $4 CAD for the 250 mL cans, or 2 for $5 for the larger ones
Taste - 7.8/10
Energy - 5/10

Overall - 12.8/20...not a bad taste, but does not provide a sufficient kick to consider this a serious energy drink

Hardcore Energize Bullet Black Rush Review

There was a crate of these with a big $0.99 sticker at the local convenience store, how could I resist? I cannot recall the regular price, but I think it is either $2.99 CAD or $3.49 CAD. The only problem was that the store only had the Black Rush flavour and not the regular one. I love that test tube container, it feels so indestructible. Well, what do you know, there is a little paragraph on the back of the label, which states "Virtually Unbreakable Container". Also don't worry, I checked the Health Canada page about this product and this does not have one of the four lot numbers that was subject to tampering.

After a quick shake, I cracked the test tube open. The first thing that hit me was a cherry like smell with a medicine undertone. From the second sniff I only got the cherry aroma. Wow, this thing drinks quick. I tipped it a little to have a sip and I consumed almost half the shot all at once. I think it is that large opening the test tube has. All other energy shots have a very narrow opening which requires you to either suck the shot out, or take multiple sips. The taste is not bad. It is of black cherries with a minimal medicine undertone which gets lost among the flavour. There is no bitterness or too much artificial sweetener. The aftertaste is clean, a bit sour at the back of the mouth and dry. I am surprised at how well this tasted.

The label says "Works in Five Minutes", which is almost true. I felt a rush just ten minutes after taking the first sip. At first it was a slow and steady rise in my energy level, but five minutes after that I felt a torrent of energy. The good thing is that it was clean energy and I wasn't jittery. I was feeling fantastic for about 4 hours and I did not experience a crash. This is definitely the best energy shot I have had.

Scores:
Cost - $0.99 CAD on sale, or $3.49 CAD regular price
Taste - 7.5/10
Energy - 10/10

Overall - 17.5/20...best energy shot I have had yet. The taste is great and the kick is excellent

Jolt Orange Blast Energy Drink Review

I found another one of the Jolt flavours at a gas station. This one, as someone pointed out, is not the one for sale in Canada as it is missing all the French translations. Only one more flavour left to track down - Cherry Bomb.

The Jolt Orange Blast smells and tastes like any other orange soda with a couple of small differences. First, there is an energy blend undertone, which seems to give each sip a bit of a bitter finish. Second, the beverage is not as sweet as other orange sodas and there is no build up in sweetness. The aftertaste is a bit dull at first, but the orange taste builds up. It is not a natural orange taste, more like the one you would get from taking chewable vitamin C tablets. The drink leaves the mouth feeling dry, which is something I haven't encountered in many energy drinks. I think this beverage could have used some more citric acid to make it a bit more sour. Overall this is a fairly refreshing energy drink without a medicinal taste.

Since this is an American Jolt, there is no caffeine content listed on the back. I will guess that this can contains a Jolt-standardized 189.2 mg of caffeine. I did not drink this in one sitting, as I wasn't in the mood to consume 473 mL. I finished this just before lunch, but I did not experience that caffeine high since I was only taking small doses at a time. I did hit a wall 40 minutes after finishing the drink, which was not pleasant at all.

Scores:
Cost - $1.99 CAD for a 473 mL can
Taste - 7.3/10
Energy - 8/10

Overall - 15.3/20...has a generic orange soda smell and taste, but packs a punch

Check out the other Jolts I have tried:

• Wild Grape
• Blue Raspberry
• Power Cola
• Ultra: Sugar Free

Xyience Xenergy Big Apple Energy Drink Review

What is this? Another Xenergy drink? This is my fourth one in the past week. I have noticed that no matter which store you go to, you can always count on finding at least one, and in most cases different, flavour of Xyience Xenergy. The place I was at had the Big Apple, one that I have only seen a few places. It costs $2.99 and it also came in a slightly banged up can. You can't see it in the photo, but there are few more dings on the back. Where are these cans stored? Many stores I have been to sell banged up silver Xenergy cans. What gives? If you know, let me know.

As expected, the Big Apple drink has a pale green color, similar to some peppermint mints. The taste is excellent and very refreshing. Perhaps I should use one of their keywords and call the taste "Extremely refreshing". A strong Granny Smith taste punches you as soon as you start drinking. A mild green tea taste comes in after the apple one. Underneath the two flavours, there is a dull reminder from the artificial sweetener that this is a sugar free energy drink. The finish is of Granny Smith apples, but it quickly goes away and a refreshing taste of mint takes its place. I am not sure there is any actual mint in the drink so I think this is just a by-product of the flavour combination. Surprisingly, there is barely a trace of the artificial sweetener in the aftertaste, there is, however, a hint of the green tea taste along side the mint one. Nonetheless, this is a great tasting sugar free energy drink. In fact, this is the best tasting Xyience Xenergy drink.

Just like all silver cans, this one contains 180 mg of caffeine plus whatever else caffeine there is in the guarana extract. Performance wise, this is on the same level as the rest of Xenergy drinks - gives you a boost in 20 - 25 minutes from point you start drinking it, and depending on how long you take to drink the can, it will keep you on an energy high for 3 to 4 hours without a crash. I usually take 30 - 40 minutes to drink my 473 mL drinks and that way I, sometimes, avoid jitters.

Scores:
Cost - $2.99 CAD for a 473 mL can
Taste - 9/10
Energy - 8.3/10

Overall - 17.3/20...the best tasting sugar free energy drink I have had to date. The taste is refreshing and there is enough caffeine to provide a decent kick. The only thing I did not enjoy much was the green tea taste

Redline Energy Drink Exotic Fruit Review

I found this guy at 7-11 among all the Rockstars and AMPs. This looks promising with its resealable and small container. I paid $2.99 which is not too much considering that this has 400 mg of caffeine!!!!!!!! After that Fuel Cell, I am not too crazy about having this in one go or even one day.

The smell is very sour and strong, similar to cranberry juice. For a glorified energy shot, the taste is not bad. It is a sweet combination of strawberries, cranberries, cherries and a bit of pineapple. I said sweet, but not the good kind of sweet, it is more like the kind of too much artificial sweetener. The taste is a bit tart so the sweetness does not come out until the finish. Ah, the finish. The finish is a bit soapy and bitter. The bitterness is very distant and it quickly gets overpowered by the sweetness. In the long run, the aftertaste is very overwhelmingly sweet with some berry notes.

The energy is intense! This little, 240 mL, bottle contains 400 mg of caffeine. I would call this a hybrid energy drink - it is almost as concentrated as an energy shot, yet, it is close to the size of a small energy drink. I consumed only half the bottle and I was feeling overly energetic within 20 minutes. Half the bottle still contains more caffeine than regular 473 mL energy drinks. What I drank kept me going for quite a long time, but I did have to overcome that overly energetic period when I also experienced some jitters.

Scores:
Cost - $2.99 for a 240 mL bottle
Taste - 6/10
Energy - 10/10

Overall - 16/20...I would not recommend consuming this all at once and since this comes with a screw top, have half and save the other half

Xyience Xenergy Blue Pom Energy Drink Review

Yeah, 3rd Xyience in a row this week. This time I did not drop the can on my way to the desk, all of the Blue Pom flavours were like this at the 7-11 I picked this up from. Blue Pom seems to be a popular flavour among energy drinks, isn't it? The price is almost always the same at $2.99 and the top is once again dirty.

At least the dirty top gives an opportunity to see the color of the beverage when I pour it in my mug - it is dark pink and very slightly cloudy. OK, I have to agree with the "Great Tasting" slogan on the can, this does not taste like a sugar free drink at all when you are drinking it. The sweeteners become apparent in the finish and the artificial sweetness lingers in the mouth for a while. The taste itself is not very strong and kind of sweet. The pomegranate is the stronger flavour with the berry one coming in towards the end and remaining in the aftertaste and unlike the Red Rave Blue Pom, this one has a bolder taste.

The silver can Xyience drinks all have 180 mg of caffeine plus whatever else from the guarana, which is 20 mg less than the new, black cans. This much caffeine is plenty to get the day started or to pick you up. I had this one in the morning after, once again, staying up too late and 25 minutes after the first few gulps I was feeling fine. Having drank only Xyience energy drinks this week, I have to admit that these really work. I have yet to experience some jitters or a crash.

Scores:
Cost - $2.99 CAD for a 473 mL can from 7-11
Taste - 7.9/10
Energy - 8.3/10

Overall - 16.2/20...well, this is the best tasting Xyience so far and has a decent amount of caffeine

Xyience Xenergy Lemon Blast Energy Drink Review

Yeah, the can is a bit banged up, and yeah, I dropped it on the way to my desk. The good thing is that the mouth opening is on the good side so I don't have to go wash my mug to enjoy this.

The color of the drink surprised me again. I was expecting it to be like the Citrus Slam, clear, but it turned out to be a very pale pink one. What could possibly be in it to make a lemon flavoured drink pink? I know what, cherries! You cannot taste them as much, but subtle hints emerge in the finish. The lemon taste is more apparent in the finish and is very dull while drinking. This is sugar free drink and the company has done a better job at hiding this in the taste. When you have this drink cold, the combination between the temperature and the carbonation will hide almost all of the diet taste. Sweeteners become noticeable in the finish though. The aftertaste has the generic diet mouth-feel and taste. Overall this drink is just as dull in flavour as the Citrus Slam, but has an enjoyable finish with the lemon taste lingering for a while.

Same deal as the Citrus Slam in the caffeine department - 200 mg + whatever else from the guarana. I was feeling great 30 minutes after starting the drink. I wasn't experiencing any jitters, just a lot of energy. This had the same effect like the Citrus Slam - 4 hours with no crash.

Scores:
Cost - $2.99 CAD for a 473 mL can
Taste - 6.8/10...dull flavour
Energy - 8.6/10

Overall - 15.4/20...a lot of energy, but the taste is quite dull

Xyience Xenergy Citrus Slam Energy Drink Review

Finally some new energy drinks made their way into Canada. I got some of the new Xyience drinks. These new ones cost the same as the old ones - $2.99 CAD per can and so far I have only seen them at 7-11. The new black cans look very nice, much cleaner since all the text is on the back side.

Time to crack open the citrus slam one and see what's what. Odd, the beverage is completely clear, I was expecting something orange or dark yellow. The taste is very unique, not the citrus taste I was expecting. It tastes like diet medicine and leaves your mouth feeling dry. The flavour is fairly weak with lemon and lime hints coming in from the distance. The one thing that sticks out the most is the artificial sweetener. OK, here is how I can describe this drink best - take a glass of carbonated water, add a lot of sweetener, squeeze half a lemon and half a lime in, stir. I am only saying half a lemon and lime because of the weak flavour. On the plus side, the finish is very clean and the diet taste only sticks around for a few minutes. What's left after is a fresh mouth feel. To be fully honest, I am a bit disappointed with this drink. When I saw the new cans, which do not bear the "Zero Sugar" label on the front, I thought that Xyience had started making non-diet energy drinks. You actually have to read the ingredients list to see that this is a sugar free drink.

There is another thing! I saw three new flavours of this drink at 7-11 and I picked up 2 of them. The Citrus Slam was one, and the other Lemon Blast. If the Citrus Slam is a lemon and lime combo, what would the Lemon Blast be? Heavy on the lemon flavour and less of the lime? Well, I will find out in a few days...or whenever I have it.

The good thing about these new Xyience drinks is the caffeine content - 200 mg per can, plus some from the guarana. This thing works! I started drinking it when I started writing this review and now I am almost done with it. I was a bit tired having stayed up late playing games, but now, 20 minutes after starting to drink this, I feel great. No jitters, just clean energy. This thing also lasts... 4 hours for me and I did not experience a crash at the end.

Scores:
Cost - $2.99 CAD for a 473 mL can, sold at 7-11
Taste - 6.8/10
Energy - 8.6/10

Overall - 15.4/20...tastes like a diluted diet Sprite, but has a lot of caffeine

Intense NRG Energy Mix Grape Review

I am quickly running out of things to try. In order to find something new, I have to drive around and stop at every gas station, 7-11 or convenience store. Now I have decided to start trying a few things I have been avoiding for a while, things you can find in most stores - energy drink powders. This NRG powder cost me $1.49 and I am supposed to dissolve it in 500 mL of water. I am trying stay consistent here, so I decided to dissolve it in 473 mL of water.

The powder itself has a strong, sweet grape scent and dissolved rather well. OK, the pleasant powder scent is one thing, but once it was fully dissolved in the water, the resulting solution had a fairly bad, sharp smell like rotting fruits. I was still able to detect trace amounts of grape, but the bad smell was overwhelming. The taste is actually not as bad as the smell. It tastes like a well diluted cheap grape juice. There are still hints of that horrid typical NRG shot taste, but they are easily lost. The grape flavour is there mostly in the finish and is very mild. The finish in the long run is fairly clean with just a slight hint of grape, but that's because you are using water to dissolve the powder.

The package says that there are 2.4 grams of energy ingredients, but that could be anything. I tried finding information online, but nothing came up. This product is not even listed on the company's website. The only products listed are the 4 energy shots they sell. The only results I was getting were from online stores to buy a box of these. Well, I will try to ballpark the caffeine content based on my experience with this.

I felt waking up around 25 - 30 minutes after consuming half the drink. The experience for the next hour was a bit underwhelming. I was expecting a torrent of uncontrollable energy, instead I got a jittery feeling for a few minutes and nothing more. By that point I had already consumed 2/3'rds of the drink. Once finished with the entire drink, I started experiencing some more jitters, but energy wasn't as intense as I was expecting it to be. Two hours later I was feeling rather normal and just slightly pepped up. I would have to guess that there are around 140-160 mg of caffeine in the packet. The powder is definitely less effective than their energy shots, but a lot more tolerable to consume.


Scores:
Cost - $1.49 CAD for a packet
Taste - 5.2/10...unlike the NRG shots, this is tolerable once you get past the smell
Energy - 7.4/10

Overall - 12.6/20...tolerable taste, enough energy for something that costs $1.49